Following out the plan outlined at the Battle Creek Convention, the work of the Secretary-Treasurer has begun to be divided, the undersigned taking the duties of Treasurer and the Nut Contests and Dr. Deming taking the Conventions and the work of the Secretary proper until the expected action of the present convention shall formally divide the work of the Secretary-Treasurer and create the offices of Secretary and Treasurer.
Respectfully submitted,
WILLARD G. BIXBY.
Secretary-Treasurer.
The President: This is a very good report, complete in every detail, and unless other action is desired, it will be received and recorded in the minutes of the meeting.
Mr. Reed, you are chairman of the committee that had in charge the tree-planting bill in order that it might be made uniform throughout the country. Have you a report to make?
Mr. Reed: Mr. President, the committee members have been over that individually but have not had an opportunity to discuss it together. If a full report can be had a little later I think that would be more satisfactory. So far as I have been able to go into it the law seems to about cover the ground. I could not make any suggestions as to how it could be improved. I happen to know that the author of the bill, who is our president, has been called upon by several other states to discuss such a law for those states, and I think he is in the best position to tell us if there are any holes in it. If we can have the consent of the house we will defer a full report until we can discuss the matter with our president and with our committee as a whole.
The President: We will take that course unless there are objections.
The communications received by the acting secretary will be filed and printed in the proceedings. If there are no vice-presidents present who are prepared to make reports that order will be passed. At this time should come the appointment of committees but I think it would be well to defer that business until we can consult as to the membership of the committees. The next in order will be some remarks by Mr. Littlepage about the proposed afternoon excursion.
The Acting Secretary: The speakers are Dr. Van Fleet, Mr. Littlepage and Professor Close. I have here the resume of Dr. Van Fleet and I think that it would be better perhaps to read the report of Dr. Van Fleet at once as it may have some bearing on the remarks of Mr. Littlepage and Professor Close.