April i, 1909.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



253 



Rubber Sundries Association Dinner. 



IT was on March 25 of this year that the rubber sundries 

 men of the United States met in New York in the forenoon to 

 discuss business and in the evening for their annual banquet. 

 For officers they elected this year, Henry C. Burton, of Parker, 

 Stearns & Co., president ; George B. Hodgman, of the Hodgman 

 Rubber Co., vice-president ; Frederick H. Jones, of the Tyer 

 Rul)ber Co., treasurer, and Edward E. Huber, of Ejberhard Faber, 

 secretary. 



At half past 7 about thirty members of important houses man- 

 ufacturing rubber sundries gathered in one of the reception rooms 

 at Delmonico's on the second floor and after a half hour's social 

 filed into the red room, where the banquet was to be served. 

 These banquets have been always notable as being unusually good, 

 and in all their settings characterized by taste and elegance, and 

 on the evening in question the reputation made in the past was 

 not only lived up to but perhaps surpassed. The diners gathered 

 about a great round table, the whole of which, except the out- 

 side margin where the covers were laid, resembled a tropical 

 garden in its profusion of blossoms. Scattered through the flowers 

 were cheerful Billiken statues of various sizes that grinned in 

 grotesque good nature at the diners. A very beautiful and novel 

 feature in the line of decoration was the hundreds of crimson 

 rubber balloons that at different heights above the table swayed 

 gently at every breath of air and reflected the softened light from 

 the green-tinted candelabra. The menu was of Delmonico's best. 



The speaking that followed the dinner was brief, occupying 

 less than an hour. President Burton briefly reviewed the history 

 of the Association for the year, and then introduced the editor of 

 The Indi.\ Rubber World. The next speaker was Mr. H. E. 

 Raymond, of The B. F. Goodrich Co., who in a ten minutes' 

 speech, punctuated by gusts of appreciative laughter, proved him- 

 self to be one of the cleverest after-dinner speakers that the 



rubber trade affords. He was followed by Mr. Edward E. Huber, 

 who read a brief, which in realitj- is the record of the Associa- 

 tion for ten years, and is a matter of historic interest: 



"In looking over the records I find that the first annual banquet 

 was held in March, 1899. The first meeting, organizing the 

 original association, was held on September 9, 1898, at the old 

 Fifth Avenue Hotel. In this connection, and particularly because 

 of the resolutions recently passed on the subject of the 'Return 

 of Defective Goods,' I find that the old Association, under date 

 of December 14, 1899, passed a resolution that no druggists' 

 sundries goods, that were not mechanically imperfect, were to 

 be accepted for credit by any manufacturer, and if they showed 

 wear or had been in hand over a year, all manufacturers should 

 refuse to credit such goods to customers. This resolution appears 

 to have been passed at that time, but at the meeting of March 

 8, 1900, the subject of this resolution was further discussed, 

 and it was deemed by some of the members who were not rep- 

 resented at the meeting of Decmber 14 that it would be impos- 

 sible for them to consider such a course, as the resolution was 

 too broad, and that it was inadvisable to take such radical action. 

 It was thereupon moved by Mr. Burton, seconded by Mr. Hodg- 

 man, that the resolution passed at the meeting of December 14, 

 1899, in the matter of refusing the indiscriminate return of 

 druggists' sundries goods be rescinded. 



"Evidently at that time the members of this association did 

 not have that strength that has* come to them since, and be- 

 cause of a better feeling among the associate members, as is 

 evidenced by the resolution which was passed at our January 

 meeting, and which appears to have filled a long felt want, and 

 has been acknowledged by all as one of the greatest benefits that 

 have been derived from a membership in this association. 



"On October 3, 1901, I find a resolution that, owing to the ap- 



B.V.XnUKT 01-' TllK ULIJUKK SUNUKIK.S M;\N UF.\CTUREKS' ASS0CI.\TIO.\ — DELMONICO'S, NEW YORK. 



