JANUABT 30, 1908. 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



15 



The business sessions of the conven- 

 tion in Toronto were the best attended 

 of any convention in a number of years. 

 I am counting on the members to surpass 

 that record in Washington. 



In closing, I desire again to join with 

 the visiting members of this society in 

 appreciation of the efforts of the Wash- 

 ington florists, which have made possible 

 a successful convention. 



It is a high honor to be chosen presi- 

 dent of the best, most businesslike and 

 most effective florists' organization in 

 the United States, and I thank you most 

 heartily for that honor. 



On motion of W. N, Budd the chair 

 was directed to appoint a committee of 

 three to consider the recommendations 

 in the president's address and report 

 ways and means for making the sugges- 

 tions operative. Mr. Rudd, A. F. J. 

 Baur and J. R. Fotheringham were ap- 

 pointed as such committee. 



Secretary Albert M. Herr then read 

 his annual report, as follows: 



Secretary's Report. 



Your secretary reports having issued 

 the regular printed matter of the society 

 during the past year. Our annual report 

 was more complete than usual, thanks to 

 our stenographer and the fact that, being 

 from my own city, it could be worked 

 out to better advantage than could pos- 

 sibly be done by correspondence. 



The premium list and dates for the 

 meeting were discussed and adopted at 

 the meeting of the board of directors 

 held in Philadelphia last August, quite a 



ing of the show in 1909, With exhibitors, 

 judges, and the board of directors all 

 present, mistakes and friction could be 

 avoided. The exhibitor, being the first 

 consideration in our shows, should have 

 first consideration in our premium list. 



In the opinion of your secretary, the 

 matter of advertising in our premium list 

 should be dispensed with. The members 

 do not patronize it to any extent, even 

 after personal solicitation, and it is hard 

 to get outsiders to look upon it as a good 

 business proposition. For the one issued 

 this year a circular letter was sent to all 

 members of this society, followed by a 

 personal letter to the possible advertisers 

 — in some casea two or three. In addi- 

 tion to this, personal letters were sent to 

 about 400 other advertisers, with the re- 

 sults shown before you. The getting up 

 of the premium list, aside from the solici- 

 tations, is almost as much work as get- 

 ting out the annual report, and after de- 

 ducting the extra cost of printing there 

 is such a small margin of profit that it is 

 hardly just to your secretary to pile all 

 of this work upon him, 



A pet schema of my own was tried this 

 year and an invitation sent to every flo- 

 rist, within a radius of 100 miles from 

 the meeting place, to join the society. 

 The responses were two new members 

 and several inquiries, a result that teaches 

 its own lesson. 



In addition to all of the foregoing, 

 there have been about 700 pieces of mail, 

 mostly personal letters in response to in- 

 quiries, and the regular correspondence 



to be done and for which the society is 

 not in a position to pay an adequate sal- 

 ary, so that in making your selection it 

 will be the part of wisdom to select a 

 secretary who has leisure time to devote 

 to this work and one who employs clerical 

 help, to whom can be given the routine 

 part of the work. Your present incum- 

 bent, having served this society for thir- 

 teen years, feels that with another year's 

 service to break the hoodoo, he has borne 

 his share of the work and that some one 

 more competent and better able to give 

 the time and labor required should take 

 it up and carry it on to completion. 



Treasurer F. E. Dorner presented his 

 annual report. It showed the society's 

 financial condition to be as follows: 



Treasurer's Report. 



Balance Jan. 21, 1907 $ 390.11 



Cash from Sec'y Herr $ 897.0." 



Cash from Interest 82.97 



$ 980.02 



$l,370.i;i 

 EXPENDITURES. 



Paid orders on treasurer $1,032.08 



Cash on hand Jan. 24, 1008.. 338.05 



$1,370.13 



PERMANENT FUND. 

 Am'nt reported Jan. 21, 1907 $2,025.31 



Seven life memberships 350.00 



$2,375.31 



For the nomenclature committee, con- 

 sisting of A. M. Herr, A. Herringtoii 

 and Eugene Dailledouze, Mr. Herr pre- 

 sented a report as follows: 



"Your committee reports the regis- 

 tration of four seedlings and three 

 sports for the past year, a very poor 

 showing, judging from the number of 



Bench of the Lawson-Enchanfress Gunation at the Establishment of the B.^ K. & B. Floral Cct Richmondt Ind. 



few changes being made in the premium 

 list and a three days' session agreed upon 

 as an experiment, all of which was duly 

 announced through the trade papers. 



It has since developed that a portion 

 of intending exhibitors are not able to 

 get their flowers through in time for stag- 

 ing by 1 p. m. Tuesday. I would sug- 

 gest that a portion of our meeting be set 

 aside for the purpose of adopting a pre- 

 mium list, a set of rules governing the ex- 

 hibition and the best date for the open- 



between this office, your president and 

 the board of directors. 



Your secretary requests that, unless 

 you have selected a successor for the com- 

 ing year, he be continued in office for one 

 year longer, in order to use up stationery 

 and other matter that would have to bo 

 changed and lost if a new one were 

 elected, and that he then be released. The 

 work of this society is increasing in a 

 ratio of about three to one as compared 

 to membership. It is a work that ought 



novelties described in our trade papers. 

 "We would suggest that a circular 

 letter be gotten up for use by the chair- 

 man of this committee, to mail to a 

 grower as soon as he describes a new 

 carnation in any of the trade papers. 

 This letter should show the advantages 

 of and the necessity for registration 

 and demand that he register the name 

 of his variety if he has any intention 

 of growing it commercially. We, of 

 course, cannot compel registration, but 



