REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE. To the Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws: At the Thirteenth National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, held at Hot Springs, Virginia, on Tuesday, August 25, 1903, Rule 4 of the Conference of Commissioners was amended, so as to provide for the appointment of an Executive Committee as a standing committee, and subsequently Honorable Amasa M. Eaton, President of the Conference, appointed Messrs. Staake, James, Libby, Logan and Meldrim as members of the committee. The rules of the conference fail to designate the duties of this Executive Committee, but in the absence of such designation, it is suggested that all matters of business of the Conference not within the purview of the other nine standing committees should properly be referred to this committee. An inspection of the printed proceedings of the last annual Conference fails to show the special reference of any matters to this committee. It is also respectfully suggested that it should be made the duty of this committee, and not that of the President and Treasurer, to communicate with the governor and legislatures of the several states, with the view of securing the appointment of commissioners from states not already represented, the attendance of commissioners already appointed by the several states, and the necessary appropriation from each state which has appointed commissioners for the payment of the expenses required to carry on the work of the Conference. Work in these directions has been performed by individual members of the committee, and the governor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has expressed the opinion in writing to the commissioners of that state that "it would seem to be beyond question that the state ought to pay a proportion of the expenses" of the Conference. Upon inquiry by the President of the Conference, the committee, believing that it would be of "great assistance to the Conference in the future to have a verbatim report of the proceedings of the Conference," especially of the discussion of the Uniform Sales Act, approved of the employment of an official stenographer to report the proceedings of the Conference. It is believed that the publication of these proceedings, and a prudent, but generous, distribution of such publication will stimulate an interest in the important subjects of the Conference and result in a "better accomplishment of the work for which its members were appointed by the states." The committee has learned, with much gratification, of the probable appropriation by the directors of the American Warehousemen's Association to this Conference of a liberal sum to be used in drafting a Uniform Law on Warehousemen. The committee asks the careful consideration by the members of the Conference of the matters referred to in the printed announcement circular of August 5, 1904, placed in the hands of each of the commissioners by President Eaton. It has been suggested the committee that in view of the doubt expressed as to the power of the members of the Conference to propose any uniform laws, save such as may require the action of the respective state legislatures, that all subjects of the kind requiring an act of Congress might be more properly entertained by the Committee on Uniform State Laws of the American Bar Association. As the promotion of "uniformity of legislation throughout the union" is one of the objects specified in the constitution of that Association, and as special provision is also made by that Association in its by-laws, section 12, for communicating the action of the Association to State Bar Associations, with the view of securing the co-operation of such associations in having bills introduced in the several state legislatures, and there appears to be no express limitation of the powers of a committee of that Asso ciation, such proposed legislation might be properly entertained by that committee as "an appropriate field of action." The committee has, from time to time, advised with the President of the Conference at his request upon matters submitted by him to the committee. The committee suggests that power be given to it by the Conference to prepare and report at the next annual Conference of the Commissioners, suitable by-laws for the Conference and for the Executive Committee, and that in the future constitution of the committee, the President, Secretary and Treasurer should be made ex officiis members of the Executive Committee, and that all arrangements for each annual Conference of the commissioners should be referred to this committee. The committee would urge upon the commissioners from each state the importance and the necessity of securing a reasonable appropriation, by each state, for the expenses of this National Conference. As our President has well stated, that, "while none of us expect to be paid for our services, it does seem that the public good we are doing and the public spirit animating us all should be recognized by small appropriations from the states," for the expenses of this National Conference. The committee announces, with profound sorrow and regret, the deaths on the fourteenth day of February, A. D. 1904, of Honorable Lyman D. Brewster, Commissioner from the State of Connecticut and a former President of this National Conference, and on the twenty-second day of May, A. D. 1904, of Richard C. Dale, a commissioner from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and Secretary of the commission from that state, and recommends that a committee be appointed to prepare a suitable minute for adoption by the members of this National Conference. WILLIAM H. STAAKE, Chairman, CHARLES F. LIBBY, WALTER S. LOGAN, PETER W. MELDRIM. REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON CONVEYANCES, DEPOSITIONS AND PROOF OF STATUTES OF OTHER STATES. To the Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws: Your Standing Committee on Conveyances, Depositions and Proof of Statutes of Other States herewith submits its annual report in accordance with the eleventh rule of the Conference. I. The only legislation of the year coming to our notice in the line of the recommendations heretofore made by the Conference on any branch of law within this committee's province is the Ohio act (97 Ohio Laws 171) amending section 4111 of the Revised Statutes, which specified consuls as the only United States officials before whom acknowledgments of Ohio deeds might be made in foreign countries, so that now consuls-general, vice and deputy consuls-general, vice and deputy consuls, commercial agents and consular agents of the United States are also qualified to take such acknowledgments. This is in line with section 6 of the bill relating to the acknowledgment of deeds heretofore recommended by the Conference. II. On the subject of depositions, your committee is of opinion that there is no such general inconvenience from want of uniformity in methods of taking and certifying them as to call for an effort to bring about uniformity by legislation. Usually an attorney who wishes a deposition taken in another state for use in his own state sends his local forms and instructions which serve as a sufficient guide to the magistrate and to other counsel. III. As to proof of statutes of other states, your committee is of opinion that there is no such general grievance arising from lack of uniformity in this respect as to call for an effort to bring about such uniformity by legislation. Article IV, sec tion 1, of the United States Constitution empowers Congress to prescribe by general laws the manner in which acts, records and judicial proceedings of any state may be proved in another state and the effect thereof, and by section 905 of the United States Revised Statutes Congress has provided methods of such proof. Many states have made cumulative provision for still simpler and easier methods, but it does not seem to your committee that such diversities as exist do or can cause any general inconvenience or embarrassment. We, therefore, suggest that there is no need for a standing committee of this Conference to be charged with the subject of depositions, or with the subject of proof of statutes of other states, and would recommend that rule 4 of the Conference be amended so as to strike out the words "Depositions and Proof of Statutes of Other States." All of which is respectfully submitted. Wм. E. CUSHING, Chairman, THOMAS PATTERSON, A. A. PHLEGAR, THOS. J. KERNAN. |