Annual Meeting of the American Bar Association State Laws, entitled. "An Act to Make Uni form the Law of Bills of Lading," and "An Act to Make Uniform the Law of the Transfer of Stock." These measures had been pre pared by the Conference after four years of careful consideration, during which oppor tunities had been given to the representatives of all who might be interested to appear and present their views with regard to the draft ing of acts, before the Commission. Further more, the Stock Transfer Act had already been adopted by Massachusetts, Maryland and Louisiana, and the Uniform Bills of Lading Act of Massachusetts and Maryland. Nevertheless, it seemed to some of the mem bers of the Association that these two acts were defective in that they did not contain
provisions limiting the time in which actions might be brought against corporations which had been compelled to issue new certificates of stock or deliver goods under a decree of a court secured in the manner provided for in the acts. Hon. Edgar H. Farrar, of New Orleans, led the debate in advocating the adoption of suit able amendments providing for a limitation of possible actions,—in the case of the Stock
Transfer Act to three years, and in the case of the Bills of Lading Act to one year. Walter George Smith, Esq., of Philadelphia,
President of the Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, and chairman of the‘ similar committee of the Association, advocated very earnestly the approval of the acts as presented by the Conference, urging that it was of the utmost importance to secure uniformity of action, and not to interfere with the progress which had already been made by the adop tion of these measures by the states above mentioned.
After a most interesting debate,
which was participated in by many members of the Association, it was agreed that the oppo sition to the measures should be withdrawn with the understanding that the Con erence on Uniform State Laws should be at once reconvened to consider with the utmost care the amendments proposed by Judge Farrar. The other reports made by the standing committees of the Association were accepted and their recommendations agreed to with very little debate. At the evening meeting of the Association, Hon. Woodrow Wilson, President of Prince ton University, delivered the annual address to the Association, on the subject of "The Law yer and the Community." An article which a
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appears elsewhere in this issue is devoted to this important address. The main feature of the session for the third day was an address by Hon. Charles W. Moores, of Indianapolis, on “The Career of a Country Lawyer—Abraham Lincoln." CANONS OF ETHICS The Association continued its consideration of the committee reports. During the debate it developed that during the past two years the following states and cities, through their respective bar associations. had adopted the American Bar Association code of ethics, word for word :— Arkansas,
South Carolina,
Pennsylvania,
Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, South Dakota, North Dakota. Virginia, Iowa, Maine, Louisiana, Minnesota, Tennessee, Montana, Nebraska, New York, New Jersey, Washing
ton, Boston and Chicago. The "Committee '00 Suggest Remedies and Formulate Proposed Laws to Prevent Delay and Unnecessary Cost of Litigation" reported that the chances were good for a favorable action by the United States Congress on the various bills prepared by the Committee re lating to procedure in the federal c'ourts. At the close of the morning session, the following officers of the Association were elected: President, Edgar H. Farrar, New Orleans; secretary, George Whitelock, Balti
more;
treasurer,
Frederick E.
Wadhams;
assistant secretary, Albert C. Ritchie, Balti
more. On the evening of September 1, the cus tomary banquet was held. Walter George Smith, Esq., of Philadelphia, acted as toast
master. Hon. Charles F. Libby, of Maine, the retiring president, welcomed to his office his successor, Hon. Edgar H. Farrar of Louisiana, who, in a graceful speech, thanked
the Association for the honor which had been conferred upon him. The other speakers were Mr. Bachmann of Tennessee, who made an address as the representative of the local bar; Hon. Frank M. Field, who spoke for the bar of Ontario, Canada, and Hon. F. J. Curran, who delivered a message of friendship from the bar of Montreal, Canada.
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THE NEW PRESIDENT Edgar Howard Farrar is the third citizen of New Orleans who has achieved the high honor of being elected president of the Ameri can Bar Association. He was born in the parish of Concordia in 1849, the son of Thomas
