ed. I believe now, as your body is organized, from the
harmonious work accomplished at these meetings, and its cordial
relations with the Exposition Company, and certainly with the
Commission, the future promises more than has been accorded to
similar organizations in the past. * * * We thank you, ladies,
for the privilege of being before you, and cheerfully extend our
salutations on the election of your president and upon the good
will and spirit of harmony which prevails among you.

Mr. Lindsay then spoke as follows:

The board of lady managers exists by operation of law, the same
that called the National Commission into existence. It was the
duty of the National Commission to create it. It was the duty of
the National Commission and of the local board to prescribe the
powers and duties of the board of lady managers. Of course,
these duties could not be accurately and technically laid out;
we could only confer the power, and that would suggest what
duties--what power within that general grant they should
exercise. It is not the duty of the board of lady managers to be
supervised by or to be subject to the local board. I was struck
when I read the report made by Mrs. Montgomery of her interview
with the local board, not by the gracious manner in which she
was received and the graceful questions that were asked, but by
the absolute failure in any particular to give definite reply or
take any action upon any of the recommendations made by that
committee.

What I think this board ought to do is to outline or prescribe
the actual things it intends to do, report that to the National
Commission and the local board, and then go ahead, not waiting
to know whether this or that is within its powers or whether or
not this is expedient and whether it can be carried out. Let
some one take the responsibility of saying you can not do this
or can not do that. As long as you deal in generalities with the
National Commission, or agree to everything that is brought up
by the local company, this board of lady managers will never
become an active part or parcel of this great exposition.

I do not agree with my friend, Senator Carter, on another thing,
and that is that these people are entitled to any consideration
on account of the money they have expended. They came to
Congress and asked