PROCEEDINGS OF THE ASIATIC SOCIETY OF BENGAL, FOR JUNE, 1868. Pursuant to notice from the Council, a Special General Meeting of the Society was held on Wednesday the 3rd of June, 1868, at 9 o'clock, P. M. The President in the chair. The Chairman explained the reasons for which the special Meeting had been convened, and reported on the part of the Council that circulars for collecting votes for the alteration of Bye Laws Nos. 13, 43 and 64, had been sent to 119 non-resident members and 56 replies have been received. Of these one votes against the change in Rule 43, one votes against the change in rule 64; and one declines to vote, not having a copy of the Bye Laws.-The rest are all in favour of the changes proposed. As the several propositions had already been discussed in the Society, and were only now brought forward for confirmation or rejection, according to the result of the voting of the non-resident members, he would read the proposals seriatim, and put them separately. The first was-That in Rule 13 the words, nor shall his name be entered on the member roll" be inserted after the "words entitled to vote." This was put to the meeting and carried, more than three-fourths of the votes taken being in favour of the alteration. Secondly.-That the following words be added at the end of Rule 43, "two months from the date of issuing the voting papers being allowed for that purpose." This was put to the meeting and carried. Thirdly. That the following words be added at the end of Rule 64-" But no case which involves a change of the rules of the Society, shall be declared urgent under this rule." This was also declared to be carried. The Special Meeting was then dissolved. A Monthly General Meeting of the Society, was then held. The Minutes of the Special Meeting of the 6th May, 1868, were then read,-when it was proposed by Mr. H. F. Blanford and seconded by Mr. H. Locke, "That the Minutes of the Special Meeting of the 6th May, being incorrect in many particulars, be referred to the Council for revision and correction, and re-submission to the Society." A show of hands being called for, this motion was declared lost. Mr. Blanford then demanded a scrutiny and this being held, the motion was again declared to be lost. It was then proposed by C. D. Field, Esq., and seconded by Colonel J. E. Gastrell, "That in accordance with the spirit of Rule 60, any inaccuracy of which the present meeting are satisfied, be now corrected." This was put to the Meeting and carried. The President then read the Minutes again in detail, when the following corrections were agreed to, Page 123, line 12,* insert the words, 'Senior Vice-President' after the Hon'ble J. B. Phear. Page 124, line 9,-omit the paragraph commencing, A question' and terminating with, 'to be seconded.' Page 125, line 17, substitute Mr. Scott, for Dr. Waldie. 25, for, This was seconded by Dr. Colles, and was put to the meeting, read -This was put to the meeting. 27, omit the words, "in consequence of this resolution." These alterations having been agreed to seriatim, the minutes were then confirmed, with these corrections. The minutes of the last Ordinary General Meeting were then read and confirmed. * These numbers refer to the printed copy of the Proceedings already circu lated to the members. I. The following presentations were announced: 1. From the Commissioner of the Central Provinces, Two Copies of Report of the Ethnological Committee on papers laid before them and upon examination of specimens of Aboriginal tribes brought to the Jubbulpore Exhibition of 1866-67. 2. From Dr. F. Steindachner through Dr. F. Stoliczka, a copy of "Ichthyologischer Bericht über eine nach Spanien und Portugal unternommene Reise." 3. From Colonel W. H. Sykes, a copy of Analysis of the Report upon the state of the Empire of France presented to the Senate and Legislative body, February, 1867. 4. From Major J. F. Tennant, a copy of a Memorandum on preparations for observing the Total Eclipse of the Sun on August 18th, 1868. II. The following gentlemen duly proposed and seconded at the last meeting were ballotted for and elected as ordinary members :— E. Buck, Esq., C. S., Cawnpore. Dr. C. R. Francis (re-election.) III. The following are candidates for ballot at the July meeting :Dr. G. W. Leitner, proposed by Mr. Grote and seconded by Mr. Blanford. Lieutenant C. F. T. Marshall, Lahore, proposed by Mr. Grote and seconded by Bábu Rájendralála Mitra. W. Smith, Esq., C. E., proposed by Dr. T. Oldham and seconded by Mr. H. Leonard. R. H. Renny, Esq., Assistant Commissioner, Chittagong Hill Tracts, proposed by Captain T. H. Lewin, seconded by Babu R. Mitra. The Rev. James Roberts, Jr. Chaplain of the Church of Scotland, proposed by Mr. Sime, seconded by Mr. H. F. Blanford. IV. Letters from the following, intimating their desire to withdraw