)<{«'^ CONSTITUTION OF THE )ociety [or tpe Protection of Horestj "We, Citizens of the United States, being also Citizens of the State of New York, believing that Forests are essen- tial to the Agricultural, Commercial and Industrial inter- ests of the Country, for the purpose of securing their preservation, and increasing and disseminating among the people a knowledge of the necessity and methods of Forest Management, do form an Association and adopt this as our Constitution. Aeticle I, — Name. — This Association shall be called : The Society for the Protection of Forests. Article II. — Executive Committee. — The General Man- agement of the concerns of the Association shall be en- trusted to an Executive Committee of five members besides the officers. Article III. — Annual Meeting. — The annual meeting of the Association shall be held on the second Tuesday in January in each year unless otherwise ordered by the Executive Committee, on written or published notice to the members, at which meeting there shall be elected by Ballot a President, ten Vice-Presidents, a Secretary and Treasurer, also five members from the Association at large, who with the foregoing officers shall form the Executive Committee of the Association. Any failure to elect at such annual meeting shall be remedied at the next regular meeting. Until an Election shall be had shall be President, shall be Vice-Presi- dent, and shall be Treasurer. Aeticle IV. — President. — It shall be the duty of the President to preside at all meetings, to give the casting Yote whenever there is a tie ; to draw upon the Treasurer for all sums that have been appropriated by the Associa- tion, or that have been authorized by the Executive Com- mittee, and perform such other duties as usually apper- tain to the President of an Association. Article V. — Vice-Preside7it.—ll}iQ Vice-Presidents shall assist the President when necessary, and in his absence, in the order of their election, perform all the duties and be invested with all the powers of President, and in the absence of both any member may preside. Article VI. — Secretary. — The Secretary shall keep a written Kecord of the proceedings of the Association ; issue all notices required, attest all moneys to be drawn by the President authorized by the Executive Committee, and shall keep the records and jDapers of the Association. Article VII. — Treasurer. — It shall be the duty of the Treasurer to receive all the moneys of the Association, and pay all orders drawn upon him by the President attested by the Secretary, and none others ; to see that all fees and subscriptions are collected, and keep an account of all moneys received and expended, subject at all times to the investigation of the President or Executive Committee. He shall at each annual meeting furnish a full written account of all the moneys received and disbursed during the year. He shall keep the moneys of the Society in Bank in his name as Treasurer of the Society separate from all other moneys, and at the end of his term shall surrender all books, papers, vouchers and property of the Association to his successor. BY rRANSFER. iUN 3 1910 •r; m- ^ o o w ^-f ^J" n b o o t/5 •-! "rJ 5 o ^ 5' o' o 'xi !^ >-t O c^ p> ►— i — . (D O J£. p. p Z2 H - ^ I— I H W > crq o o p. •-=! O r-; >-t o ffi cT > ^ CO o " ■-► 04 CO o >-< B Q n o p o o o 3 in. P •T2 rt- TJ w n> o o_ o' >-i p o" 3 p 5" 3 3 W 3 CD 3 O 5" o O O o l-t 3 P o' 3 O O n!. O) o ^ 3 CD re ■-! Cf3_ ^ en' o P* a 03 n ^ o 3^ n "zi p 3 ni — s- -I O P_ ^ P 3 "1 I—. !^ o >-*-> oq fT> v. 3 o ^ o 5' 3 i-^i 3 ^^ P" r-h O p cr 3^ a. *-< n o t—j. p o_ *~^. ■-*> C/J 5' s' I— > o c« > p J5" =^ (T) a. 3 O. 3.* en 3- ^— 1 3 rD crq P 3 P w 3 !:=: «-^ 3" >-( o p^ 1^ 3 o CT < n' p ^, ^ 0' n rt 3 w 0" P 3 •-t P^ 3 ?5" ^3 P. ro n 3 0' p-* <-h 3 C/l P C ^ r-^~ I-! P 3" ^ ?r ro n> 3 ^ n> " c" p V! P. CAl p. 55 cr ^ ^! 3 3 C/3 Ti ffq "2. cr Cfl ro Hr". TJ o ^. o O rt) X-. 5. n p-. ^-^ ts 3^ cr •-^ rD 3 >-t ri) 3 P o 3 p P. 6 1 Wall Street, ) New York City, Dec. 8th, 1884. f Dear Sir : Understanding that you are interested in the preservation of woods and waters I enclose you a copy of the Constitution of the Society for the Protection of Forests and ask your earnest co-operation. We have at the sources of the Mohawk and Hudson, also at the sources of the Delaware and Sus- quehanna Rivers, abundant primeval forests, from which since our race came to this land those rivers have been fed, and an ample area of mountainous country has been kept green and moist, from which vapors and coolness and springs have issued all summer long and to which those who were weary with work resorted for rest. Latterly the encroachments of squatters, the spoliation of lumbermen and the clearing up of tem- porary settlers, with or without title, has contracted the area of forests and materially injured the woods that remain. Lakes have been dammed and suddenly drawn