Six decades of the Society of British Neurological Surgeons.

The early history of the Society was extensively chronicled by its founding spirit and first secretary, Geoffrey Jefferson, with all the charm and felicity that characterised him and his writings. It is to be found in the handbook issued in 1955 to members of the Society and has been up-dated in subsequent editions by later secretaries: Joe Pennybacker, Patrick Clarke and, most recently, by Alan Richardson. Additional details of the Society's early years may be found in the Cairns Memorial Lecture given by Pennybacker in 1976. With an annual subscription for full members at nearly fifty times that in 1926, and invested reserves, the Society is entering its seventh decade in an extremely healthy financial state-due to a succession of shrewd and able treasurers. A. former president, John O'Connell, who was elected as associate member 50 years ago, has attended the last four celebratory dinners at the Athenaeum. "How was it", he asked at the most recent one, "that our Society came into existence as long ago as 1926? It was because of the imagination and energy of Geoffrey Jefferson who not only organised its foundation but guided its development over some forty years." The Society, as will be mentioned, was founded as a small scientific club. It is no longer small, the membership having increased some eight-fold. The meaning of the term "scientific" may be debated, but the programmes chosen for meetings, particularly those of the past decade, indicate that the club is at least as scientific as it has ever been, and its members as eager as ever to advance knowledge. Ours is the second oldest neurosurgical society. The Society of Neurological Surgeons, six years our senior, was formed at the Brigham Hospital, Boston in 1920, and although an early copy of its constitution