preparing copy, under the supervision of the Director of the State Library and the Law Librarian, and the work of printing and publication by the State printer, show improvement over former years they were doubtless spurred to greater effort. The last chapter of the laws of the session of 1911 was signed by the Governor on November fourth; we are informed that the first complete set of the laws (comprising three huge volumes, aggregating nearly four thousand pages) was delivered on December fifth. Subsequent delivery to the profession throughout the State was probably much delayed because of the holiday pressure upon the express companies. A contract for the printing of the Session Laws of 1913 and 1914 will be awarded this spring. In compliance with the direction of this Association, the committee will endeavor to secure in the contract the incorporation of provisions safeguarding against delay on the part of the printer. The committee believes that an important saving of time can be made if the printer was required to prepare plates for final printing as soon as he is furnished with copy, instead of, as now, waiting until the session has ended; the desirability of such a requirement will be brought to the attention of the State Printing Board. A complete index is included in each of the three volumes of the 1911 Session Laws. Each index covers 333 pages. The committee believes that such repetition of the index is unnecessary, that it should be contained only in the last volume. This would have reduced the size of the Session Laws of 1911 by some 666 pages. It has been suggested to the committee that it would be of advantage to have the single volumes completed and distributed without awaiting completion of the set. Each volume could be accompanied with a detached temporary index, which could be thrown away when the last volume was received containing the complete index. The advantage ensuing would be marked, in the event of a session of the Legislature so prolonged as was the last one, but would be of little advantage were the session a short one. Objections that suggest themselves to this plan do not seem important, and are mainly (1) it would prevent side- or foot-noting upon an earlier law, calling attention to its subsequent modification or repeal by some later law of the session, and (2) it would be necessary to fix arbitrarily the size of the separate volumes, and might result in separate volumes of very unequal size. The committee would like an expression of opinion from the Association on the desirability of having inserted in the new contract for the printing of the laws a provision giving the State Printing Board power to require the State printer to separately complete and distribute the single volumes, whenever deemed desirable in the judgment of the Board. January 15, 1912. CARLOS C. ALDEN, Committee. The President: Any motion to be made regarding the report; if not, it will be received and filed without objection. The Secretary: There is a recommendation in the report, Mr. President, as I heard it, with regard to the delivery of the first volume as soon as it was completed. The chairman, Dean Alden, requested that an expression be given by the members on that subject, and also on the subject of preparing a temporary index for the first volume. I wish the members would express an opinion on that subject. I take this opportunity of saying that it seems to me the suggestion that a temporary index be made of the first volume should not prevail. It is quite expensive to make an index. I see before me a gentleman who made an index of the Consolidated laws (Mr. Ingram, of Potsdam). I see before me the law librarian of the State (Mr. Colson, of Albany), whose business it is to make indexes, and they could tell us something of the expense. I believe that the first volume should go out as soon as it is printed without waiting for the second volume, but I do not believe that the State should make an index to that volume which is going to be thrown away. The President: Any motion to be made regarding the recommendation in the report? The Secretary: I would like to hear from Mr. Colson on the subject. William A. Purrington, of New York: I move that the suggestion be adopted. The President: The Secretary will report the recommendation to the Association. The Secretary: One of the suggestions is to have a single volume completed and distributed without waiting for the completion of the set. That is recommendation one. The second recommendation is that each volume should be accompanied by a temporary index which could be thrown away when the last volume was received containing the complete index. I think we should act on those separately. William A. Purrington, of New York: Mr. President, I modify my motion by moving that the first recommendation of the committee be adopted. The President: It is moved that the first recommendation of the committee be approved, that is, that the volumes be issued and distributed as published, volume by volume. Are there any remarks to be made? The motion was duly seconded and carried. The President: Any motion regarding the second subdivision of the recommendation? Everett P. Wheeler, of New York: Mr. President, if you will allow me one minute. It seems to me, for practical convenience, that is of more importance than either of the others, that is, that the general index be omitted from the earlier volumes. These last three volumes we have are thick and cumbersome, and there are 200 pages of index in each. It seems to me that is an imposition on the Bar. I would move the adoption of this third recommendation, that we recommend in drawing the contract the general index be limited to the final volume. The President: Mr. Wheeler moves that the Association approve the omission of the general index from all but the final volume of the series. Are you ready for the question upon that motion? The motion was duly seconded and carried. The President: Are there any further motions to be made regarding it? If not, we will pass to the next order of business, which is the report of the Committee on Contingent Fees. The Secretary: May I call attention to the fact that no action was taken in regard to the temporary index? Will Mr. Colson give his views on that subject? The President: The Secretary wishes to return to the discussion of the report of the Committee for the Earlier Delivery of the Session Laws. Do you make any motion? The Secretary : I move that the temporary index suggested in the report be disapproved. Harry M. Ingram, of Potsdam: Mr. President, in connection with the separate indexing of the first volume to be delivered, I think while there should not be a general index prepared for that volume, that the volume would not be of much value unless it was issued with some sort of a table to show the contents, that is, the amendments made by the chapters contained in that volume; and I think, while a detailed index would not be the proper thing to put in that volume, that there ought to be a table showing the general laws amended and repealed, |