off to carry logs. State lands and lands of non-resident owners have been pillaged. Large areas have been burned over by negligence of lumberers or those clearing up lands. At present a great portion of these districts are reduced to the condition of desert or like the Bad Lands of the West, being of little value to man or beast, and dangerous as the source of sudden floods from the rain that was formerly retained by the undergrowth to form a regular and gentle supply of water. The only remedy for this disaster is an enlightened public opinion that will compel legislators to pass laws for the cultivation and protection of the woods in spite of the opposition of lumbermen and squatters. This opinion we look to you to awaken by writing, speeches, conversations with your local representative, local societies formed for this purpose, and by public meetings of such societies, at which we will be glad to be represented. The law should provide for the retention of all land in these districts owned by the State, the pur- chasing of all other lands sold at the tax sales, provisions for the purchase of such adjoining lands as in the opinion of the Commissioners of Forests would be suitable at a just price, in no case exceeding say $2.00 an acre, and the appointment of Forest Commissioner, to have charge of the forests, with full power to protect them and to make recommendation to the Legislature for further legislation. May we have your cooperation in this matter ? With hearty good will I am your fellow citizen, CHAS. E. WHITEHEAD. ■ )<^^ 3 Aeticle YUl.— Executive Committee.— ThQ Execu- tive Committee shall make all purchases ; authorize the expenditure of money; audit all accounts; have a general jarisdiction over the affairs of the Association, and have power to suspend any officer vi^hose conduct shall have been prejudicial to the welfare of the Association until the next regular meeting. Five members shall constitute a quorum. The Executive Committee shall have full power to fill any vacancy which may occur from death, resignation or otherwise among its officers, and any appoint- ment so made by it shall be valid until the next annual election. Article IX. — Fees and Z)we5.— Persons becoming mem- bers of this Association shall pay an annual fee of one dollar, and the fiscal year shall begin from the first of January of each year. Aeticle X. — Proposals of Members. — Persons wishing to join this Association must be proposed by some member personally acquainted with the proposed who can vouch for his interest in the purposes of the Society. Aeticle XI. — Honorary Memiers. — Persons proposed as honorary members in this Association may be proposed in the same manner, and honorary members when elected shall be exempt from payment of annual dues, but shall not be entitled to fill any office or vote at any meetings of the Association, and shall not be deemed as forming any part of a quorum at any meeting. Aeticle XII. — Forfeiture of Memlersliip. — In case a member shall neglect to pay his dues for a period of one year after notice given he shall ipso facto cease to be a member of the Association, and shall forfeit all rights to the property of the same. The names of such delinquents shall be stricken from the list of members on motion at a regular meeting, but such member may be reinstated within twelve months from the period of forfeiture by the unanimous vote of the Executive Committee. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 021 485 571 9 Article XIII. — Resignation. — All resignations shall be made in writing to the President, and all interests in the property of the Association of members resigning, or in any other manner ceasing to be its members, shall be vested in the Association. Aeticle XIV. — Matters not provided for in Constitu- tion. — All matters not particnlarly provided for in the Constitution shall be controlled by the Executive Com- mittee until specially passed upon by the Association at a regular meeting. Aeticle XV. — Meetings. — This Association shall as- semble at sach time and -place as the President and Execu- tive Committee may designate for the transaction of the general business of the Association, and seven members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of any busi- ness which may be brought before them. Morris K. Jesup. Chas. E. Whitehead. Horatio Seymour. Chas. S. Smith. Sam. D. Babcock. Thatcher M. Adams. Thomas Denny. Erancis H. Weeks. Chas. P. Daly. E. H. Robertson. Jas. R. Thompson. Wm. E. Pearson. Robert W. de Forest. W. E. Dodge. Calvin E. Pratt. Solon Humphreys. C. N. Bliss. T. B. Coddington. Edward M. Shepard. John S. Kennedy. J. A. Roosevelt. Abram S. Hewitt. Henry C. Potter. Roswell D. Hitchcock. Geo. G. Wheelock. H. W. de Forest. Heber R. Bishop. Henry E. Pellew. John H. Seymour. And many others. LIBRftRY OF CONGRESS IlillliiUIHIIII ■0 021 485 571 9 MetilEclg0|lnc.^uu/RAX S