Excerpt from History, Possessions and Prospects of the Maryland Historical Society

John Spear Smith, Robert Gilmor, Sr., Charles F. Mayer, Bernard U. Campbell, John L. Carey, William A. Talbott, Fielding Lucas, J r., John J. Donaldson, Robert Carey Long, and Sebastian F. Streeter, all of whom are dead; while the surviv ors are John H. B. Latrobe, Dr. James Hall, J. Morrison Harris, John P. Kennedy, George Wm. Brown, Dr. Joshua J. Cohen, Dr. Stephen Collins, Frederick Wm. Brune, J r., Captain Robert Leslie and myself. At that meeting the organization was completed; for, having considered the matter maturely in advance, we were prepared to adopt a constitution and by-laws, drawn up by me with care, the original draft of which I have the pleas ure of presenting to-night to the society. In order to make these fundamental instruments as com plete as possible, I obtained printed or written copies of the constitutions and laws of all the Historical Societies I was able to reach by cor respondence, and digested them in consultation with Mr. John P. Kennedy and our late Record ing Secretary, Mr. Streeter. These documents I have also preserved, and now present to the society. The committee which was appointed, reported the draft as offered, and the document was at once heartily adopted by the citizens present, who saw in it a promising nucleus for the only literary organization of the kind that had ever been formed in our state or city.

The Constitution and By-laws being accepted, our preparatory meeting adjourned to the lst of February, after selecting a committee to nominate suitable persons as the first officers of the society, to be balloted for at our next assemblage. I remember that much care was taken in this deli cate duty by the judicious committee, which con sisted of Mr. J. H. B. Latrobe, Mr. George Wm. Brown, and Captain Robert Leslie. Indeed, so heedful were these gentlemen that I find it recorded they re-assembled the originators of the society on the 31st of January, in order to consult over the names they intended to propose to the general meeting on the following day.

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