The Council are indebted to The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company, The Cast'e Mail Packet Company, and The Royal Company for their assistance in the distribution of the " Institute in various parts of the worl

The Hon. Treasurer (Sir MONTAGU F. OMMANNEY, K.C.M.G.): It devolves upon me, as Hon. Treasurer, to invite your attention to some of the more salient items in the accounts for the past year. In doing so, I feel I shall consult alike your wishes and your convenience in making my remarks as brief as possible. What I have to say is a more than thrice told tale. I cannot impart to it any element of novelty. I can only trust you will pardon its monotony for the sake of the solid substratum of comfortable fact which underlies it. The past year, I am glad to say, was a prosperous one. We began with a balance in hand of £467, and close with a balance in hand of about £1,300. Our subscription list, which is in point of fact our source of income, is a most satisfactory one, as regards both the number of Fellows and the amount of subscriptions. The number of Fellows is greater than in any preceding year of the Institute's existence, while the amount of subscriptions, which exceeds £7,000, is larger than, with two exceptions, it has ever before been. The other items of the receipts appear to call for no special observation from me. They are very much the same as last year. The receipts from the Journal appear to be rather larger, but, in point of fact, they are much the same, the difference being due to a fresh arrangement as regards advertisements. In connection with the other side of the account-payments-the total of £8,202 is about £950 less than last year, a decrease due partly to the charges for printing for two sessions having been included in last year's account, and, partly, to a reduction in the rate of interest which we pay on our mortgage. There is a small increase of £139 odd in the salaries and wages, which, I am sure, the Fellows will feel only partially represents the increased value of the services which we have received from our staff during what has been a very busy year. Turning to the statement of assets and liabilities, the outstanding liabilities of £447 have, of course, to be set against our balance of £1,300. The debt owing for purchase of site, and for the erection of this building now stands at about £20,834. This item ten years ago stood at over £35,000, so that there has been a reduction of over £14,000 in that period. The general effect of the statement of assets and liabilities is to show a balance in favour of assets of over £38,000. With an increased balance, with a larger income, with very moderate, and almost stationary, working expenses, with a decreased debt, and with a substantial balance on the side of assets, I think I am justified in saying that our financial position is a thoroughly sound one. It is an evidence, at all events, that the Institute continues to attract, and to retain, a very

large measure of confidence from an increasing section of those who are interested in Colonial matters; and so long as this is so I feel we may look forward with firm conviction to the financial history of future years being as satisfactory and encouraging as that of the year which has just closed. I have the honour to present to this meeting the accounts for the year 1896.

The CHAIRMAN: It now becomes my duty and pleasure to move the adoption of the report and accounts, and from what the Hon. Treasurer has said, you will have understood that I am in a position to bring before you a very satisfactory condition of affairs. On December 31, 1896, there were 3,929 Fellows in all, resident and non-resident. We have elected over forty Fellows since that date, so that I think we may fairly anticipate that before the arrival of the Queen's Birthday in this memorable year, we shall have on the roll at least 4,000, a very considerable progress to be able to record during the period of the Institute's existence. The obituary of last year includes an unusually long list of distinguished Fellows. 'It is one of the largest we have had to report, and it occurred to me in looking over the list that the men comprised in that list would have formed, taken by themselves, a very strong nucleus for the formation of such an institution as the Royal Colonial Institute. The report next makes mention of the annual banquet of last year, which was very successful, and states that on the occasion of this year's dinner the Secretary for the Colonies, Mr. Chamberlain, has consented to preside. I am sure that announcement will give very great satisfaction to everybody connected with the Institute. We have already had over 100 applications for places, and, in a very few days the accommodation of the room will probably be nearly all taken. up. In another paragraph of the report you will find a record of the papers read and discussed at our meetings, and you will notice that, in addition to the ordinary meetings, there have been two special and several afternoon meetings, so that the work of the year 1896 in this respect has been ahead, I believe, of what has been achieved in almost any previous year. The afternoon meetings have been well attended and extremely useful, because we cannot make provision on our monthly evenings for the number of excellent addresses which continue to be offered. The papers, I am glad to say, have been quite equal in quality and interest to those of previous years. As to the library, I think we may speak of that department with very great satisfaction indeed. It contained on December 31, 1896, 29,728 volumes and pamphlets, and considerable additions are being made weekly, so that we may anticipate that in

two or three months the figure will exceed 30,000, a very remarkable number when you consider the short period during which the library has been in existence, and the size of the building. Looking back to the early reports, I notice that in 1887 we had only some 8,000 volumes. Another paragraph of the report refers to the fact that flags bearing the Union Jack and the arms of the several Colonies have been presented by the respective Colonial Governments, or by other donors. There were only two or three Colonies absent from the list, and I am glad to be able to announce that South Australia has added its flag, and that those of Victoria and Tasmania will also be provided, so that before the Queen's Birthday we shall have a complete collection of the flags of the Colonies. We have always regarded as a question of primary importance the training of the rising generation to a better knowledge of the greatness and resources of our Colonies and Dependencies, in the further development of which a large proportion may be expected to take part. Prizes have been offered for competition, the publication of text-books has been encouraged, and repeated representations have been addressed to educational authorities and examining bodies. Although we must admit that the results have been disappointing in some respects, we still entertain the belief that good service has been done in directing more adequate attention to the subject. Many kindred societies have been at work in the same direction, and amongst them is the Geographical Association, which was founded in 1893 at a representative meeting of Headmasters, for the laudable purpose of stimulating the teaching of geography in secondary schools, and whose efforts have enlisted our sympathetic interest. As mentioned in the Report, the sanction and approval of this Institute was willingly given to a memorial addressed to certain Boards of Examiners suggesting various reforms. The replies indicate that the cause we have at heart is gaining ground, and I may mention a few instances. The Oxford Delegates and Cambridge Syndics for Local Examinations have expressed general concurrence, and decided to include geography as a new group in the higher local examinations; the Oxford and Cambridge School Examination Board has revised the regulations affecting geography in the lower certificate examinations; the Council of the Victoria University, Manchester, has appointed a special committee to consider the question of giving geography a more prominent place in the preliminary examinations; and the Civil Service Commissioners are to a large extent in sympathy with the aims advocated. I now come to a very important paragraph in the report referring