486 
MINUTES  OF  THE 
should  be ;  aside  from  the  obloquy  it  casts  upon  us  as  individual  mem- 
bers of  the  Association,  it  seriously  embarasses  its  officers  and  repre- 
sentative committees ;  and  I  wish  distinctly  to  impress  upon  you  that  1 
believe  our  financial  condition,  and  the  settling  of  the  question  of  fees 
and  dues  from  members,  to  be  the  most  important  and  vital  subject  for 
consideration  and  settlement  before  you  at  this  meeting.  Our  indepen- 
dence, success,  influence  and  dignity  depend  upon  a  treasury  amply  and 
promptly  supplied  with  means  to  cancel  its  obligations,  and  extend  its 
influence  for  good.  You  will  remember  the  embarrassments  arising  from 
an  empty  treasury  rest  personally  only  on  your  permanent  officials,  and  it 
is  not  just  to  them  that,  with  hard  work  and  no  considerable  pay,  they 
should  be  placed  in  any  such  anomalous  position.  Moreover,  if  the  Asso- 
ciation expects  to  extend  and  make  available  its  influence  in  correcting 
any  abuses  we  as  a  craft  may  labor  under,  the  result  of  unequal  taxation, 
it  must  consent  to  tax  itself  freely  in  money.  The  duties  of  the  Treasurer 
and  Permanent  Secretary,  and  of  future  possible  permanent  officers,  are 
and  will  be  so  arduous,  that  no  members  can  afford  to  accept  them,  re- 
quiring as  they  do  such  sacrifices  of  time  and  labor,  without  an  approach 
to  adequate  pay. 
Your  Executive  Committee,  I  believe,  are  prepared  in  their  report  with 
several  plans  with  a  view  of  increasing  the  revenue.  My  oWn  idea  is  that 
we  begin  a  yearly  income  of  not  less  than  $3000,  and  as  near  $5000  as 
may  be,  to  be  raised  by  increasing  the  yearly  dues  to  $5.00,  the  entry  fee 
to  k 5.00,  and  the  certificate  $5.00  or  $10.00  ;  the  payment  of  the  debt 
now  uncancelled  to  be  raised  by  subscription  among  those  most  active 
members  who  have  the  welfare  of  the  Association  at  heart. 
I  favor  the  repeal  of  Section  eight,  Article  second  of  the  Constitution, 
relating  to  ten-year  members. 
While  the  Permanent  Secretary  has  a  very  small  remuneration,  the 
Treasurer  has  none,  save  traveling  expenses.  The  labor  of  this  office  is 
constantly  growing,  and  is  performed  now  only  at  the  almost  entire  sacri- 
fice of  the  leisure  of  the  occupant.  It  is  desirable  that  the  office  could 
remain  in  the  hands  of  the  same  member  year  after  year,  for  obvious 
reasons  ;  yet  you  will  soon  find  no  competent  member  willing  to  under- 
take the  labor  for  nothing  but  the  honor  thereof. 
From  the  report  of  the  Permanent  Secretary  you  will  learn,  among 
other  interesting  matter,  that  your  executive  officers  delegated  repre- 
sentatives of  the  Association  to  attend  the  session  of  the  Congress  of 
European  pharmaceutists  in  Paris,  in  August,  and  it  is  hoped  we  shall 
have  them  returned  to  us  in  time  to  report  in  person  the  results  of  that 
Congress. 
You  will  find  the  report  of  the  Committee  on  the  Progress  of  Pharma- 
cy fully  as  extended  and  elaborate  as  have  characterized  former  ones. 
The  reporter  of  that  Committee  has  taken  much  pains  to  avoid  simple 
reference  to  subjects,  in  most  cases  having  concisely  given  the  most  im- 
