Mr. Jones: I think the nurseries would be glad to co-operate in the getting of new members and it has occurred to me that they might like to donate trees to new members or plants or something that would attract them. That might be worked up with the secretary if it would be any great attraction for getting new members.
The President: I think that is a very good suggestion.
The Secretary-Treasurer: Mr. McGlennon spoke of the amount of time that the secretary had to give to the work. I can speak from experience and I can speak frankly because the secretary and the treasurer are different persons, although the office of the secretary treasurer has not yet been officially divided. The treasurer is supposed to have not much to do and the secretary to get the bulk of the work. While the finances of the association at the present time are not such that we can recommend the paying of a salary to the secretary, yet there should be a salary paid to the secretary sufficient so that he could employ someone to relieve him of a good portion of the detail which comes on him. I know by experience what that is. I would like to ask the association to authorize the treasurer to pay the secretary a salary not exceeding $500 a year. That is what it ought to be or whatever portion of that the finances will permit for this purpose. In offering that I do not want the secretary to think that he must begin to spend the money right away, because it is not in the treasury, but I have a lot of faith that we will get more money and will be enabled to pay that. So I want to ask your authority to do it.
Mr. Olcott: I would like to second that motion and also to endorse what Mr. McGlennon said, and Mr. Jones, in regard to new members. I think that is one of the things we need as much as anything right now and that we can get them if we go after them. I know that our secretaries, both Mr. Bixby and Dr. Deming, have done a great deal of work and that it takes a great deal of work to get new members. There are a good many other things on the schedule for the treasurer and secretary to do besides that. We have a system of vice-presidents for each state and one of my recent ideas has been that he might form the center for an increase of membership in his particular state through co-operation with the secretary of this association. If we do not keep after this matter after we adjourn we shall be just about where we are now a year from now. It is activity that counts. I am sure that if we provide for a salary for the secretary we will get busy and provide for that salary, so I make the motion that the treasurer be authorised to pay $500, or any portion of that amount that the association can afford, to the secretary.
Dr. Morris: I second the motion.
The motion was carried unanimously.
The Acting Secretary: You will notice that, in the question box, question number 12 is in relation to roadside planting of nut trees. More people, it seems to me, are interested in the roadside planting of nut trees than in any other one phase of nut planting. I get many questions about what is desirable to plant on the roadsides and many suggestions that the Association particularly interest itself in encouraging roadside nut planting. Therefore it seems to me that it would be advisable that this association should appoint a committee which should consider all the factors concerned in roadside planting of nut trees, and should draw up a bulletin which can be sent out to officials and people who make inquiry and to all people who are interested, giving them exact and specific information on the subject of road planting in each state, considering each state separately and suggesting what nut trees had best be planted in that particular state.
Mr. Jones: I think Dr. Deming's suggestion is a good one but I do not like the idea of waiting another year. I think we ought to do that right now. There is a big opportunity for producing new varieties. For instance, get each state to take up planting of the very best nuts they can get and then plant the seedlings on the roadside and we will get new varieties that will be better than anything we have now. If you plant common nuts you will get common nuts but if you plant fine nuts while you will still get a large number of ordinary nuts you will get some that will be fine and some that will be better than anything you plant, if you plant enough of them. I think that is the greatest opportunity we have in roadside planting.
The Acting Secretary: I think this is the proper course to follow, that the committee appointed should have power to issue a bulletin without waiting for the next convention. I would like to see our president at the head of the committee.
Mr. Jones: I would like to see them get the nuts this year. There is a good crop of nuts this year, black walnuts, hickory and other nuts.