THE TUBERCULOSIS CHRISTMAS SEAL 61 



Association held last week I was empowered to act in this matter and can 

 therefore say that we are ready to assume the added responsibility should the 

 Red Cross view the proposition with favor. 



Yours very truly, 



(Signed) LIVINGSTON FARRAND, 



Executive Secretary. 



As will be noted from the correspondence under the agreement 

 between the American Red Cross and the National Tuberculosis 

 Association, the latter organization became the general agent of 

 the Red Cross for the sale of Christmas seals with the privilege of 

 appointing such other state or local agents as it might desire, and 

 with full power and responsibility for controlling the expenditure 

 of the funds derived from the Christmas seal sale. In other 

 words, the policy of the American Red Cross in the Christmas 

 seal sale from the beginning until the termination of this agree- 

 ment was to act always in the capacity of general sponsor for the 

 seal sale, leaving to the National Tuberculosis Association the 

 widest possible latitude in the achievement of results from the 

 funds derived through this method. 



It is a matter of interesting record that the sponsors of the 

 Christmas seal sale both in the American Red Cross and the 

 National Tuberculosis Association considered it in its earlier 

 days largely a fad which would soon die out and would have to be 

 replaced by some other means of raising money. The reason why 

 the Christmas seal outlived that dangerous fad period of develop- 

 ment and has become a permanent institution in American com- 

 munities is organization, spelled in large letters. 



From 1910 until 1919 the American Red Cross and the National 

 Tuberculosis Association maintained their virtual partnership in 

 the Christmas seal sale. Each year an annual conference of state 

 and other interested executives was held, usually at Washington, 

 and plans for the Christmas seal sale of the ensuing year were 

 perfected. The increasing development of the seal sale meant an 

 increasing investment of funds for the printing of the seals and 

 advertising matter. The Red Cross assumed this financial re- 

 sponsibility each year, reimbursing itself out of the returns of the 

 seal sale. 



In 1918 no national Christmas seal sale was conducted. In 



