MASTERTON A. AND P. ASSOCIATION.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXX, Issue 8492, 22 July 1907, Page 3

MASTERTON A. AND P. ASSOCIATION.

GENERAL COMMITTEE.

The General Committee of the Masterton A. and P. Association held a special meeting on Saturday afternoon to consider various alterations to the rules of the association. Tnose present were: —Messrs R. Gray (chairman), G. C. Summerell, B. Rayner, R. J. Dagg, J. Morris D. Caselberg, T. P. Lett, W. McKenzie, W. D. Watson, R. Johnstone, J. D. Cruickshank, J. C. McKillop. Mr Summerell (who had previously given notice of motion to alter rule 2, clause D, as follows:—"Any member whose subscription for the current year is unpaid shall forfeit all privileges of the Association") stated that he had also given notice to move the following addition to. the same rule: "Members'and ladies' tickets shall be withheld from all members . whose subscription for the current year is unpaid." The mover stated that after considering the matter he thought the second motion wa3 all that was required to make members pay their subscriptions as, after all, the show was the only attraction for a great many members. He suggested that the first motion should be rejected, and the second one carried and confirmed at a special meeting of the Committee to be held a few minutes before the annual meeting of members next Saturday. The first motion was put and lost, and the second one carried. It was decided to hold a special meeting of the Committee prior to the annual meeting on Saturday next to confirm the resolution. The meeting also considered a notice of motion standing in the name of Mr Morris—"That the number of district representatives be increased." Mr Morris stated that since he had given notice he had found that the motion was not in order, and he would therefore ask leave*to withdraw it. 2 The Chairman stated that the motion would be in order if it were altered to read: "That the number of district representatives be increased to nine," because the rules of the Association laid down that no more than nine district representatives could be elected. The meeting endorsed the amendment to the motion as stated by the Chairman. The motion will be confirmed at a special meeting of the Committee to be held on Saturday next prior to the annual meeting.

ANNUAL REPORT. I The annual report of the Master- ; ton A. and P. Association, to be sub- ! mitted to the annual meeting of mem- I bers on Saturday next, is as follows: j —The Association was again fortu- \ nate in being favoured with fine j weather for the annual Show, which ■ was held on February lyth and 20th. j A number of very interesting de- \ partures were made in connection | with the Show schedule, chief •among which being an alteration in the manner of judging dairy cows and .heifers, the extension of school children's classes, and the introduction of field competitions. That these were appreciated by exhibitors is ; manifested in the liberal support : accorded each class—the number of j entries quite realising the expecta- ; tions of your Committee. As a whole, j the Show was, in every sense, a sue- j cessful function. A perusal of the ; attached Statement will disclose a j falling o<f in receipts for the past j year, as compared wtih those of the j previous year. This is, in a great i measure, due to the apathy of mem- | bers in the non-observance of an essential obligation to the Association —your Committee refer to the payment of members' subscriptions, I which, they regret having to record, j become, year after year, more difficult to collect, On the the year's expenditure has been kept within reasonable limits, being j .£2OB 14s lid less than that of the preceding period. The total disbursements (£2,771 0s 8d) include an outJay of £568 Is lOd on improvements, and plant. The actual working expenses have been kept well within .bounds and compare favourably with previous y-ars, always bearing in mind the continued expansion of the ■ Association's operations. The most important improvement effected on the Showgrounds is the erection of a commodious cloak-room, lavatories and offices, with septic tank attached. The wisdom of your Committee in resolutely facing the necessity of such a building is beyond question. A number of much-needed improvements in the luncheon department have also been made. The experiments with various manures in the cultivation of root crops were again ; conducted under the Association's! auspices with good results. As a medium of instruction the published; reports on these experiments have been acknowledged by farmers to be invaluable. Fifty-six new members were elected during the year. Your Committee sincerely regret the removal from the roll of membership, by death, of no less than nine mem- J bers; this is the more deplorable, inasmuch as th?y were,, without exception, practical, and, therefore, valuable members of the Association. The usual crop of resignations and removals from other causes is also in evidence, thus keeping the total membership at last year's strength. Your Committee wish to place on record their full appreciation of the generous support given by donors to the prize fund and the efforts of stewards of departments and judges, . who devoted much valuable time and energy to the successful working of your annual fixture. A duly audited statement of receipts and expenditure and liabilities and assets for the past year is appended. You will be called upon, as usual, to elect a President, two Vice - Presidents, Treasurer, Auditor and General Committee in accordance with the Rules of the Association.