ANNUAL MEETING. 
777 
this, he would once more refer to the paragraph in the Report, which stated that the 
Council congratulated itself upon the fact, that they had been able, with the appliances 
at their command, to educate 96 pupils. It was clear, therefore, to him, that the scheme 
hitherto adopted by the Society for carrying out scientific education failed largely, 
although a very heavy sum was expended. He thought, therefore, it was time that this 
state of things should be thoroughly looked into. The Chairman had himself hinted 
that it had not been lost sight of by those who governed the Society ; but the current 
of his observations seemed to show that the direction in which it was supposed possible 
that advance might be made, was in the exaltation of that establishment. It was a 
disagreeable thing to have to make any observation, however distant it might seem to 
be, regarding a system with which were connected so many gentlemen for whom they 
had the highest regard and respect; but he had very long felt that there was an anomaly 
in the fact, that whilst so large a proportion of the income of the Society was derived 
from the country generally, the sole direct benefits conferred were lavished upon an 
establishment which, after all, must be enjoyed almost exclusively by those who lived 
in London. Of course, that was almost inevitable, and, as far as the past was concerned, 
one would wish to make no complaint; he had no doubt the course which had been 
pursued by the Society had been the very best which could have been adopted in times 
past, and when they were simply a voluntary Society, they were, of course, at perfect 
liberty to do what they thought fit with the funds at their disposal. But within the 
last few years, the position of the Society had become very different: they had now 
certain trusts committed to their charge, and amongst them that very important one, 
the power of admitting or refusing individuals to secure the benefits of the trade. 
That being the case, it imposed a barrier to the entrance of many who were not quali¬ 
fied, and, therefore, it must become more and more their duty to do something to pro¬ 
vide opportunities for those persons to acquire such qualifications as they were compelled 
now r to possess, before they were allowed to enter the trade. At the same time that 
they prohibited young men from entering unless properly qualified, they ought to be 
able to say to them, We will give you, as far as we can, such opportunities as are ne¬ 
cessary for enabling you to acquire those qualifications which are necessary. If that 
were so, it was clear that these advantages should not be conferred exclusively on one 
community, however important and worthy it might be. His object at present was 
simply to draw attention to the subject, although he was prepared to propose a resolu¬ 
tion, if it were thought desirable to do so. He had no scheme to offer at present, 
thinking that such a subject, being for the first time introduced at an annual meeting, 
had better be more suggestive than anything else ; and he should, therefore, propose, if 
it met with the approval of the meeting, merely an abstract resolution recommending 
the subject to the earnest consideration of the Council. It would be simply to the 
effect, “That this meeting is of opinion that the means hitherto adopted by the Society 
to supply the educational wants of its members are no longer adequate to the necessi¬ 
ties of the times, and it respectfully urges upon the new Council the desirability of 
framing some scheme by which the resources available for such purposes may be distri¬ 
buted generally over the country, rather than concentrated upon one particular school.” 
He hoped no gentleman would suppose that he intended to imply the least atom of 
disrespect to the present educational institution ; on the contrary, lie had the highest 
regard for it, having been one of its earliest pupils, and, as he believed, reaped great 
benefit from attending for ten months within its walls. That was quite another ques¬ 
tion. The broad issue he raised was, whether it was not now desirable, under the 
altered circumstances of the trade, that, in future, all means which they had available 
for the purpose of scientific instruction, should be distributed over the country at 
large. 
The Chairman thought such a motion had better be reserved until after the special 
business had been concluded. 
Mr. Mackay said a paragraph in the Report alluded to the forthcoming change in the 
mode of publishing the Journal, and he would therefore ask leave to make a few re¬ 
marks upon this subject. So many were now interested in the success of this production 
that it might not be out of place to review shortly its past and present position. With 
regard to its merits and standing as a scientific publication, he need say nothing, for thirty 
volumes were now all but completed of a work which he might safely say had deservedly 
taken its stand side by side with any home or foreign publication of a kindred nature. 
VOL. XI. 3 E 
