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ANNUAL MEETING OF THE CENTRAL COUNCIL.

OFFICIAL MINUTES.

The Seventh Annual Meeting of the Council was held at the Church House, Westminster, on June 8th. Of representative members 50 were present out of 81, representing 22 out of 32 societies; and of honorary members, 3 out of 10. Mr. Percival Heywood and the Rev. H. Earle Bulwer, being the only persons nominated for the posts of President and Hon. Secretary, respectively, for the ensuing three years, Mr. Cockerill proposed and Mr. Dains seconded the former; Mr. Attree proposed and Mr. Catchpole seconded the latter; and both propositions were carried unanimously.

The minutes of the last meeting were read and confirmed.

On the motion of Mr. Griffin, seconded by Mr. W. D. Smith, the following gentlemen were unanimously elected honorary members of the Council for three years, viz.: Mr. Pettit, Mr. F. E. Ward, Mr. Mitchell, Mr. F. W. J. Rees, Mr. Dawe, Mr. J. Carter, and the Rev. J. H. Pilkington.

On the motion of the Rev. M. Kelly, seconded by Mr. S. Reeves, the following were elected as the Standing Committee for the ensuing three years, viz.: Rev. F. E. Robinson, Rev. C. D. P. Davies, Rev. G. F. Coleridge, Mr. Dains, Mr. Snowdon, Mr. Rees, Mr. Dawe, Mr. C. H. Hattersley, Mr. Lockwood, Mr. Washbrook, Mr. Attree, Mr. Strange, with the President and Hon. Secretary.

The Hon. Secretary read the statement of accounts shewing a balance from last year of £42 11s. 7d.; receipts from subscriptions, £11; sale of “Appendix,” 10s; making a total of £54 1s. 7d. On the expenditure side: reporting, printing, postages, etc., £1 19s. 9½d.; leaving the present balance, £52 1s. 9½d. On the motion of Mr. Newton, seconded by Mr. Walmsley, the accounts were passed.

The Rev. H. A. Cockey having reported the failure of the Rail Fares Committee to obtain better terms from the railway clearing-house, on the motion of Rev. T. L. Papillon, seconded by Mr. Hudson, the Committee, consisting of Rev. H. A. Cockey, Mr. Story, Mr. Griffin, and Mr. Attree were re-appointed with instructions to make further efforts.

The Hon. Secretary made a short interim report on behalf of the Committee on Technical Terms, announcing that the Glossary was in process of preparation. On the motion of Mr. Story, seconded by Mr. Parker, the Committee, consisting of Rev. C. D. P. Davies, Mr. Dains, Mr. N. J. Pitstow, Mr. Snowdon, the President and Hon. Secretary, were re-elected.

Mr. Attree, for the Committee for preparing Schedule of Points, gave information as to the matters referred to them by the last meeting. On the motion of Rev. G. F. Coleridge, seconded by the Rev. C. D. P. Davies, the Committee, consisting of Mr. Attree, Dr. Carpenter, Mr. Dains, Mr. Washbrook, Rev. E. B. James, and Mr. Carter, was re-elected, and Mr. Attree was requested to make use of the schedule now formulated in the calculation of last year’s points, the final acceptance of the schedule being postponed until the next meeting.

On the motion of Rev. E. W. Carpenter, seconded by Mr. Dains, Mr. Strange, who reported that his Bibliography was still proceeding, was re-elected to continue the work.

On the motion of Mr. Griffin, seconded by Mr. Dillon, the Committee for Peal Collection, consisting of the Hon. Secretary, the Rev. C. D. P. Davies, Dr. Carpenter, and Mr. Dains was re-elected, after the Hon. Secretary had read a valuable report on “Original Authorship” and “Variation.” This report has been duly printed in the verbatim account of the proceedings in “The Bell News.”

It was moved by the Rev. T. L. Papillon, seconded by the Rev. C. Matthews, and carried without dissent that “The Council is of opinion that the use of visible aids to memory in conducting peals is undesirable, and that, if such aids are used, the fact ought to signified in any published report.”

It was moved by the President, seconded by Mr. Attree, and carried unanimously, that “A return be prepared of the condition of all rings of 12, 10 and 8 bells, and of historic rings of 6, throughout the country, to enable a tabulated statement of existing defects to be drawn up and submitted by the Council to church authorities and the public.” On the motion of the President, seconded by Mr. Hudson, the following were elected a Committee to carry the resolution into effect, viz.: The President, Mr. Cockerill, Mr. Trollope, Mr. Story, Mr. F. E. Ward, Mr. Williams, and Mr. Dawe.

It was moved by the Rev. G. F. Coleridge, seconded by Mr. Story, and carried without dissent, that “The Council, recognising the insuperable objection taken by many 6-bell ringers to the definition of a peal of Minor as carried at the meeting of 1892, and recognising also the fact that on 5 and 6 bells no actually true peal of 5000 changes can be rung, and that, therefore, no strictly correct definition of such a peal can be logically formulated; do now decide to expunge the said definition from the standing resolutions, thus offering no opposition to the locally-varying construction of the term ‘peal’ in regard to 5 and 6-bell performances.”

It was moved by the Hon. Secretary, seconded by Mr. Story, and agreed, that “The Council approves the extension of the triennial meeting in London to two days when necessary.”

It was moved by Mr. Attree, seconded by Mr. Griffin, and agreed, “That the next meeting of the Council be held at Bristol.”

The question of a defined title for Thurstans’ Four-part Stedman Triples Composition was adjourned to the next meeting.

It was moved by Mr. Attree and seconded by Mr. Parker, “That the variation of Cambridge Surprise be known as ‘New Cambridge Surprise.’” Mr. Dains moved and Mr. Bolland seconded, as an amendment, that it be called “Thackrah’s Variation of Cambridge Surprise.” There were only a very few votes for the amendment and the original motion was carried without dissent.

It was moved by the Hon. Secretary, seconded by the Rev. C. D. P. Davies, and carried without dissent, “That the Council see no valid reason against commencing a Treble Bob Composition with 1R or 2R.”

It was moved by Rev. H. A. Cockey and seconded by Rev. G. F. Coleridge, “That peal-ringing in Lent is undesirable.” Only 23 voting for the motion, the requisite majority of two-thirds was not obtained.

A vote of thanks to the President concluded the meeting.

The Bell News and Ringers’ Record, July 17, 1897, page 133

The Bell News and Ringers’ Record, July 17, 1897, page 134