TBANSACTIONS 



OF THE 



a^isadittiscttsi gi0»tif ultut:al ^mut^. 



BUSINESS MEETING. 



Saturday, January 5, 1889. 



A duly notified stated meeting of the Society was holden at 11 

 o'clock, the President, Henry P. Walcott, in the chair. 



This being the commencement of the term of office of the new 

 board of ofllcers and standing committees, the President delivered 

 the usual inaugural address as follows : 



Members of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society : 



Ladies and Gentlemen : — The financial condition of the Society 

 during the past year will be submitted to you b}' the Treasurer in 

 his annual report. 



It will be found that the account is still a favorable one. The 

 funds for the paj'ment of the outstanding indebtedness of the 

 Society are steadily increasing, and our mortgage debt, deducting 

 therefrom the amount of the sinking fund, has been reduced to 

 twenty thousand dollars. The rents of the stores in the base- 

 ment and first story have been raised in amount by satisfactory 

 leases to responsible tenants for a term of years. The external 

 appearance of the lower portion of the building has been improved 

 by some alterations of a permanent character made at the expense 

 of the Society, but to be practically repaid by the tenants in equal 

 annual instalments. 



It is too early yet to state definitely the loss to the Society 

 caused by the fire of the 30th of December, 1888. 



