THE WILTSHIRE MAGAZINE. 66 MULTORUM MANIBUS GRANDE LEVATUR ONUS."-Ovid. THE FORTIETH GENERAL MEETING OF THE Wiltshire Archæological and Natural History Society, HELD AT WARMINSTER, July 26th, 27th, and 28th, 1893, THE PRESIDENT OF THE SOCIETY, LT.-GEN. PITT-RIVERS, D.C.L., F.R.S., F.S.A., &c., HE Society had not met at Warminster since 1877, and it was accordingly selected as the place of meeting for 1893. A Local Committee had worked most assiduously beforehand to make it a success, and collected a sum of nearly £80 in the locality towards defraying the expenses, out of which luncheon on the two days' Excursions, and light refreshments at the evening Conversaziones were provided. Indeed, all the arrangements for the com fort of those attending the Meeting were made on a lavish and liberal scale, and at the conclusion a considerable balance made an extremely welcome addition to the Society's general funds. The proceedings began on the 26th with the GENERAL MEETING, which was held at the Town Hall at 4 o'clock, about fifty persons being present. GENERAL PITT-RIVERS gave an account of his latest excavation at RUSHMORE-that of the South Lodge Camp-illustrated, as his papers always are, by numerous diagrams, and by two models of the camp-one of the ground as it was before excavation, the other as it appeared when the trench had been 1 The Editor desires to acknowledge the assistance he has received in preparing this report from the pages of the Swindon Advertiser and the Warminster and Westbury Journal. VOL. XXVIT NO. LXXXI. P fully cleared out. A number of photos of the excavations, and the principal objects found in them, were also exhibited. After a vote of thanks had been moved by Mr. C. N. P. PHIPPS, and seconded by Mr. H. E. MEDLICOTT, the President briefly replied, and referring to his museum at Farnham, said that he had given special attention to the construction of models of excavations— showing the exact position in which the various articles had been discovered. This was really the most important thing to note, because it was the only evidence by which the age of earthworks could be established. If the objects found in excavating a camp or a barrow were all mixed together without any record of the exact relative positions in which they were found, they might be interesting in themselves, but they probably proved little or nothing as to the age of the work excavated. For instance, the finding of Roman coins or pottery in an earthwork might prove either nothing at all, or everything, as to its date, according as they were found on the surface of the work or deep down under the bank on the level of the original soil. All excavators, therefore, should bear in mind that the really important thing in excavations is to make a careful and accurate record of the exact position and depth at which each object is found, by which alone the age of any work can be determined. Mr. MEDLICOTT then read the ANNUAL REPORT. "THE REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE OF THE WILTSHIRE ARCHEOLOGICAL AND NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY FOR 1892-3. "The Committee has the pleasure of reporting that the Society continues to prosper. As time goes on the interest in its proceedings and in its publications does not appear to wane. On the 1st instant we had on the books twenty-five life Members, three hundred and fifty annual Members, and twenty exchange Members, or a total of three hundred and ninety-three, as against three hundred and ninety-eight on the same date last year. During the year ending 30th June last twenty-eight new Members were elected, and since that date nine names have been added to the list. There have been eight losses by death during the same period, amongst which the Society has specially to deplore the deaths of the Rev. Canon Goddard, an original Member; of the Rev. W. C. Lukis, also an original Member, and one of the Society's first Secretaries, of whom an obituary notice appears in the last number of the Magazine; and of Mr. West Awdry. There have been no less than seventeen resignations, for the most part without cause assigned, and amongst Members of but recent standing. A copy of the audited accounts for 1892 is printed with the last number of the Magazine. The receipts for the year are considerably above the average, as is also the sale of the Society's Magazines and other publications, while on the other hand the expenses at the Museum and some other items of account having slightly decreased, the balance carried forward is larger than for some years past. The published accounts do not include the special subscription for a memorial to the Rev. Canon Jackson. The amount promised is not yet sufficient to justify the Committee in carrying out the scheme for the enlargement of the Society's Museum. The project has not been lost sight of, and it is hoped it may in time be realised. The list of donations to the Museum and Library, which will be found at the end of each number of the Magazine, show that our treasures are being constantly added to, but this very increase brings the Committee face to face, whenever it meets, with the impossibilty of displaying to any advantage the many objects of interest entrusted to the Society. We know as a fact that, had we space, further collections of interest and importance would soon find their way into our hands. The Society has to thank Mr. Willis, of Steeple Ashton, for arranging the Wiltshire Trade Tokens,' at the same time adding largely to the collection and preparing a careful and accurate catalogue of them, which is published with the last Magazine. The work of cataloguing the contents of the Library is still in hand. "Our collection of English coins is a long way from being complete, but we have recently received a very considerable addition to their number from Mr. H. N. Goddard, to whom the thanks of the Society are due. "The Committee appeal to all Members of the Society to assist in making the Society's Library a real library of reference for all Wiltshire matters by presenting to it books, pamphlets, newspaper cuttings, sale catalogues, drawings or engravings-whether of ancient or modern date-on all subjects connected in any way with Wiltshire or written by Wiltshire men. Things which would otherwise go into the waste-paper basket will prove valuable material for history if thus