FORTY-FIFTH ANNUAL REPORT. 177 



Chairman: The executive board has been doing some work and I 

 think it will be appropriate to take up this business and consider this 

 matter at this time, and that is the raising of money. We will call on 

 Mr. Merritt of Manistee to present the matter. 



Mr. Merritt: Mr. Chairman, T will say that we had a meeting of 

 the Executive Board Monday evening and in talking over the finances 

 of the State Horticultural Society, what seemed to be most apparent 

 to the members of the board is that this Society needs a meal ticket. 

 Anybody can get along all right until we run out of a meal ticket, 

 and then we are liable to go on to the rocks. The State Horticultural 

 Society used to receive a liberal appropriation from the State, but we 

 don't have that any longer. 



I have just listened to the report of Mr. Satterlee. If it were not 

 for the Lyon Memorial Fund, this society would not be in as good 

 condition as it is and I wish to state to the members of this Society, 

 that if it were not for the Lyon Memorial Fund, this society would 

 be on the rocks. 



This fund amounts approximately to |8,000, invested in good se- 

 curities and Experimental State property at South Haven, woi-th .|!5,000 

 more. We derive something like 5% interest from our securities, or 

 §400 a year. And we receive rent from South Haven property of |275 

 more, which makes our income |67.5 from the Lyon Memorial Fund. 

 This Lyon Memorial Fund, sliould be made the foundation of a perma- 

 nent fund for this Society, and at the meeting of our Executive Board 

 a committee was appointed to figure out some way to increase this 

 fund and have a permanent fund. We would like to say to you that 

 you make it |.50,000 instead of only about .§13,000; this would give us 

 an income of $2,.500 a jear. We drafted the following resolutions: 



Resolved, That a Committee of three men be appointed by the Presi- 

 dent and Secretary in each fruit growing county of Michigan, the first 

 named to act as chairman, to solicit Life Memberships to The State 

 Horticultural Society during the year 1916 ; 



That such Committee also report to the Secretary the names and ad- 

 dresses of all the fruit growers in said counties; 



That a circular letter in the name of the President and Secretary 

 be mailed to all said fruit growers soliciting Life Memberships — by 

 the Secretarj^; 



That the Life Membership fee be increased two years from date to 

 ten dollars; 



That the annual dues be increased two years from date to two dol- 

 lars; 



That the circular letter above referred to states that the object of the 

 Life Memberships solicited is for the creating of a permanent fund for 

 the support of the State Society. 



Signed J. E. MERRITT, 

 HENRY SMITH, 

 C. A. BINGHAM. 



This resolution was adopted with the idea of submitting it today to 

 the Society and I wish to make a few remarks : 

 23 



