IS 
REPORT OF THE 
Among the Donations to the Library, the Council have to notice 
with peculiar satisfaction, a valuable work, by the Society’s highly 
respected Treasurer, Robert Davies, Esq., whose Extracts from 
the Municipal Records of the City of Yorkf to which his official con¬ 
nection with the Corporation afforded him a ready access, accom¬ 
panied with many curious “ illustrative and explanatory notes f have 
thrown much light on the history of York during that portion of 
the 15th Century which comprised the reigns of the three last kings 
of the Plantagenet race. The valuable Transactions of the various 
Scientific Societies continue to be received as usual. The Council 
hope that, by some changes which they propose to make during 
the present year, the Library will be rendered more available to 
the purposes for which it was intended. 
The Laboratory continues in the same active service as usual. 
The regular course of Lectures to the Pupils of the York School of 
Medicine is in course of delivery ; and the Laboratory is well stocked 
with the reqiiisites for general purposes. Some slight alterations 
will however be necessaiy previous to the meeting of the British 
Association. 
Though the usual Astronomical Observations have been continued 
at the Observatory, the great want of proper instruments has pre¬ 
vented the Curator from remarking many interesting celestial 
phenomena, which have occurred during the past year. He has 
recently commenced a course of Lectures on Astronomy, by the 
proceeds of which he hopes, in part, to supply this deficiency; and 
the Council trust, ere long, to be able to make a grant for the 
same, object. 
The Curator of Meteorological Instruments has continued the 
Horary Observations at the Equinoxes and Solstices, which were 
commenced in 1842 ; and they have been regularly forwarded to the 
zealous and indefatigable M. Quetelet, of the Roy^ Academy of 
Brussels, and acknowledged by him. 
The following are the results of these observations for the past 
year. 
Vernal Equinox, Mean of 24 Obs, 49^ occurring bet. 8 and 9 a.m. and 7 &. 8 p.m. 
Summer Solstice . 24 .... 56.8°. 7 and 8 a.m. and 7 &, 8 p.m. 
Autumnal Equinox .... 24 .... 57.9°. 7 and 8 a.m. and 7 & 8 p.m. 
Winter Solstice . 24 ... . 42.8° . 10 and 11 a.m. and 3 &4p.m. 
