Calendar: 1896-1897 Page 634

xliv report which was in many respects one of transition they did not feel able to undertake comprehensive treatment of the problem Bat by the restoration of the Parliamentary Grant the financial conditions under which the College has to work are placed for the present on comparatively definite foot- ing and with the assistance of the new Secretary who was appointed last year the details of the College arrangements have been thoroughly reviewed The result is that the Council are able to announce with great satisfaction that with the generous co-operation of the staff complete reorgan- isation of the financial system of the College has been adopted under which its pecuniary stability will they believe be secured This reorganisation is based upon the principle that the expenses of the work of the College must be defrayed before any profits from fees are dis- tributed among the Academical Staff Hitherto fixed proportion of one quarter only was reserved from fees to defray the whole expenses not only of the general admin- istration of the College but of the various branches of education Other fixed proportions generally of the nature of capitation fees were then assigned to the various chairs and lectureships without regard to the expenses which might be required for the purposes of teaching Those expenses however in the scientific departments of the College have of late years steadily and heavily increased and the quarter of the fees reserved to defray such charges has proved wholly insufficient To remedy this insufficiency standing rule was enforced that the incomes of the Staff should be taxed in each year to make good as far as possible any deficiency in the previous year Under this rule the Staff have during the last few years submitted with great patience and loyalty to tax of 10 per cent on their incomes and even this proved insufficient to meet the difficulty But this rule involved considerable inequality in practice and supplied very rough adjustment of difficulties Consequently after long and anxious discussion the Council proposed and the Staff with certain modifications have accepted system under which deficits will be avoided instead of being first incurred and then with but partial success remedied sum not exceed- ing one quarter of the fees received will henceforth be 119