| Description | ' Present at at Council held at the President's house, Bloomsbury. The President, The Duke of Richmond, Mr Folkes, Mr West, Mr Sloane, Mr Hadley, Mr Theobald, Mr Mitchell, Mr Rand, Mr Wollaston, Mr Collinson, Dr Mortimer, Mr Machin.
The Time being elapsed for the Fellows of the Society to purchase the Books to be sold, at the prices rated by the Council held on April 16 : 1740 : it was
Ordered, that twelve Copies of each Book be now forthwith delivered to each of the Printers of the Society, at the several Prices stated in the List delivered in at the foresaid Council, without any Abatement or allowance : they paying the Treasurer for the same, after a reasonable Time allowed for disposing of them to their Customers.
Mr Folkes, in the name of the Committee appointed to inspect the Books for settling the Arrears due to the Society, delivered in their Report, as it is hereunto subjoined.
"To the President and Council of the Royal Society of London for improving Natural Knowledge.
The Report of the Committee by them appointed to inspect and state the account of the Arrears of Contributions due from the several Members of the said Society.
That your Committee have met several times, and have as carefully as they were able looked over the Books and other Papers of the Royal Society any ways concerning the Subject of the Arrears due from the several Members : and that they have thereupon drawn out several Lists for your Perusal, which they now lay before you, and which are as follows :
First, a List of such of the present Members of the Society, as have been either Benefactors to the same, or have paid at their Admission in lieu of their Bond the whole Sum of twenty Pounds over and above their Admission Fee, or have had their Bonds delivered up on their having paid to the Use of the Society the several Sums directed by the Order of Council of the third of February 1729, or have been any ways excused from Payments to the Society, by special Orders of the Council for that purpose : all which persons are not, as we apprehend, chargeable with any Demand for Contributions due to the Society.
And to this List we have also subjoined the names of such persons as have been discharged from Payments by any temporary Order of Council yet unrepealed, and who are not therefor, as we conceive, untill such Order may be repealed, chargeable with any Demand for Contributions due to the Society.
Secondly, a List of such of the present Members of the Society, whose names have been printed in the List of the Society, by virtue of the Statute Chap. VI. Art. 9 : although they have not yet been regularly admitted, or have not given Bond to the Society : and who, as we apprehend, are also on that account not chargeable with any Arrears of Contributions due to the same.
And to this List we have further added the names of some other persons, who have not, as it appears, given any Bonds : though we are ignorant of the Reasons why such Bonds were not by them given.
Thirdly, a List of all such present Members of the Society, as are, we apprehend, still chargeable with their Contributions to the same; and to whose several names we have annexed the times of their respective Admissions. the times to which they have paid their said Contributions : with the several Sums to which the same have amounted, as also the several Sums respectively due from them as Arrears, made up to the 25th day of December now last past, and which we look upon as the whole Demand of the Society upon any of their Members now living, for Contributions due to the Society. Concerning which Arrears also your Committee take the Liberty humbly to recommend to You, in the Orders you shall please to give for the getting in the same, to take into your Consideration the Case of some Gentlemen who through Misfortune or otherwise may seem intitled to some Tendernesse from the Society : the Case of some few others, who though now in Arrears have formerly contributed Sums much larger that what are mentioned in the Terms offered by the Order of Councill of the third of February 1729, though they neglected taking the benefit of the same : and lastly the Case of some others who may be willing to pay, but may expect some Abatement on account of Services done to the Society, or who may desire an Indulgence, formerly shewn to such as have been for any considerable time absent beyond the Seas.
Now as the Bonds given to the Society by their Members seemed to this Committee equally obligatory upon the Executors of the Members deceased ; the Committee have proceeded to enquire what Members of the Society are departed this Life since the beginning of the year 1730 : and they have upon that Enquiry added to this Report a fourth List containing the name of all such deceased Members, wherein they have distinguished such as they any ways apprehended to have been excused from Contributions ; and have computed the several Sums due from the others on the several St Andrew's Days preceding their respective Deaths, as the precise times of such Deaths were not known to the Committee. And the Committee humbly recommend to you, that in the Orders you shall please to give for the recovery of such Arrears, you will take into your Consideration the same particulars already mentioned in relation to the Arrears of your present Members.
