Summer Meeting. • 37 



State Horticultural Society and the treasurer has it deposited with the 

 Mississippi Valley Trust Company at St. Louis. This is not an annual 

 session and the secretary inserted it in last year's report, $992.62 on hand 

 and $ioo.(X) paid out for World's Fair. Mr. Gano has it in the name 

 of the Society at St. Louis. 'Mr. Stark said he wanted to be on the 

 Finance Committee, and I thought he should be, so I asked the president 

 to appoint him, and he kindly did so, but Mr. Stark would not accept it, 

 and refused to look into this matter with us, in spite of the fact that he 

 was given every opporunity by the committee. 



L. A. Goodman — The money can not be drawn from this special 

 fund by the treasurer alone. After the death of Mr. Nelson and a new 

 treasurer was appointed, this fund could not be turned over until mat- 

 ters were settled and the certificate of deposit turned over to the Exe- 

 cutive Committee, but as soon as settled the money was deposited in the 

 name of the Society and is now held in the name of the Society by the 

 Mississippi Valley Trust Company. I told Mr. Stark personally every- 

 thing he asked. We get our money by checks from the State treasurer, 

 sent directly to our Society treasurer. It has been our ambition to set 

 aside two thousand dollars for a permanent fund, and this money is the 

 beginning of it. The $72.00 referred to was a refund from the Mary- 

 land society for money paid out for my expenses to their meeting, and 

 I told him of this also. He has known all the facts in connection 

 with all our money matters, for I had explained them all to him. 



When we draw a requisition on the State Auditor we have to present 

 a list of paid bills and send a certified list to Jefferson City. I have had 

 to pay these bills as they come in, express, travel, printing, post office, 

 etc., and I do this all the time. It is the same way with this Exposition 

 work. The Missouri Commission sometimes owed me from three to 

 six hundred dollars at a time. This money was turned over after the 

 meeting because we have to settle bills that way. I explained to Mr. 

 Stark and supposed it was satisfactory, and I am ready to explain to 

 every member. The Executive Committee, to whom all such things are 

 referred, and who have the power to act in all such cases, had full 

 knowledge of this whole matter as did also many of our old members. 

 There was nothing hidden or covered up, but all was done above board 

 and Mr. Stark was told of it all personally by myself. In preparation 

 for the World's Fair we were running three stations and there were 

 expenses of express, processing and buying fruit and some of the money 

 was so used, as is our custom to use it, and make the settlement after- 

 ward, sometimes months afterwards. This was done in this instance as 

 it has been done often before, and the Executive Committee so author- 

 ized it. 



