# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1878_S44
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

— 44 —

Our thanks are due also to the members of the Board, for under their prudent and unselfish direction such a blessing from God's hand has come to us.

No less has our previous general agent proved himself faithful, so that the synod, in view of his skillful and honest management of business, could not bring itself to give consideration to the demand put forward in a petition addressed to the synod, namely to reduce the agent's salary (which amounts to $1,500 a year). The synod declared that, while it was an enemy of any wastefulness with the blessing granted by God, it would nevertheless be acting very unjustly if it did not compensate, at least in some measure according to merit, a man of proven competence and honesty in so responsible a position as that of the general agent — especially considering what a large salary is offered to such men in other, similar businesses.

Heartfelt thanks are also due to our previous treasurer, who administered his office with the utmost fidelity to duty, without payment, down to the present day, but who has felt compelled, owing to being overburdened with his own affairs, to lay down his office of treasurer into the hands of the synod.

The question then arose: where shall we find another such treasurer, one who administers this office without payment, since taking it on — given the presently large sums that must be received, entered in the books, and disbursed over the course of a year — demands a considerable expenditure of time, time that a man capable for this office who owns his own business can scarcely spare any longer, quite apart from the heavy care and responsibility that this office brings with it in ample measure?

To this it was answered, on the one hand: our district treasurers are likewise unpaid, and we have so far had no difficulty finding people who have taken on this office out of love for the synod. On closer inquiry, one could probably still find men suited to the office of general treasurer and also willing to administer it without payment, especially since the general treasurer does not have much more work than a district treasurer. The only difference is that the latter deals with small sums, the former with large ones. The hardship that the general treasurers had in earlier times — since, given a standing deficit in the treasury, they were expected to procure funds falling due through advances of their own — has now indeed also been removed. Also, through the arrangement by which every district has its own treasurer, the office of general treasurer is no longer quite so onerous. If one were to appoint the latter with a salary, that could easily have the consequence that he would feel compelled to take over the bookkeeping of all the smaller sums as well; but given the great extent of our synod, it would hardly be beneficial if all the congregations were made dependent on the general treasurer. One should therefore give up the idea of appointing a salaried treasurer.