60 
(;. \\\ Athebton. Tn regard to one suggestion which President Winston empha- 
sized, I wish to say that neither the committee nor anyone connected with our 
institutions has presented to the War Department any thought of trying to belittle 
the work of the military department; the idea has simply been that the order of the 
Department as it stands is impossible of execution. It needs modification, and 
therefore it was suggested that modification should be made upon consultation with 
the officers of the Department. 
The report was received and the committee continued. (For further discussion of 
this subject see p. 86). 
Amendment of Tm«: Constitution. 
The question of constitutional amendment being laid before the convention, C. E. 
Thorne, of < >hio, moved that the whole matter be laid on the table, because he con- 
sidered the present constitution satisfactory and regretted to see so much invaluable 
time frittered away upon these matters of detail when it was needed for the purpose 
of discussing questions of greater importance to the work of the association. 
< i. W. Athebton, of Pennsylvania. It is true, as Professor Thorne has said, that a 
great deal of time has been spent on this subject. But there has been very strong 
dissatisfaction with some features of our organization as it stood, and last year at 
Atlanta, after a very full comparison of views, in a perfectly cordial and fraternal 
spirit, certain amendments were agreed upon in form. The amendments which now 
come up represented the best judgment of all parties concerned after a very careful 
review of the whole situation. I have no doubt that, if the question could have been 
put to a final vote of the convention last year, these amendments would have been 
unanimously adopted. I have had no other thought than that when presented at 
this convention they would be unanimously adopted as expressing the mature judg- 
ment of this body. I think there would be serious disappointment in many quarters 
if the understanding reached last year in absolute good faith should not now be 
carried out. The motion of Professor Thorne, as I understand, has not been sec- 
onded. In order to bring this whole matter up and expedite action upon it, I move 
that the proposed amendments of the constitution be adopted as a whole and referred 
to the executive committee to be incorporated into the present constitution. 
The motion of Mr. Atherton was seconded and agreed to; yeas, 53; nays, 1. 
The proposed amendments were as follows: 
(1) The association shall be divided into two sections: (a) A section on college 
work and administration, (1>) a section on experiment station work. The section on 
college work and administration shall be composed of the presidents or acting presi- 
dents of colleges and universities represented in the association, or other representa- 
tives of such institution duly and specifically accredited to this section, and no action 
on public and administrative questions shall be final without the assent of this sec- 
tion. The section on experiment station work shall be composed of the directors or 
acting directors of experiment stations represented in the association or of other 
representatives of such stations duly and specifically accredited to this section. 
(2) Members of these two sections (and no others) shall be entitled to vote both 
in general sessions and in the section to which they respectively belong. The rep- 
resentative appointed by the U. S. Bureau of Education shall be assigned to the 
section on college work and administration; the representative of the Office of Experi- 
ment Stations to the section on experiment station work, and the representative of 
the U. S. Department of Agriculture to either section as he may elect and the section 
by vote authorize; but such election once made and authorized may not be changed 
during the sessions of a given convention. Each section may create such divisions 
as it may from time to time find desirable, and shall elect its own chairman and sec- 
retary for sectional meetings, whose names shall be reported to the association for 
record. 
Change the number of paragraph (2) to (3). 
At the end of the present paragraph (2) add, and in ti>< ens,- provided for in the 
foregoing paragraph (1) shall also have been approved by the section of college work and 
administration. 
