Annual Meeting
November, 1946
THE Annual Meeting of the Society was held at the Algonquin Club, No. 217 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, on Thursday, November 21, 1946, at a quarter after seven o’clock in the evening, the President, Charles Eliot Goodspeed, in the chair.
With the consent of those present, the reading of the records of the last Stated Meeting was omitted.
The Corresponding Secretary reported the death on June 16, 1946, of Henry Lefavour, a Resident Member, and that on October 6, 1946, of Allen French, a Resident Member.
Mr. George Talbot Goodspeed, of Concord, and Mr. James Gore King, of Cambridge, were elected to Resident Membership in the Society.
Mr. Zechariah Chafee, Jr., read the Annual Report of the Council.
Report of the Council
SINCE the last Annual Meeting the Society has had, as usual, three Stated Meetings: in December and February, at the Club of Odd Volumes; and in April, at the house of Mr. Augustus P. Loring, Jr. Papers were read by Messrs. Charles E. Mason, Jr., Richard Walden Hale, Jr., and William A. Jackson.
The Society has elected the following members:
Resident:
- Ernest Stanley Dodge
- Ellis Wethrell Brewster
- Richard Walden Hale, Jr.
- Russell Leigh Jackson
Corresponding:
- Herbert Ross Brown
Associate:
- Oscar Handlin
With great regret, I announce the deaths during the past year of three of our members:
Allen French, Resident, 1926, died October 6, 1946, in the seventy-sixth year of his age. Author of twenty-six books, many of them a scholar’s careful studies of the American Revolution and others transmuting laborious hours of research into stories about the Vikings and our colonial ancestors which inspired boys to share his love of the past. As footnotes in the papers of other members bear witness, his learning was gladly placed at the disposal of his friends.
Henry Lefavour, Resident, 1906, died June 16, 1946, when nearly eighty-four. Trained in physics, he discovered in middle life his true career as president of institutions of learning. President of Simmons College for thirty-one years, President of this Society (almost as soon as he had joined it) from 1907 to 1914, and eventually retiring to become President of the Massachusetts Historical Society from 1938 until 1942. When he ceased his task of guiding our deliberations with “his uniform courtesy and urbanity,” George Lyman Kittredge declared:
“We are thankful to our President for what he has done—still more thankful for what he has been. Under his leadership we have been happy and prosperous, and our confidence in the future is the measure of our debt.”
As we meet tonight in one of the most troublous years which our nation has ever faced, except when it was threatened by armed enemies, we shall do well to remember these heartening sentences in his inaugural address nearly forty years ago:
“It was [the men of Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay] who, unfettered by the traditions and restrictive influences of the autocratic and monarchical governments of Europe, found the chance here to study the real problems of society, to search for the laws and rules of human justice, and to elaborate those forms of political organization which should contribute most largely to human happiness. Their results—mistaken perhaps, in part, but largely wise—have been the foundations of our public policy, and we may well propose to ourselves the worthy task of making such studies and investigations as shall enable us to appreciate more justly the characters and motives of those men, to clarify the obscurity and confusion which surround many of the controversial points, and to secure a better foundation for future historical research.
“We are all proud that our ancestors were of and among these men; but it is not a selfish pride, rather, it is a filial devotion, which leads us to strive, as best we may, to make their lives more effective and to perpetuate the influences of which they were the source.”
Albert Matthews, Resident, 1896, a member for fifty years, whose work was by a lamentable accident on April 13, 1946, cut short at the age of eighty-five. The published volumes of our Society contain from his pen one hundred and forty-one contributions, which throw light on the most difficult problems in colonial history, literature, and philology. And through nineteen volumes of our Publications, the pages unsigned by him are yet in large measure his for he was our first professional Editor, for twenty years from 1904 to 1924. Seven years later he retired from giving us twenty-nine years of his character and judgment on the Council, the longest service of anyone except Edes and Cunningham. His influence kept the Society true to her best interests, yet alert for new opportunities of usefulness.
