to the directions of the Society, to write or answer letters ; and, in general, to manage all matters of correspondence.

The Secretaries may, for their own ease, change places; so that the two who have served as Corresponding Secretaries, for one month or limited time, shall take their turn to serve for the like time, as Sitting or Attending Secretaries.

VIII-OF THE CURATORS.

The business of the Curators shall be to take charge of, and preserve, all specimens of natural productions, whether of the Animal, Vegetable or Fossil Kingdom; all models of Machines and Instruments, and all other matters and things, belonging to the Society, which shall be committed, to them; to class and arrange them in their proper order, and keep an exact list of them, with the names of the respective donors, in a book provided for that purpose, which shall be laid before the Society, as often as called for.

The Curators, on entering upon their office, shall give such a receipt for every thing that is committed to their charge, as the Society shall think proper; and at the end of their term, shall deliver up the same to their successors. For the faithful performance of their duty, and of the trust reposed in them, they shall give bond to the President and Vice-Presidents, in such a sum as they, or any three of them, shall require.

IX. OF THE MEETINGS OF THE SOCIETY.

The ordinary meetings of the Society shall be on the first and third Fridays of every month, from October to May, both inclusive, at six o'clock in the evening, and on the third Friday in each of the other four months at seven o'clock.

No meeting shall be continued after ten o'clock, nor any new matter be introduced by motion or otherwise, after nine o'clock.

X.-OF THE DISPOSITION OF MONEY, AND MAKING NEW LAWS.

No part of the Society's stock shall be disposed of in premiums, or otherwise, nor shall any new Laws be made until the same have been proposed at one meeting, and are agreed to by two-thirds of twenty or more members present at a subsequent meeting.

XI. OF OTHER PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY.

No question shall be put on a motion, unless the motion be seconded; and the determination of any question shall be by ballot, instead of open suffrage, if desired by any four members. In case of an equality of votes on any question, the same shall be deferred to another meeting.

When any member speaks, he shall stand up, and address himself to the chair, and the rest shall remain silent in their seats. When two or more offer to speak at the same time, the presiding member, in that, as in other matters of order, shall regulate and determine who shall speak first.

XII.-OF COMMITTEES.

The members of this Society shall be classed into one or more of the following Committees.

1. Geography, Mathemetics, Natural Philosophy and Astronomy.

2. Medicine and Anatomy.

3. Natural History and Chemistry.

4. Trade and Commerce.

5. Mechanics and Architecture.

6. Husbandry and American Improvements.

These Committees shall meet on their own adjournments, and at such other times as the Society shall appoint, for the consideration of any matters referred to them, and shall have power to choose their own chairman. But no

Committee, as such, shall take up any new business of the Society, but shall confine themselves only to the subjects for which they are appointed, and to matters referred to them by the Society.

On the 17th of December, 1830, a committee, consisting of Messrs. Peter S. Du Ponceau, Joseph Hopkinson, and John K. Kane, which had been previously appointed to revise the laws of the society, made an extended report, concluding with the following resolution.

"RESOLVED, That in the opinion of the society, the twelve fundamental laws and regulations, passed on the third of February, 1769, may be lawfully amended or repealed, except so much thereof as is included in the third chapter of the same."

The report having been freely considered at a numerous meeting of the society, held on the seventh of January, 1831, after special notice, the foregoing resolution was unanimously adopted.

The following extract from the report of the committee, contains the reasons for the decision of the society.

"The laws of the society are included under three titles ; the act of incorporation, passed March 15, 1780; twelve regulations, adopted soon after the formation of the society, on the 3rd of February, 1769, and the by-laws, enacted on the 4th of May, 1804, and since amended by standing resolutions in various particulars. Of these, the act of incorporation is of course not susceptible of any modification by the society. The by-laws, so called, may without doubt be modified or repealed at pleasure: but a question has been repeatedly suggested, whether the twelve regulations of February, 1769, have not been so recognized and adopted by the act of incorporation, as to preclude the right of the society to amend them.

"As this question has an obvious and very important

bearing upon the duties of the committee, they have considered it very fully; and it is the object of the present report to express their views in regard to it, and to invite a corresponding expression of the opinion of the society. Its decision will indicate the extent to which the proposed revision shall be carried by the committee.

"The twelve laws referred to, are spoken of in the act of assembly, as "the fundamental laws and regulations of the society, comprised in twelve sections, prefixed to their volume of transactions, published in Philadelphia, by Wm. and Thos. Bradford ;" and it has been supposed, that the term fundamental implies a permanency of character, inconsistent with the notion of future amendment. While, however, it must be admitted that this is a common meaning of the term, it is equally certain that it has other meanings which would not support the argument. It is often used to express the importance and primitive character of an act of legislation, which is yet essentially liable to revision and repeal; and this remark may be sufficient to invalidate any important inference from its application to these laws. That mode of interpreting a statute is rarely to be relied on, which refers to the philological meaning of an insulated word. It is wiser to examine the general tenor and scope of the instrument, and to ascertain the sense of each paragraph by relation to its connexion with the rest.

"The twelve laws are first referred to in the principal enacting clause of the act, where they form part of the description of those for whose benefit it was passed, and who became corporators at the moment of its enactment. That clause declares them to consist of" the members of the American Philosophical Society, &c. heretofore voluntarily associated," or, in other words, of its founders, who came in without election, and of "such other persons as have been duly elected members and officers of the same, agreeably to the fundamental laws and regulations, comprized in twelve sections," &c.; in other words, such as had before the act of incorporation been elected members

according to the then subsisting regulations. These two classes of persons were declared to constitute the corporation. This provision therefore relates exclusively to the first corporators, and has precisely the same effect as if they had been mentioned by their names, instead of being described by reference to the manner in which they had obtained their membership. Nothing can be inferred from this of peculiar dignity in the twelve laws.

They are again mentioned in the third enacting clause of the act. After directing that certain officers shall be chosen for the well governing of the society, this section provides that the election shall be " by ballot agreeably to the fundamental laws," and that notice of the same shall be given "in the newspapers, agreeably to the said fundamental laws." Those parts of the twelve laws, which describe the manner of electing officers, and the character of the notice of the election, are thus incorporated into the act of assembly, and become incapable of alteration by the society. But while the third chapter of those laws, in which the provisions referred to are all of them contained, is made by the reference part of the act, other parts of the section, in the opinion of the committee, effectually negative the idea that any but the provisions so recognized are to be esteemed permanent and irrepealable. The section creates the council of the society, excludes certain members from the right of voting, and of being elected, and exacts additional qualifications from all who vote at the election. These are, in themselves, substantial modifications of the fundamental laws, and one of them at least amends the conditions of the union which gave birth to the society. Besides, while this section twice mentions the fundamental laws as fixing forever the mode of conducting and giving notice of the elections, it adopts, as if by design, a different expression, while describing the rights of corporators at the elections, and alludes to "such laws as shall then be in force."

The remaining sections of the act of incorporation have no reference to the laws in question. Yet the 4th section,