| Description | Present: The President [Sir Hans Sloane]; Mr Hadley; Mr Jones; Mr Gale; Mr Theobald; Mr Rand; Dr Rutty
' Dr Rutty laid before the Council, pursuant to a former Order, a List of the Defaulters with the Names of those Gentlemen Annexed who recommended them, upon which it was Ordered That Mr Hauksbee draw out a List of the Names of Such defaulters that are under the Name of the particular Person recommending and lay Such a List before the next Council.
Mr John Freke, Mr Edward Green, Count Dehn, Monsieur de Thom, Signor Baptista Carbone, Monsieur Petit, Mr Ephrain Chambers, and Dr Huicker ; were Severally put to the Ballot for Fellows and approved.
Mr Theobald reported That according to the request of the Council he had inspected the Workmens Bills for altering and adorning the Societys Meeting Room etc and found the Articles resonable : and Mr Hauksbee being called in declared tht the Sums were justly computed : which bills were laid before teh Council and are as follows;
No. 1 £12..3..9
2 £24..18..2
3 £8..18..5
4 £30..4..4
5 £22..0..0
6 £90..0..2
Total £188..04..10
Ordered that these Bills be paid and the President gave an Order upon the Treasurer accordingly.
Dr Rutty delivered in a Representation drawn up by Mr John Martyn of the State fo the Repository, as found by the Committee for inspecting the Same : which was read and hereunto annexed.
Ordered Mr Martyn Thanks, as likewise to the Committee, with a desire tht they would proceed.
Dr Rutty informed the Council, That Mr Martyn having a design of publicking the particular discoveries in Natural History and Philosophy made by the Royal Society, begged leave to inspect the Minuste, Register, and Letter Books, and for his greater ease to have them in his own possession, wehreupon it was agreed that leave be given him to have a Single Volume of the Copy of them which are to be Lodged in the Presidents hands at a time, upon returning the former.
The Report of the Committee for inspecting the State of the Repository and Libraries of The Royal Society
a
Being appointed, by an Order of the Council of the Royal Society, to inspect the State of the Repository and Libraries ; we hve met for that purpose every Thursday from the 24th of July. We began with the Repository, which we find in great disorder. We find these two Catalogues: one a printed one published by Dr Grew, by order of the Council of the Royal Society in 1678, with Numbers written in the Margin, as far as the End of the 3rd Section : the other a Written one, Supposed to be drawn up by a Servant of the Clerk for his private use, Numbred as far as we have Examined : but Neither of them agreeing with the Numbers, which we find on the Several Bodys. We have examined Such Bodies as are contained in the four first Sections, and Some of the fifth of the first part of Dr Grews Book ; as also those which are added in the Written Catalogue.
Several of them cannot be found, very many are greatly Damaged ; Some by Time, others for want of Convenient Cases to preserve them in. Among the Human Curiosities, we find the Mummy in particular, and Several of the Anatomical Preparations to be much impared, and the Skeletons to want cleaning and repairing. Among the Quadrupeds we observe the Musk Deer to be much Decayed, having no hair on its Body : Several others are in as bad a condition, and many entire Bodies, or their parts are wanting.
We find Nine of the Lizard kind not entered in the Catalogue : as also Twenty four Serpents ; most or all of which, tho not distinguished by any mark, may be meant by The following Article in the written Catalogue
'Several Serpents and Snakes (preserved in Spirits) from the West Indies [Caribbean] ex dono Thomas Forster Arm: '
The Birds are generally in a very bad condition ; Many of them having Lost their Feathers, and Several having nothing remaining besides their head and feet.
We have proceeded but a little way in the fifth Section which contains the Fishes. But we perceive already that Several of them also are wanting.
Upon this View it Seems to us, that, unless orders be given to provide proper Cases, to preserve Such Bodies, as are not yet destroyed, and to receive Such as may hereafter by given to the Society, the greatest part of the Repository will Soon perish, and become useless. And whereas we observe that for Some time many things, which have been presented to the Society have not been entered in any Catalogue, We apprehend that it would be convenient to give instructions to the Clerk, to Enter them into a Catalogue, with the Nnames of Donors and Numbers Corresponding to them.
October 9, 1729 ' |