PRESIDENT MacDANIELS: The session will be in order.
As your treasurer said, there are several other things which we discussed in the directors' meeting. We discussed this matter of how, the situation being such as it is, the Association could improve its position through gaining more members and through either making more money or cutting down expenditures.
The Publicity Committee was one of those suggestions, who were to explore this matter of getting better publicity for less money. That is, whatever publicity we got from the American Fruit Grower cost us about $300, and we think we can do a lot better in some other way.
Another matter was to place the financial situation of the society squarely before the membership and ask that as many as could and felt so inclined take out a contributing or a sustaining membership. We felt quite strongly that raising the dues was not the answer, because there are a lot of people sort of on the fringe who don't work too actively for the society but who do take out regular memberships but who, if we raised the dues even another 50 cents, would probably fail to renew their memberships. So that at least for the present we are not going to go ahead on that basis, unless you want that to come up for further discussion.
Another point which we, I think, should explore was the matter of advertising in the proceedings. Some other associations, the pecan association, particularly, as Dr. McKay pointed out, make a substantial part of their revenue from advertising in the proceedings. We have tried that before, but times have changed, and I think it should be considered again.
Then the matter of speeding up sales of sets of the proceedings to libraries, that is, further publicity in The Nutshell about sets that are for sale and, perhaps, circularizing the library lists to sell complete sets, or as complete as we have.
Another matter that might be explored is having some kind of a "give-away program", some inducement for those who take out memberships for the first time. Other societies do it in one way or another. Unfortunately, our material does not lend itself to that sort of thing as well as some others, but we might be able to give nuts of Carpathian strains that could be used as seed nuts, or perhaps the hybrid hazels.
MR. MCDANIEL: One suggestion made in a letter from Dr. Crane was to distribute hybrid walnuts to grow to fruiting size. That might be explored if there is a source of enough seedlings or seed nuts of Juglans Regia crossed with Juglans Nigra.
PRESIDENT MacDANIELS: We would welcome any further suggestions which you may have, either as to saving money or making money, or increasing our membership, which amounts to making money, of course.
Another thing that might be done to present the possibilities of nut growing to your communities is to sponsor exhibits at your own county or state fairs.