Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1892-12-15
Annual Meeting of the Wisconsin
State Historical So
ciety.
Balance Of $4,000 -Abundent
Progress Reported by Sec
rotary Thwaites.
Synopsis Of Valuable Papers The
Late d. s. Durrie and J. c.
Gregory EulogIzed.

Madison, Dec. s.
! There was d good attendance Of
members and ViSi+orS at the fortieth an
nual meeting of the State Historical
society last evening, the library read
iTg rooms being well filed. The re-
ports of the several officers indicated a
healthy condition of affairs as q result
of careful management OF this iInpCa-
! tant trust.
! President John Johnston, the AIilwau-
kee banker, delivered 4 strong address
/ Col. \. 3. VanSlyke reported for the
! finance committee that they had care
fully examined the full and explicit re-
port of Col. 4. T. PrOudft, the society's
treasurer, and cordially approved Of it.
The report showed that the cash and
securities in the binding fund now
amounted to $4,000 and in the anti
QIarian fund to $500 all of which lis
well invested in real estate nl-ortgages
in different parts Of the state.
! Hon. S. d. Hastings from the audit
ing committee, reported that Secretary
Reuben Gold Thwaites's financial report
WAS found to be correct in all particu-
lars, and has been approved.
Both these financial reports We're
: Only approved by the society.
Secretary 5 Report.
The annual report of Secretary
+ ThWaite opened with the statement
that the fiscal year ending the 3Oth of
November last brought unusually large
acceSsions to the collections, particu-
larry i'll the library and portrait gal
lery; the period was throughout all of
! the sOciety'S activities. one Of marked
progress. He said that there was
however, "a note of sadness mingled
with our CALCULATIONS, for death has re-
Gently taken from our midst one who
/ from the earliest days of this institu-
ties successes, and to whom it owed
! ton was prominently identified with
much" The allusiOn was to the death,
! August 30th last, Of Librarian Daniel
). DulIie. The secretary paid a warm
| tribute to the qualities of his departed
/ fellow worker. who had been SO faith
| full q lieutenant first to Secretary
Draper and then to himself, for period
Of thirty eight years, and called atten-
ton to the fact that his departure
twas the severing of the last tie which
binds the personnel of our present work
ing force with that of the formative
period Of the society" The duty, how
ever, Of commenting more fully on the
deceased has been assigned to Dr.
! James d. Butler, who would present Il
! memoir later in the evening.
AlluSion was made also, to the death
in February last of Hon. Jared c Greg
| Dry, Of Madison, for thirty years Il
curator of the society, and brief bio
graphical sketches were given of a
number of Wisconsin pioneers who had
passed away during the year. Among
them the following: Albert Alden,
| Delafield; VIM. G. Arch, Columbia
| county; James S. Baker, Green Bay;
! Frank III. BOnham, Lancaster; Jedediah
Bowen, Ripon; John Boyd, Lake &C.
neva; Samuel NJ. Brooks, a pioneer al
| list; James S. Buck, Milwaukee; Z. +.
! Burdiclz, GAINESVILLE; Geo. E. Cabais,
| Big Patch; J. l. Case, Racine; Aaron
! l.. Chaplin, BelOit; EnOch Chase, Mil
waukee; Mrs. Andrew e. Gilmore, Fort
/ Howard; Elihu En0s, Waukesha; San
! ford FIaZen, RipOn; B. r. Hinckley,
! OcOnomowoc; Edward D. Holton, NIL
Waukee; elisha Mosher, Monroe; JO-
) seph II. Osborn, Oshkosh; VIM. A.
Prentiss, Milwaukee; Theodore Ro-
| dolph, La Crosse; VIM. II. Sampson,
Appleton; A. Hyatt Smith, GAINESVILLE;
Reeder Smith, Appleton; Mrs. Alanson
| Sweet, Milwaukee; Vernon TichenOr,
Waukesha; T. NJ Warren, Baraboo,
and Charles K. Wells, Milwaukee.
The finances of the society were re-
ported upon in detail; the various eX-
! penditures for the year had been eN-
amined and approved by the auditing
committee and the vouchers filed with
! the governor according to law. The
secretary reported that the point had
| been reached in the history of the So
ciety when larger resources were i'm
peratively demanded. activity in his
! toricaI study" he said, "and indeed in
! all studies, was never so great as now,
and books of the utmost Importance
are pouring from the presses of Europe
| and America in phenomenal numbers;
| it is impossible with our present means
satisfactorily to keep abreast of the
! tide. At home, the rapid growth of the
state university, especially the estab-
| lishment here of the new school of
] economies, political science and his
| tory, and the summer school Of teachers
| has greatly increased the demands up
! on our shelves, both in variety and ex~
/ tent. The general growth of culture
| throughout the state brings to Us from
wear to year larger numbers Of Wis
! consin scholars outside of university
circles: and the number of those from
neighboring states who seek this re-
postory of books steadily grows. At
ter deducting salaries of assistants and
miscellaneous expenses from our annual
state appropriation of $1,000, there is
| left to us but the paltry sum of $500
| fer the purchase Of books. Were our
puchasing fluid doubled it would then
/ barely meet the necessities of the case;
even then. the institution would be do
| inc its work at far less expense than
! anv library of similar Importance in
! the United States both as TO purchase
and salary list. He urged that serious
! effort be made at the forthcoming ses-