Of Albert Matthews, too, I shall let Kittredge express what we all feel:
“The Society . . . has received many gifts from its members, but no gift that equals in value the prodigal expenditure of time, of learning, and of exact scholarship that the Editor has bestowed upon our publications. His wonderfully extensive knowledge of English and American history and literature, his accuracy, his independence in judgment, his sureness of touch, his good taste and sense of style, and his almost miraculous keenness on the trail of truant details and elusive evidence are equalled only by the modesty and tact which he has always shown, though with no lack of firmness, in dealing with the contributions that have passed under his editorial eye and through his editorial hands. ‘Here was a Caesar. When comes such another?’”
To turn to pleasanter news. I am glad to speak of our oldest member, Charles F. Mason, who joined this Society with Mr. Matthews in 1896, a half century ago. The Council at its last meeting voted to extend to him the congratulations of the Society. Mr. Mason’s reply alludes to his prudence in choosing life membership and to his classmate and one of our three Honorary Members, Samuel Williston. He writes in part:
“I have always had an antiquarian interest: ‘Up from the meadows rich with corn’ in High School days. Life member New England Historical Genealogical Society, etc., etc., and it involved no change of taste to accept the compliments of Colonial Society’s membership! Prosperity isn’t endless! Regards to Sam Williston, dear fellow!”
Report of the Treasurer
In accordance with the requirements of the By-laws, the Treasurer submits his Annual Report for the year ending November 14, 1946.
Statement of Assets and Funds, November 14, 1946
ASSETS | ||
---|---|---|
Cash: |
||
Income |
$12,375.78 |
|
Loan to Principal |
7,493.66 |
$4,882.12 |
Investments at Book Value: |
||
Bonds (Market Value $134,471.39) |
$132,950.28 |
|
Stocks (Market Value $112,657.50) |
85,447.62 |
|
Savings Bank Deposit |
3,180.78 |
221,578.68 |
Total Assets |
$226,460.80 |
|
FUNDS | ||
Funds |
$210,128.24 |
|
Unexpended Income |
16,332.56 |
|
Total Funds |
$226,460.80 |
Investments as of November 14, 1946
BONDS | Book Value | |
---|---|---|
$5,000 Abitibi Power and Paper Company, Limited, First 5’s, 1965 |
$5,000.98 |
|
5,000 American Machine and Metals, Inc., Debenture 4½’s, 1959 |
5,062.50 |
|
5,000 American Tobacco Company Debenture 3’s, 1962 |
5,101.10 |
|
5,000 Celotex Corporation Debenture 3¼’s, 1960 |
5,125.00 |
|
1,294.07 Conveyancers Realty Company Debenture 4%—2% Fixed, 2% if Earned, 1957 |
284.70 |
|
5,000 Eastern Gas and Fuel Associates First and Collateral 3½’s, 1965 |
5,108.50 |
|
2,000 Florida Power and Light Company First 3½’s, 1974 |
2,175.00 |
|
5,000 Illinois Terminal Railroad Company First 4’s, Series A, 1970 |
5,050.00 |
|
5,038.60 |
||
3,000 Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington Railroad Company General 5’s, 1974 |
3,945.00 |
|
5,000 Public Service Company of New Hampshire First 3¼’s, Series A, 1973 |
5,400.00 |
|
5,000 Scranton-Spring Brook Water Service Company First 2⅞’s, 1976 |
5,125.00 |
|
5,000 Selected Industries Incorporated Debenture 2⅞’s, 1961 |
5,101.10 |
|
5,000 Tennessee Gas and Transmission Company First 2¾’s, 1966 |
5,201.10 |
|
8,000 United States of America Savings Bonds, Series D, October 1, 1949 |
7,040.00 |
|
2,000 United States of America Savings Bonds, Series D, November 1, 1949 |
1,760.00 |
|
5,000 United States of America Savings Bonds, Series D, January 1, 1950 |
4,350.00 |
|
5,000 United States of America Savings Bonds, Series D, March 1, 1950 |
4,350.00 |
|
10,000 United States of America Defense Savings Bonds, Series F, July 1, 1953 |
7,970.00 |
|
8,000 United States of America Defense Savings Bonds, Series F, September 1, 1953 |
6,376.00 |
|
5,000 United States of America War Savings Bonds, Series F, May 1, 1954 |
3,930.00 |
|
