The Folk-Lore Society.
FIFTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COUNCIL,
THURSDAY, 5th JULY, 1883.
Two important propositions were made by the Council last year in order to bring the work of the Society more prominently before the public; and the Council think that the result of carrying out these propositions is in many respects satisfactory.
(1) The publication of the Folk-Lore Journal in monthly parts has been favourably accepted by the Members, and, having served to make the Society more widely known, the Council think its continuance in that form is justified. A few Members have expressed their wish to have a yearly volume instead of the monthly issues, and this wish has been acceded to by the Council. The Council, however, cannot but express their strong sense of disappointment at the want of active co-operation in the work of the Society. The Folk-Lore Journal circulates in most of the counties of England, Scotland, and Ireland, through the medium of the Members of the Society (see Folk-Lore Record, vol. iv. p. 205), and yet contributions of original collections from the rural districts come from only a very few quarters. The Council would urge upon the Members the importance of this medium of intercommunication for the purpose of recording the fast-dying customs of our own country and other lands. There is so much to be done in collecting and comparing this important evidence in the history of man, that every effort ought to be made to see that the work is done and done well.
(2.) The Folk-Tale Committee have received a limited but
