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Title, Objects, and Constitution.

1. The Society shall be called the Dunedin Philharmonic Society.

2. The objects of the Society shall be the practice and performance of Vocal and Instrumental Music.

3. Any person may, on the nomination of any member of the Society, and upon due election by the Committee at any of its meetings, be admitted to attend the Society's Concerts on the terms of subscription hereinafter provided. (Rule 38.)

4. Any person having been duly proposed, and having given sufficient proof to the Conductor of ability to sing, or play an orchestral instrument, may, on payment of the annual subscription hereinafter provided, be admitted by the Committee at any of its meetings, and continue to be a member of the Society. (Rule 39.)

5. Any person who, in the opinion of the Society, shall have rendered important service to the Society, or shall be a musician worthy of distinction, may, on the nomination of any member of the Society, be elected at any general meeting an honorary member, and as such receive one ticket for each of its ordinary Concerts : provided always that the number of honorary members shall not at any time exceed five.

6. The Society's year shall extend from the 1st January to 31st December, inclusive, in each year.

7. The annual meeting of the Society shall take place on the second Wednesday in January of each year, and such annual meeting may be adjourned on a resolution to that effect of the members then present.

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8. At the annual meeting, or at any adjournment thereof, the report of the outgoing Committee shall be read, the officers for the then current year elected, and all other business not specially provided for in these Rules transacted.

9. All goods and chattels belonging to the Society shall be held by the Committee for the time being in trust for the Society.

10. The Committee shall have power to admit as a free performer any person whose assistance may, in the opinion of the Committee, be advantageous to the Society.

Government and Duties.

11. The Society shall be governed by a President, Vice-President, and a Committee of Management consisting of seven persons.

12. The duties of the President shall be to preside at every annual or special meeting of the Society.

13. The duties of the Vice-President shall be to perform the duties of and to act generally for the President in his absence, and to preside at meetings of the Committee.

14. The duties of the Committee shall be to manage the financial affairs of the Society, to select the music for practice and performance, to fix the days for, the time of commencement and close of all Rehearsals, and the dates of all Concerts and Public Performances, and also the rates of charges for admission thereto; to make arrangements for and superintend all Concerts and Public Performances, to make engagements with vocalists, instrumentalists, and others, for the benefit and advancement of the Society; to provide suitable rooms for Rehearsals, Concerts, &c.; and generally to manage and direct the affairs of the Society consistently with these Rules : and the Committee shall have power to appoint, on such terms as to salary and security for the faithful performance as to the Committee shall seem fit, a collector to collect and get in monies at any time, and from time to time, due to the Society, and to assist the Secretary in such manner as he may direct.

15. The Committee shall meet (five constituting a quorum) at least once a month, for the transaction of business, at a time and place to be fixed by themselves; and shall have power to call, by reasonable notice, special meetings of the Society for the despatch of special business; and they shall also call such meetings on a requisition made to them through the Secretary by any six members of the Society.

16. Any member of the Committee who shall absent himself from three meetings of the Committee, without assigning satisfactory reasons for his absence, shall be deemed to have resigned his membership of the Committee, and another person shall be appointed in his place by the Society at the next practice.

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17. The Committee shall submit to the Society at each annual meeting a full report of their proceedings during the then past year, and of the general state of the Society's affairs.

18. The Committee shall have the sole management and control of the Society's property.

Elections, Officers and their Duties.

19. The President of the Society shall he selected from the Subscribers to the Society's Concerts, and shall be elected at the annual meeting, or at an adjournment thereof, pursuant to nominations to be made by members or a member of the Society.

20. The Vice-President and Committee shall be selected from among the Society, and shall be elected by ballot at the annual meeting, or at an adjournment thereof; and any vacancy which may occur among the Officers or Committee during the year shall be supplied at the Rehearsal next ensuing, after such vacancy shall have been declared.

21. The Officers of the Society shall be the Conductor, Leader of the Orchestra, Organist, Secretary, Treasurer, and Librarian, who shall be ex officio members of the Committee, provided that they shall receive no remuneration for their services out of the funds of the Society.

22. The Officers of the Society shall be elected by ballot at the annual meeting of the Society, or at an adjournment thereof.

23. The duties of the Conductor shall be to conduct all rehearsals, concerts, and public performances of the Society; solely to manage, direct, and control the Choir and Orchestra; and to examine the qualifications of any applicant for admission to the Society as a vocal or instrumental performer.

24. The duties of the Leader of the Orchestra shall be to lead the Band at all rehearsals at which the Conductor may require his services, and at all Concerts and Public Performances of the Society.