from the Society, were recorded : Captain F. S. Staunton, R. E. J. H. Branson, Esq. A. P. Macdonell, Esq. V. Mr. D. Waldie, brought forward the following motion, notice of which was given at the last meeting : "That Rule 51 be made to read as follows:-The Council for the time being shall before the General Meeting of December, cause to be prepared a sufficient number of printed balloting lists, according to the form in the appendix, which shall contain the names of those persons whom they recommend to be appointed members of Council and office-bearers for the year ensuing, with blank columns in which to place other names. These balloting lists shall be laid before the members at the December Meeting." Mr. Waldie said-The change consisted, as would readily be seen, in simply providing that the balloting lists should be laid before the members at the monthly meeting in December preceding the annual meeting in January, instead of on the evening of election itself. The apparent object of the rules was that the Council should recommend who should constitute the Council and Office-bearers for the ensuing year, but that the Society at their meeting should elect whom they thought fit, and all that was proposed was that the means should be adapted to carrying this into effect. He (Mr. W.) did not think that the means hitherto employed, so far as he had seen, were adapted to secure this. The Society had no previous knowledge of the names of those who were to be proposed for the new Council; these were submitted to the members at the meeting with, no doubt, the power to alter them, but they had no opportunity of exchanging opinions as to any desirable alteration; and though occasional alterations were made, from the absence of any power of consultation or combination there was the smallest probable chance of any of them being effectual, and as a matter of fact practically the old Council elected the new one. So far as he was himself concerned, he had hitherto felt not the slightest objection to it, as on all occasions he had approved of the lists in their entirety, but he could easily conceive that he might on some future occasion wish to insert some name or names that were not in the Council's list, and probably other members might wish the same: indeed, the alterations occasionally made shewed that such was the case. Beside, it ought to be remem bered that silence was not always satisfaction: not very long ago a member had expressed dissatisfaction with the small attention pai to the opinion of the mofussil members, and an alteration had been made in the rules in consequence. If the proposal was adopted, it would be necessary to alter Law 85, so as to be in accordance with it. It might also be worthy of consideration whether Law 47 might not be modified. Mr. W. farther observed that, though not much acquainted with the working of such Societies, he knew of at least one scientific Society in London which sent the balloting lists by post to their country members. If such a change as this was contemplated, some other rules might require attention, such as 32 and 33. But he merely threw out this as a suggestion for the consideration of the Council. The motion was referred to the Council for report. VI. The Council reported that on a recommendation of the Finance and the Philological Committees, they have allotted Rs. 3,000 to the publication of an English Translation of the Ain-i-Akbari, by Mr. Blochmann, in the Bibliotheca Indica. Also, that they have elected F. Stoliczka, Esq., Ph. D. a member of their body and Natural History Secretary in place of Dr. J. A. P. Colles, who has resigned both his seat in the Council and his Nat. Hist. Secretary-ship, as he is leaving Calcutta; subject to the confirmation of the Society at the monthly meeting of July. Also, that they have agreed to receive and take charge of the instruments formerly used by Col. Lambton in the early operations of the Great Trigonometrical Survey, proposed by the Officiating Surveyor General to be deposited in the Society's rooms. The President brought to the notice of the Society that H. F. Blanford, Esq., having resigned his Secretary-ship of the Society at the last Special General Meeting, he had requested Babu Rájendralála Mitra to carry on the current duties, for the present. VII. The President then explained to the Meeting that subsequently to the meeting of the Council, Maulavi Abdul Latif Khan Bahadur had called on him, and explained to him that there were at present in Calcutta for a short time several of the Mussulman inhabitants of Yunan, the Panthays; that one of these appeared a man of some learning from whom he had obtained a brief history of the race in Arabic, which he had translated, and which he was very desirous of laying before the Society, while these Panthay gentlemen were here |