preserved. "It is hoped that a full and complete catalogue of the Stourhead Collection may be undertaken before another year passes. The great value and importance of this collection is little known except among experts. The Committee regard it as a duty, even at some considerable expense, to have a catalogue worthy of the collection prepared and printed. "Numbers 78 and 79 of the Magazine have been issued since our last Meeting, the former completing the 26th volume. The Committee ventures to offer its opinion that the interest, value, and importance of the Society's Journal is fully maintained. Whilst recognising the support of the former contributors of papers, the Society welcomes new workers. "Attention is called to the report at the end of No. 79 on the Transcription and Publication of Parish Registers,' which contains valuable suggestions to all who are anxious to assist in the preservation and transcription of such documents. It will be remembered that among the notices to Members a resolution of the Committee has long been recorded desiring that every encouragement should be given towards obtaining second copies of Wiltshire parish registers. "An effort is being made, under the auspices of the Lord Bishop of the Diocese, to compile a Catalogue of Portraits,' in the possession of private owners in the county. The Committee commends this to its Members as a means of throwing light on county history. As in the case of the Stourhead Collection, the assistance and direction of experts with time and money at command, is required to bring this project to a successful issue. "Following the precedent of our last report, we may call attention to some notable works of preservation of ancient buildings during the past year. Chiseldon Church presents a model of what so-called restoration should consist in. Happily the mural monuments have been allowed to remain undisturbed on the walls of the nave and chancel. The old ledger-stones forming the floor have not been displaced by encaustic tiles, and there has been no scraping at all of the surface of the old stone-work. "It was a source of much gratification to the Committee that General PittRivers consented to hold the office of President for one year longer. The Society has gained distinction by having had for its President for four years one so deservedly regarded as a leading authority on all archæological matters, and who has devoted time and money, health and energy to the pursuit of antiquarian research, especially in connection with the great prehistoric earthworks in which Wiltshire abounds. The Committee will recommend that General Pitt-Rivers shall be added to the list of Vice-Presidents, with a view to a more permanent connection with so valued a Member of the Society. 66 Having travelled last year outside the boundary of the far northern portion of the county, the Committee selected Warminster as the place for its General Meeting in 1893. Meetings were held in this town in 1856 and 1877. The welcome extended to the Society on both these occasions by the Marquis of Bath as President, and by a large committee of the inhabitants of the town and neighbourhood, encouraged the hope of a like reception in 1893. The officials of the Society have been so well received that they feel confident that such hope will be realised." THE PRESIDENT then moved that Sir H. B. Meux, Bt., be elected President of the Society for the ensuing three years, which was seconded by the Rev. E. H. GODDARD, and carried unanimonsly. Mr. H. J. WAKEMAN proposed that General Pitt-Rivers be appointed a Vice-President of the Society for life, and that the Officers of the Society be re-appointed. The Meeting then concluded, and the Members inspected the various exhibits arranged in an adjoining room-the most notable being two fine series of really valuable coins exhibited by Mr. T. H. Baker, of Mere Down, and Mr. J. E. Halliday, of Warminster; together with a case containing twenty-eight of the famous Bremeridge Nobles (cf. vol. xxi., p. 121), lent by Mr. Phipps. Mr. Baker also showed a large volume in which he has most carefully transcribed the whole of the very early churchwardens' accounts of Mere. It is much to be hoped that some considerable portion of these accounts may be printed by the Society at no distant date. Amongst other interesting exhibits was a box of clippings from silver coins of Elizabeth's reign, found in an old house near Frome, and certain relics found quite recently with a skeleton at Southgrove Farm, Collingbourne. These had been submitted to Mr. Read, of the British Museum, who pronounced them to be of Roman or RomanoBritish date. They consisted of the bone handle of a dagger or knife, part of a pair of tweezers, and several ornamented pieces of bone, together with iron objects, which Mr. Read thought might have been portions of the cross-bow, of which the bone catch, or trigger, was in fairly good preservation. There are two or three of these cross-bow catches in the British Museum, but they are interesting and not commonly found. This cross-bow was evidently buried with its owner. At 5 o'clock the Rev. SIR JAMES and LADY PHILIPPS received the party at tea at the Vicarage, and afterwards conducted them over the Parish Church, lately re-built on an enlarged scale by Sir A. Blomfield, containing good new glass, and altogether forming fine modern Church-the one interesting example of old work being a very small and plain eleventh century window in what was the east wall of the Norman south transept. This was found built up in the wall during the re-building, and has been carefully preserved. The Chapel of St. Lawrence was also inspected, but contains nothing of interest except its picturesque tower. The DINNER, at which fifty-one sat down, was held in the Town Hall, at 7 o'clock. After the usual toasts, the Rev. SIR J. E. PHILIPPS proposed "Success to the Society," and GEN. PITT-RIVERS, in replying, said that he thought the Society was doing really good work and keeping up the interest in archæological matters in the county well. Of course the county was not a scientific division, and perhaps the action of the Society last year when it united with the Gloucestershire Society might point to the direction in which local societies like our own might possibly develope in the future. From many points of view a strong South-Western Society, formed |