25. The duties of the Organist shall be to accompany the Choir or Soloists on the Organ or Pianoforte at all Rehearsals, Concerts, or Public Performances at which the Conductor may require his services.

26. The duties of the Secretary shall be to attend all Committee meetings and meetings of the Society, to take minutes of the meetings and enter them in the minute-hook, conduct all correspondence, prepare (with the assistance of the Committee if necessary) the annual report of the Committee, attend all rehearsals, concerts, and public performances, and note the attendance of performers, whom he shall furnish with the necessary tickets of admission, sign all concert ticket, and countersign all cheques drawn by the Treasurer, page 6 and generally to act for the Society under the direction of the Committee.

27. The duties of the Treasurer shall be to receive and pay all monies due to and from the Society, and to submit at the end of the Society's year a full and particular account of all the receipts and disbursements to the Auditors appointed to examine it.

28. The duties of the Librarian shall be to take charge of the Society's Library, attend at the commencement of every rehearsal, and deliver to the Choir and Orchestra the music intended to be practised, and at the close of every rehearsal collect all the music and deposit it in the Library; to correct or cause the correction of errors discovered in any of the vocal or instrumental copies; superintend the conveyance of all music to and from all concerts and public performances of the Society, and generally to act in his office as the Committee may from time to time direct.

Members.

29. Any member of the Society shall, if required by the doorkeeper, produce his or her ticket prior to admission to any practice or rehearsal; and at twenty minutes after the time fixed for the commencement of rehearsal the roll of members shall be checked by the Secretary.

30. Any member not present at any rehearsal within thirty minutes after the time fixed for commencement, or finally leaving the room fifteen minutes before the close, shall be considered absent from the whole rehearsal.

31. Any member absent from any three rehearsals preparatory to any concert or public performance, shall not do allowed to take part in that concert or public performance without the consent of the Conductor, to whom every case of such absence shall be reported as it may occur, by the Secretary.

32. No member shall be allowed to be in the practice-room and not in the Orchestra during any Rehearsal without the consent of the Conductor, and any member who shall in the judgment of the Conductor behave refractorily, or in any manner improperly during any Rehearsal, Concert, or Public Performance, may be at once suspended from membership by the Conductor until the next succeeding Committee meeting, and in the discretion of the Committee be expelled the Society altogether.

33. Any person not a member or subscriber to the Society shall not be admitted as an auditor to any Rehearsal without introduction by the Conductor or Honorary Secretary.

34. At the first Rehearsal of the Society's year the members of the Choir shall appoint a Captain (who may on any occasion provide a substitute) for each of the four vocal divisions of the Choir, page 7 and the duty of such Captain shall be to receive the music for practice, distribute it in his or her division, and afterwards collect and hand it back to the Librarian; also to introduce new members to their seats.

35. Each member shall at the last rehearsal for any concert or public performance be provided with an orchestra ticket for such concert or public performance (without which he or she shall not be admitted thereto), and shall be allowed one transferable ticket for each concert or public performance.

Auditors.

36. At the last rehearsal of the Society's year, the members shall appoint two Auditors to examine the Treasurer's accounts and the Library, and report thereon to the annual meeting.

Concerts, Subscriptions, and Fees.

37. The number of subscription concerts to be given by the Society in any year shall be four.

38. The amount of subscription payable by each subscriber to the Society's Concerts shall be—for one ticket for each of the four concerts £1 1s. per annum, which subscription shall not entitle the subscriber to admission to any extra concert or public performance.

39. The amount of subscription payable by each member of the Society (regard being had to the exceptions in rule 5) shall be one guinea, which sum shall be paid within one month from the date of any annual meeting, or an adjournment thereof; or in the case of members admitted in the course of the year, within one month of the date of such admission.

Prohibitory and Penal.

40. None of the preceding Rules shall be altered, amended, or rescinded, but by the decision of the Society, or the majority of the members thereof present at an annual or special meeting duly convened; and unless a written notice, together with all particulars of any proposed alteration, amendment, or rescission shall have been given by any member of the society to the Secretary at least one month before, and have been read to the Society by the Secretary at three rehearsals next preceding the day of meeting.

At the Annual Meeting of the Society, held in Milton Hall, Dunedin, on the evening of Wednesday, January 31, 1866, it was resolved that all former Rules affecting the Society be abrogated, and that the foregoing Rules be adopted as the Laws and Regulations under which the Society is now constituted, and shall for the future be governed, managed, and directed.

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