Reports of Committees. lxxi 
should be given another opportunity 
of expressing their wishes in the 
matter. They proposed, therefore, that 
a circular (a draft of which they had 
appro ved)should be issued, acquainting 
each voter in these divisions with the 
fact that a vacancy existed in the re- 
presentation of the county, and giving 
notice that nominations of candidates 
to fill such vacancies might be made 
up to Saturday, October 28. In the 
event of more than one candidate 
being nominated for one vacancy, the 
Committee thought it desirable, with 
the view of ascertaining the wishes of 
the majority of electors in a division 
as to the candidate whom they desired 
to be appointed as their representative 
on the Council, to follow the procedure 
relative to the issue of voting papers, 
&c., adopted in the contested elections 
which took place in other divisions in 
July last. 
Show of 1906. 
Letters were read from the Mayors 
of Blackpool and Derby, conveying 
invitations to the Society to hold its 
Show in these towns. 
Mr. Wheeler mentioned that the 
site available at Blackpool had already 
been inspected when a former in- 
vitation had been tendered in 1901. 
As to the Derby invitation, it was 
decided to request Mr. Carr, Mr. 
Cooper, and Mr. Crutchley (or, failing 
him, Mr. Wheeler) to visit Derby and 
report to the Council on November 1, 
with reference to the site and other 
facilities available. 
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 1905. 
MR. F. S. W. CORNWALLIS (PRESIDENT) IN THE CHAIR. 
Death of Earl Cathcart. 
The President, in opening the pro- 
ceedings, made sympathetic reference 
to the death, on October 30, of Earl 
Cathcart, a past-President and Trustee 
of the Society. Lord Cathcart was 
President in 1872-1873, and he was for 
many years Chairman of the Journal 
and Selection Committees. The Society 
and agriculturists generally had lost a 
warm supporter, and his Lordship’s 
death would be deeply regretted. 
Finance. 
Sir Nigel Kingscote reported 
that the Finance Committee had held, 
in addition to their usual monthly 
meeting, a special meeting on October 
17, to consider the references made to 
them by the Council on October 4, of 
the paragraphs in the report of the 
Special Committee which related to 
the Society’s Staff. Representations 
had been made to the Committee that 
to call for the resignation of each 
member of the Staff would be likely to 
endanger the future prospects of the 
Society’s servants in obtaining other 
employment, as implying dissatisfac- 
tion with the performance of their 
duties in the past. The Finance 
Committee had the assurance of those 
VOL. 66. 
of their number who signed the Report 
of the Special Committee that this was 
not at all the Committee’s intention, 
but that they considered that the new 
arrangements for the administration 
of the Society’s affairs which they 
proposed would be best facilitated by 
bringing to a termination the existing 
engagements with the whole of the 
staff. The present F inance Committee 
wished to associate themselves with 
the words of appreciation of the 
services of the Secretary, Assistant 
Director, Superintendent of Works, 
and Assistant Editor, and of the clerks 
employed under them, used by the 
Sub- Committee on Finance in their 
Report of April 12, 1904 ; and they 
recommended that the President be 
authorised to express satisfaction with 
these services in communicating to 
each member of the Staff the decision 
of the Council concerning him. 
With regard to the Secretary, it had 
already been reported on his behalf to 
the Council, at their meeting on 
October 4, that he was willing to 
retire at once, with a view to facilitate 
the new arrangements for carrying on 
the business of the Society coming into 
force as soon as possible, on the 
understanding that he received what 
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