| Description | Printed minutes containing matters laid before Council, the Royal Society's governing body of Fellows, with records of decisions taken. Individual minutes are numbered.
Commencing with a list of Council members present: William Bateson; William Thomas Blanford; Hugh Longbourne Callendar; Francis Darwin; Harold Bailey Dixon; Michael Foster (Secretary); George Carey Foster; Sir John Gorst; John Wesley Judd; Alfred Bray Kempe (Treasurer); Joseph Larmor (Secretary); George Downing Liveing; Augustus Edward Hough Love; Henry Alexander Miers; Edward Albert Schafer; Thomas Edward Thorpe (Foreign Secretary); Thomas Henry Tizard; Herbert Hall Turner; Sir John Wolfe Barry; the President, Sir William Huggins, in the chair. The Assistant Secretary [Robert Harrison] attended.
Among matters discussed or noted:
1. Minutes of the previous meeting read and approved.
2. Deaths of George Gabriel Stokes, the Rev. N. M. Ferrers, Mr. J. Glaisher, Mr. R. B. Hayward and Major-General Riddell.
3. The President, unable to attend the funeral of Sir Geoirge Stokes on medical advice, sent a deputation of Vice-Presidents, former past-Presidents and others; representatives at the funerals of Dr. Ferrers and Mr. Glaisher.
4. Draft letter of condolence from the Secretaries to Sir Arthur Stokes, full text entered into the minutes: ordered to be submited to the Society at the next meeting and to be entered into the Journal Books and printed in Proceedings.
5. President to communicate with the Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University to take joint action in a memorial to Sir George Stokes in Westmisnter Abbey.
6. Lord Rayleigh, Dr. Routh, Dr. Shaw and Dr. Besant to be asked to write the Obituary Notices of Sir George Stokes, Dr. Ferrers, Mr. Glaisher and Mr. Hayward.
7. On the long interval between the deaths of Fellows and the publication of Obituary Notices, these to be printed as soon as they are received and issued as an inset to Proceedings.
8. Sectional Committee on Physiology's report to the Committee of Papers, on the length of Proceedings papers and the desirability of dividing Proceedings into A and B, this to be reported to the Committee appointed to consider the function of Sectional Committees.
9. Coral Reef Committee resolution agreeing with Professor Agassiz that it would be premature to consider the results of the examination of the Funafuti cores at a discussion meeting, but Agassiz would read a general paper on barrier reefs and atolls on 19 March.
10. Mackinnon Committee report that annual income on the fund was now over £300 and making recommendations on the award of two studentships with suggestions on administration and advertisements. Approved, following amendments and voting.
11. Lord Lister to be added to the Mackinnon Committee.
12. Treasurer's report that the Society had no power to appropriate any part of the Mackinnon Bequest in the manner suggested by Mr. D. K. S. Mackinnon.
13. Dates for meetings of the Government Grant Committee and Boards.
14. Suggestion from a Fellow that no committee meetings should start earlier than 4.00pm., existing practice confirmed, that this was a matter for the individual committees.
15. Dr. D. H. Scott re-appointed as the Society's representative on the Committee of Management at Chelsea Physic Garden.
16. Dr. T. E. Thorpe to replace Sir Michael Foster on the Executive Committee of the International Catalogue of Scientific Literature.
17. Issue of reminding supporters of candidates to re-suspend certificates: reminders to be sent out as before.
18. No delegates to be appointed to attend the International Fire Prevention Congress.
19. Application of a grant in aid for publication of the annual report of the National Physical Laboratory referred to the Executive Committe of the Laboratory for reconsideration.
20. Meeting of the International Association of Academies to take place 4 June.
21. On the desirability of admitting non-Fellows to the informal receptions of Fellows, discussion deferrred. Next reception to be on 19 March.
22. Proposed resolution by the Junior Secretary on the desirabilty of adopting the metric system, full text entered in the minutes. Resolved that no further action be taken.
23. Application for a grant from the Government Astronomer at Perth referred to Board A of the Government Grant Committee.
24. Letter from E. A. Stokes, Government House, Perth, 5 January 1903, to Joseph Chamberlain, full text entetred into the minutes: forwarded by the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies, on the reduction of staff at the Perth Observatory and the high expense of maintaining the work, but promising to enquire into the matter.
25. Extension of admission into the Fellowship granted to Dr. Willey.
26. Letter from the Agent-General for New Zealand, on electrical interference at Christchurch Magnetic Observatory caused by trams, correspondence to be forwarded to the Government of New Zealand.
27. Bills for books, engraving and for other expenses. |