32
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COUNCIL FOR
THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31st, 1900.
[Read and Adopted at the 21st Annual Meeting, March 30th, 1901.]
The year 1900 will be memorable in the annals of the Club. Not only did
it complete twenty-one years of work, but it also witnessed the realization of
the vision of a permanent County Museum of Natural History, which from the
beginning has been an ideal of the Club, and which was first put into the
practicable shape of a resolution at a meeting held at Mr. E. N. Buxton's
house on December 8th, 1883, seventeen years ago. Within the year were
also completed the extensive repairs and restorations of Queen Elizabeth's
Lodge, thus affording a most suitable home for the Epping Forest Museum.
Finance.—The Statement of Account for the past year reveals the sound
policy pursued by the Council of the Club, in steadily reducing the debit
balance on the General Account, which, from over £ 100 in 1896, has sunk to
a few shillings at the present time.1 The other accounts are also in a healthy
condition, that relating to Special Memoirs and Publications alone showing a
deficit; and against this may be set the value of the stock, for which a steady,
though not a rapid sale may be predicted. The Forest Museum will demand
the best energies of the members of the Club in the immediate future, the
balance in hand being entirely out of proportion with the needs created by
the necessary re-organisation.
Membership.—The list of members issued in the autumn, corrected up
to Dec. 31st, shows a total of two hundred and eighty-eight, made up as
follows:—Life Members, 29; Annual Members, 241 ; Exempt Members, 4;
Honorary Members, 14. Of these twenty-two were elected during the year;
the losses, from various causes, totalled twenty-six.
By death the Club lost four distinguished Honorary Members; two Life
Members (Mr. Leaf and Mr. Ramsden) ; and six annual members. Thirteen
members resigned, and one was amoved. Every effort should be made to fill
up the vacancies at an early date.
Meetings.—Thirteen meetings were held within the year, including that
in connection with the opening of the Central Museum, and a meeting in
futherance of the objects of the Epping Forest Museum. As in former years,
the Council have pleasure in acknowledging the services of those gentlemen
who so kindly aided in the conduct of the meetings. At the meeting at the
College of Surgeons on January 27th, Prof. Charles Stewart, F.R.S., gave one
of his charming demonstrations of the contents of that magnificent Museum;
at the meeting on February 14th, Mr. Lovett gave a demonstration lecture on
Crustacea ; on March 31st, Mr. S. Salmon conducted a meeting for the
observation of the Mosses of Epping Forest; and on May 19th, Mr. G.
Massee, F.L.S., acted in a similar capacity with regard to the minute Fungi.
At the meeting on July 9th, Mr. Turner kindly acted as botanical guide in
the Witham and Tiptree district; at this meeting the members were most
1 In the report of the Council for 1899 the printers inserted in error the Statement of
Account for 1900 instead of that for 1899 (see last volume, pp. 306-7). The latter is now insert-
ed to make the series complete.