recommendation to that effect made by the Council at any general meeting of the Association.

The vote shall be by ballot, and shall require two-thirds of the votes cast for its adoption.

57. An Associate Member will be entitled to all the privileges of the Association, except voting and holding office.

58. An Honorary Member will be entitled to all the privileges of the Association, except voting and holding office.

Amendments.

59. All propositions for adding to or altering any of the provisions of the foregoing Constitution shall be laid before the Council, who may bring it before the next general meeting of the Association, if they see fit, and the Council shall be bound to do so on the requisition, in writing, of any five members of the Association. All propositions to amend this Constitution shall be decided by ballot, and shall require two-thirds of the votes cast for their adoption.

Discussion.

MR. WHITE-We submit this Constitution as our report, and as the result of our deliberation. I move its adoption as a whole.

MR. STINESS-I second the motion.

MR. HARBISON-Before that motion is put I beg to suggest that the Committee on applications for membership present their report, because if this Constitution is adopted now, some of the names that have been presented to the Committee may be reported upon as not entitled to come in now. I, therefore, move that this proposed Constitution be laid upon the table in order that we may hear the report of the Committee on new members.

THE PRESIDENT-Is the Committee on applications for membership ready to report?

MR. RAMSDELL-At the meeting held in New York one year ago it was understood that we were to receive no further associate members, except under the provisions of this new Constitution. In the list of applications handed in this morning there are but two that come under that head, and those are the appli

cations of Mr. William J. Wilson and F. R. Persons. The other applicants are entitled to come in as active members under either the old or the new Constitution.

Your committee, therefore, approve all the applications for membership except that of Mr. Wilson and Mr. Persons, and suggest that their applications be laid over until final action is had on the adoption of the new Constitution.

MR. HARBISON-Does the committee recommend that these applications come in under the new Constitution, and be acted upon at this meeting.

MR. RAMSDELL-Yes.

MR. HARBISON-I would like to have that understood so that they will not be left until next year.

MR. RAMSDELL-Another application has just been handed me, that of W. H. Pearson, Jr., of Toronto. He would come in as an active member.

MR. HARBISON-I move that the report of the Committee on new members be accepted, and that the Secretary cast the ballot of the Association for the names of the gentlemen recommended by the committee.

The motion was passed. The Secretary cast the ballot of the Association accordingly. And the following were declared duly elected active members of the Association :

MR. HARBISON-Now I move that we take from the table the proposed Constitution, and I second the motion for the adoption of the Constitution as read.

MR. MCILHENNY-This is too important a document to be adopted without any discussion; and I think the proper way would be to receive it and then proceed to discuss it, either in parts or as a whole.

MR. MCMILLIN-I raise the point of order that, as the present motion is to take it from the table, it is not now open to discussion. We must take it from the table before we can discuss it.

The motion to take from the table prevailed.

THE PRESIDENT—The proposed Constitution is now before us for our consideration.

MR. WHITE-There seems to be a lack of understanding as to the status, under this new Constitution, if adopted, of some of our members, who are not actually engaged in the gas business, and who would, if proposed for membership under the new Constitution, come in as associates, and not as active members. Nothing that this Association can adopt in the way of a Constitution will affect the standing of any present member. He is still an active member. The idea is to divide all future applicants for membership into two classes-active and associate. All of the present members, no matter in what way they are connected with the gas industry, remain as active members, and there is nothing in the Constitution which can in any way affect their present standing.

MR. MCILHENNY-Is the Constitution now before the Association ?

THE PRESIDENT-It is now before the Association for adoption as a whole, as I understand the motion.

MR. MCILHENNY-There is one clause in it to which I wish to call attention, and it is not in regard to the status of existing members, because, of course, their rights cannot be taken away. from them by any action we may now take with reference to this Constitution. I wish to call attention to this particular

clause :

"It will be the duty of the nominating committee to present at the annual meeting a list of active members, whom they recommend as officers for the ensuing year."

If I recollect rightly it has been the practice of this Association to appoint a committee for the purpose of nominating the officers. If I am not correct in this I wish to be corrected. The object of appointing this committee to name the officers has been to save the time of the Association. But now it is proposed to make this method of selecting officers a part of the fundamental law; and it takes away from individual members the right of nomination. I believe it is the practice in all legislative bodies to accord to every member the right to make nominations. Will not the adoption of this Constitution take away from us that right?

MR. WHITE-No, sir.

MR. HARBISON-If the gentleman will notice the provisions of the Constitution he will see that the Council appoint the nominating committee-the President presiding at the meetings of the Council. The custom now is for a motion to be made that the President appoint a committee on nominations, and the President thereupon appoints such committee, as has been done this morning. The new Constitution provides that the Council (the President being in the chair) shall name a nominating committee-no member of which committee shall be a member of the Council. So that the Council must go outside of their own members in selecting the committee on nominations.

MR. MCILHENNY-I understand that, but that does not meet my objection.

MR. HARBISON-This method saves the time and the necessity of a motion that the President appoint such a committee. MR. MCILHENNY-But my point is that this clause of the Constitution gives to this committee the right to nominate officers, and takes from individual members the right of nomination.

MR. HARBISON—This will not take from the Association the right of substituting on the nominating committee other members than those named by the Council; and it does not prevent any member of the Association from making any addition to

the number of nominees made to the Council by the nominating committee. The object is simply to facilitate business, and it is not the intention to take away any right from any member.

MR. MCILHENNY-I understood from the reading of this that when this committee comes in with its nominations the Association only has a veto power. It requires a vote of two-thirds of the members present to sanction the nominations made by the committee; but there is nothing said about the right of members to make nominations. I think it would be better to have that right of nomination stated in express terms.

MR. A. C. HUMPHREYS-I think if the gentleman will read the paragraph again he will see that his point is covered, for this committee are simply to present "a list of active members, whom they recommend as officers for the ensuing year."

MR. THOMAS-I think it would be a good idea to have this matter lie over until to-morrow morning, so as to give all the members an opportunity to read the proposed Constitution, and understand what they are going to adopt. There seems to be a difference of opinion in relation to it, and a good many do not understand it. I do not know why the President is not just as competent as the Council to appoint a nominating committee, or why the members themselves are not entirely competent to name their officers. If action on the Constitution is postponed until to-morrow morning, all of the members will be afforded an opportunity of reading and understanding it, and will then be prepared to vote intelligently upon it.

MR. KING-It seems to me that in reading this Constitution one cannot fail to be impressed with the idea that the Committee have done their work very thoroughly. They seem to have considered every point; and I, for one, am willing to take the result of their deliberations just as they have presented it to us—although I think I can see several points that may give us trouble in the future. But they have certainly discussed those points among themselves, and have arrived at their conclusions, and I, for one. am willing to accept their view of the case. If we enter upon the discussion of the Constitution, and take up all the debatable points, it will occupy all the time of this meeting. It therefore seems to me it will be better to adopt it as it