I'ebruary, 11] sandersox: association work 23 



THE WORK OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF 

 ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGISTS 



By E. DwiGHT Sanderson, Morgantown, W. Va. 



Your president sincerely appreciates the honor conferred upon him 

 in electing him to preside at this, the twenty-third annual meeting 

 of this great association of economic entomologists. He has also had 

 occasion to realize that with this is imposed the duty required 

 by our constitution of presenting an address. In again perusing the 

 scholarly addresses of the former presidents of this association I 

 soon became aware that I had not been chosen for this task from any 

 consideration of the possibility of my maintaining the high standard 

 set by my illustrious predecessors as far as any exposition of ento- 

 mological knowledge might be concerned. (And may I remark in 

 passing that no entomologist should consider his entomological edu- 

 cation complete until he has read the addresses of the former presi- 

 dents of this association and glanced over the business and programmes 

 of its meetings, for they contain the richest digest of American eco- 

 nomic entomology, and will unfold to him the heritage to which he has 

 attained.) I was forced to the conviction that the only reason for 

 my designation for this part must lie in the fact that I have been an 

 ardent believer in the usefulness of this association and have done the 

 best I could to promote its organization and usefulness. If this sup- 

 position be true, I may, perhaps, be pardoned for venturing upon a 

 consideration of the work of this association, its sphere, and its future. 

 In doing so I am reminded that ten years ago, at the first meeting of 

 this association which I was able to attend, Vice-President Gillette 

 gave an address on the "Objects of the Association of Economic 

 Entomologists," in which he ably discussed much of the same ground 

 which I shall again present for your consideration. It would seem 

 that some of these fundamental matters are of perennial interest and 

 must needs be discussed and reconsidered with the passing of every 

 decade. 



THE OBJECTS OF THE ASSOCIATION 



Article 1, Section 2 of our constitution very clearly defines the 

 objects of this association, as follows: 



''Its objects shall be: (1) To discuss new discoveries, to exchange 

 experiences, and to carefully consider the best methods of work in 

 economic entomology; (2) to give opportunity to individual workers 

 of announcing proposed investigations so as to bring out suggestions 



