SOCIETIES. 
'Siniversity at his lodgings weekly, to this 
feast of reason, deserves the honour of 
founding the Society, as it was there the 
jnore expanded idea ot future benefit to 
the comnaunity was generated and matured, 
and which would probably have been car- 
ried into effect, had not the unhappy civil 
war, during the reign of Charles I. banished 
every laudable public intention from the 
minds of the learned, and converted the 
seat of learning into a military post. 
Thus expelled from Oxford, we find that 
■many of the members of this infant society 
afterwards resided in London, and still che- 
rishing the plan, they contrived to meet at 
Gresham C-ollege between the years 1658 
and 1663. The evident advantages likely 
to be derived from the labours of the philo- 
sopher,, who was by this means compelled 
to exert his best tacuUies to escape free 
from the scrutinizing observations of his 
brethren in science, to whom they were 
-submitted, soon attracted the notice of 
those who had sufficient influence at court 
to procure a charter of incorporation, from 
a monarch whose pursuits were widely dif- 
ferent, and whicii was dated April 1663. 
This act reflecting equal honour on the age 
and nation, was accompanied by a declara- 
tion from the King expressed witliin it, that 
he wished to be considered in the threefold 
cliaracter of founder, patron, and compa- 
nion. 
Thus the Society received the royal pro- 
tection, and became a body politic, under 
the direction of a president and council, 
who were elected by the fellows or mem- 
bers ; the latter also cannot obtain admis- 
■sion without the routine of being proposed 
by persons already admitted, who, by this 
meatis, become responsible for the propriety 
of the recommendation ; and a formal ballot, 
which takes place after a sufficient time has 
elapsed, to enable the Society to judge 
whether the candidate has just pretensions 
to the honourable and learned distinction of 
Fellow of the Koyal Society, “ for pro- 
moting the knowledge of natural things and 
useful experiments.” The liberality which 
almost universally distinguishes the genuine 
philosopher, soon furnished their apart- 
ments with valuable and interesting, natu- 
ral and artificial productions ; and they wer« 
sufficiently numerous at the commencement 
of the eighteenth century to compose a 
folio catalogue, for which the public are 
indebted to Dr. Grew ; since that period 
the contributions have greatly multiplied, 
and form a most important collection. 
The meetings are now held weekly, for 
the general purposes of the Society, 
from the middle of November till July, 
on Thursday evenings, between the hours 
of eight and nine o’clock, when those 
papers are read which the secretary re- 
ceives in the interval between eacn meet- 
ing, and exhibits such curiosities as may 
be sent to liim for that purpose. Their 
own declaration, made very long since, will 
contribute to explain the nature of the 
communications to this valuable institution, 
which is calculated to “ make faitliful re- 
cords of all the w'orks of nature or art 
which come within their reach ; so that the 
present, as well as after ages, may be enabled 
to put a mark on errors which have been 
strengthened by long prescription; to re- 
store truths that have been neglected ; to 
put those already known to more various 
uses, and to make the way more passable to 
what remains unrevealed,” 
Society of Antiquarians. Though the ob- 
ject of this body is of rather less importance 
than that of the Royal Society, yet it has ob- 
tained a celebrity little inferior, as much has 
been done by it towards ascertaining the 
changes which have taken place in the sur- 
face of the earth, exclusive of the principal 
purpose of the association, which is to gene- 
rate a liking for the study of our national an- 
tiquities ; so that, in the sequel, genuine his- 
tory shall be preferred to the superficial in- 
formation gleaned from monastic writers ; 
this w ill be still further explained by the 
preamble of the charter, which asserts that 
the study of antiquity, and the history of 
former times, has ever been esteemed 
highly commendable and useful, not only to 
improve the minds of men, but also to in- 
cite them to virtuous and noble actions, 
and such as may hereafter render them fa- 
mous and worthy examples to late poste- 
rity. 
When we recollect, that from the time of 
Henry VIII. learning began to be more ge- 
nerally diffused throughout all ranks of peo- 
ple, and that Leland, Stowe, Camden, Dng- 
dale, Speed, Sir Robert Cotton, and many 
other eminent antiquarians, used every en- 
deavour to rouse their countrymen into a 
relish for their pursuits, it may be readily 
supposed, that attempts were made to form 
a society which might more effectually pro- 
mote individual views ; that such attempts 
occurred we have sufficient evidence, but 
that some adverse cause existed to prevent 
their fruition equal proof exists, in the fact, 
that the society did not receive the royal 
