REFLECTIONS OF A LIFE DIRECTOR 337 



The March number of the magazine in compHance with the manda- 

 tory by-law adopted by the members the previous year, which required 

 the pubhcation in American "Forestry of an annual financial statement, 

 contained a brief synopsis of the auditor's report, which did not show 

 the statement of assets and liabilities, the expenditure of the life mem- 

 bership funds, or the difference or shrinkage between lost price and 

 market value of securities. The statement also omitted such detailed 

 items as the commissions received by the Secretary, and the cost of the 

 annual meeting at New York on January 13, 1920, which was $769.09. 



On January 13, at a Board meeting, in considering a draft of the 

 new by-laws, the provision adopted in 1920 requiring publication of 

 the financial statement was retained. But on February 20, five days 

 previous to the annual meeting, the final draft of these by-laws, which 

 had been drawn up by the Secretary, acting with Director Pratt, was 

 found to have been modified so as to omit this provision. On Febru- 

 ary 25, at the Board meeting at 10 a.m., one of the directors insisted 

 that it be restored, and the other directors present, Pack, Lyman, Chard, 

 Sterling, and Drinker, after voicing objections to this measure, finally 

 agreed to do so. 



Whether the report as printed is satisfactory to the members is for 

 them to say. 



PART IV — THE FRUITS OF THE NEW FINANCIAL ARRANGEMENT 



In explaining what now took place, the overwhelming influence of 

 the Executive Secretary in determining the policies adopted, with or 

 without the sanction of the directors, in managing the Association, 

 supplies the missing links. An association is very much in the hands 

 of its paid executive, unless every care is exercised to maintain rigidly 

 the safeguards of regular constitutional procedure. The Secretary has 

 not favored the policy of publication of the details of the financial 

 status of the Association. In this policy he first found support from 

 Mr. Quincy, and later from Air. Pack. The efforts of the writer to 

 secure and systematize the itemized cost-keeping statement were a 

 source of great uneasiness, though the Secretary scrupulously complied 

 at all times with the instructions of the Board and requests of the 

 Directors. After 1917 this cost' accounting was discontinued. It was 

 never accepted or used by the Board. 



The Secretary's magazine policy was intended to increase the mem- 

 bership, by improving the quality of the magazine, with illustrations 