And the Committee do further desire Leave to lay before you, that the whole Revenue of the Royal Society, exclusive of the Article of Contributions, amounts only to the Sum of £232 per Annum, as the same stand upon your Rent-Roll : which Revenue they apprehend under the present State of the Parliamentary Taxes, especially considering part of the same consists in Houses, can hardly bring in Net to your Receipts, after the Deduction of Taxes, necessary Repairs, Charges of getting in, and other Contingencies, more than about £140 per Annum : whereas it appears to the Committee that your annual Expences can hardly be computed at less than £380 yearly. So that your Expences must exceed your Receipts by about £240 yearly, unless such a Sum is annually brought in by your Contributions : on which account they are humbly of opinion that the getting in your Contributions is at this time a matter of the greatest Consesequence to the Society, and of absolute necessity, as what the business of the Society cannot possibly be carried on without.
And further this Committee humbly desire leave to submit to your Consideration, whether the regular demanding the Contributions of the Members quarterly, as directed by the Statute, might not be a probable means of preventing for the future the large Arrears incurred by many of the Members : and whether, if such Demand was quarterly made at the Houses or other places of Residence of the same Members by a proper Officer, the same though attended with some Charge of Expence to the Society might not however upon the whole greatly tend to their advantage.
And lastly, they humbly submit to you, whether it may not hereafter be propser, that some time before every yearly Audit of your Treasurer's Accompts, a State of your Arrearrs of Contributions then standing out shuld be regularly drawn out, in order to the more fully laying before your Auditors the whole State of the Society's Accompt.
All which particulars are humbly submitted etc. "
[For the lists see CMO/3/89/1,2,3,4]
Which Report being read over and considered :
It was first ordered, that Mr Cheselden and Dr James Douglas do continue to stand exempt from weekly Contributions till further Order.
Also ordered, that all the Members, whose Names are entered in the first List delivered in the Report, shall be deemed as exempted from Payments of Contributions : and that the said List be entered into the Council Book with a reference to this order.
Also ordered, that Notice be given by Letter to such Members elect, whose names are entered in the second List, and who have been in Town since their Election withour taking their Admissions, that unless they come to be admitted, their names will be left out of the next year's List.
After which the Council came to the following Resolutions.
That the Bonds of Members in Arrear of payment shall be put in Suit.
That a Suit be immediately commenced upon the Bond of every Member, who was two years or more in Arrear on St Andrew's Day last past, viz. November 30 . 1740 .
Then it was ordered,
That a circulatory Letter be sent by Mr Hauksbee Clerk to every Member in Arrear, signifying the Society's demands upon him.
That Letters be sent to the Executors of such Members who died in arrear, and whose Bonds have not been yet dischared, signifying how much remained unpaid and due to the Society at the Members's Decease.
That no proceeding shall be taken upon the Bond of any Member, untill one adn twenty days are expired, after regular Notice shall bee given (to the Member or Executor) of these Resolutions.
That these Orders and Resolutions be printed and hung up in the meeting Room of the Society and that a Copy thereof be sent with every Letter.
Further ordered, that the Letter to any Member in arrear shall be in the following form:
"Sir,
By order of Council herewith annexed, I am to acquaint your, that your Arrears for Contributions at St Andrew's day last amounted to ..... "
That the form of a Letter to an Executor be as follows:
"Sir
By Order of the Council of the Royal Society annexed, I am to acquaint you that A. B. to whom you are Executor, died indebted to the Royal Socirty for his weekly Contributions the Sum of ..... which you are desired forthwith to pay, or cause to be paid; and his Bond will be delivered to you or your Order by etc. "
Thanks were ordered to Mr Folkes for the great Trouble he had taken in making the Report concerning the Arrears. ' |