10,000 United States of America War Savings Bonds, Series F, June 1, 1957 |
7,420.00 |
|
8,000 United States of America Treasury Bonds 2’s, 1951/1953 |
8,000.00 |
|
5,000 United States of America Treasury Bonds 2’s, 1952/1954 |
5,000.00 |
|
10,000 United States of America Treasury Bonds 2¼’s, 1959/1962 |
10,000.00 |
|
4,000 Wilson and Company, Inc., First 3’s, 1958 |
4,035.70 |
|
Total Bonds |
$132,950.28 |
|
STOCKS | Book Value | |
75 shares American Telephone and Telegraph Company |
$12,599.76 |
|
3 shares Christiana Securities Company |
8,295.00 |
|
25/10 shares Conveyancers Realty Company V.T.C., Class A, Common |
3.13 |
|
4,595.27 |
||
200 shares General Electric Company |
4,766.26 |
|
15 shares Guaranty Trust Company of New York |
5,232.77 |
|
125 shares Insurance Company of North America |
7,610.27 |
|
500 shares Lehman Corporation |
16,100.03 |
|
400 shares State Street Investment Corporation |
10,239.00 |
|
150 shares United Fruit Company |
4,388.53 |
|
100 shares United States Cold Storage Corporation Prior Preference Participating |
|
|
100 shares United States Cold Storage Corporation Common |
||
200 shares Westinghouse Electric Corporation |
5,617.60 |
|
Total Stocks |
85,447.62 |
|
Deposit in Warren Institution for Savings |
3,180.78 |
|
Total Investments |
$221,578.68 |
Composition of Funds, November 14, 1946
Changes in Principal of Funds
Income Cash Receipts and Disbursements
Balance, November 14, 1945 |
$13,223.97 |
||
RECEIPTS: |
|||
Interest |
$2,754.33 |
||
Dividends |
4,101.65 |
||
Annual Assessments |
770.00 |
||
Sales of Publications |
226.00 |
7,851.98 |
|
Total Receipts of Income |
$21,075.95 |
||
DISBURSEMENTS: |
|||
New England Quarterly |
$2,600.00 |
||
Editor’s Salary |
1,000.00 |
||
Secretarial Expense |
650.00 |
||
Annual Dinner |
464.69 |
||
Storage |
300.76 |
||
Notices and Expenses of Meetings |
137.00 |
||
Postage, Office Supplies and Miscellaneous |
118.98 |
||
Auditing Services |
125.00 |
||
Publications |
236.82 |
||
Safe Deposit Box |
24.00 |
||
Transferred to Principal Funds: |
|||
Capital Gain Dividends Received Year Ended November 14, 1945: |
|||
500 shares Lehman Corporation |
$1,205.00 |
||
400 shares State Street Investment Corporation |
900.00 |
||
Income from Funds: |
|||
Henry H. Edes Memorial Fund |
183.32 |
||
Sarah Louisa Edes Fund |
754.60 |
3,042.92 |
|
Total Disbursements |
8,700.17 |
||
Balance of Income, November 14, 1946 |
$12,375.78 |
Principal Cash Receipts and Disbursements
James M. Hunnewell
Treasurer
Report of the Auditing Committee
The undersigned, a committee appointed to examine the accounts of the Treasurer for the year ended November 14, 1946, have attended to their duty by employing Messrs. Stewart, Watts and Bollong, Public Accountants and Auditors, who have made an audit of the accounts and examined the securities on deposit in Box 91 in the New England Trust Company. We herewith submit their report, which has been examined and accepted by the Committee.
Allston Burr
Hermann F. Clarke
Auditing Committee
The several reports were accepted and referred to the Committee on Publication.
On behalf of the committee appointed to nominate officers for the ensuing year the following list was presented; and a ballot having been taken, these gentlemen were unanimously elected:
- President Augustus Peabody Loring, Jr.
- Vice-Presidents Hon. Fred Tarbell Field
- Hon. Robert Walcott
- Recording Secretary Robert Ephraim Peabody
- Corresponding Secretary Zechariah Chafee, Jr.
- Treasurer James Melville Hunnewell
- Registrar Robert Dickson Weston
- Member of the Council for Three Years Samuel Eliot Morison
After the meeting was dissolved, dinner was served. The guests of the Society were Professor Myles Dillon, Messrs. William B. Harvey, David McCord and Cameron Thompson. The Reverend Henry Wilder Foote said grace.
After the dinner Mr. McCord read some of his poems, and Captain Samuel Eliot Morison addressed the Society and its guests.