rsity, in
1908, it was decided to create state committees, that should have
charge of the work in their respective states. As the states grew in
numbers the plan of having vice presidents was abandoned. In 1911 the
chairmen of the state committees were made members of an advisory
council, and in 1913 the executive committee was reorganized so that
there should be one member from each group of states in addition to
the president and secretary. When the organization is fully matured
the elected members of the executive committee will be a
self-perpetuating body, only one or two going out of office in any
one year, reelection being permitted. The executive committee will
elect the president, executive secretary, and treasurer, and the
president and the executive secretary will appoint the members of the
advisory council, who will be ex-officio chairmen of the state
committees. The officers up to date have been as follows:

_Presidents:_ Dean William P. Rogers, Cincinnati Law School,
1906-1907; Professor George W. Knight, Ohio State University,
1907-1908; Professor Elbert Russell, Earlham College, 1908-1910; Dean
William P. Rogers, 1910-1911; President Charles F. Thwing, Western
Reserve University, 1911-.

_Secretaries:_ Professor Elbert Russell, 1906-1908; Mr. George Fulk,
Cerro Gordo, Illinois, 1908-1911; Professor Stephen F. Weston, Antioch
College, 1911-.

_Treasurers:_ Professor Elbert Russell, 1906-1908; Professor Stephen
F. Weston, 1908-.

_Orations._ In the seven years in which the contests have been held,
about twelve hundred orations have been written, a little more than
one half of these in the past two years. The number written in 1914
will not fall far short of five hundred. For some time we have desired
to publish a volume of the prize orations, and within the past few
years there has been considerable demand for such a volume, as many
would-be contestants are anxious to see what they will have to measure
up to in order to win. Outsiders interested in the contests have also
desired such a publication. The present collection was therefore
projected, and the World Peace Foundation willingly undertook to issue
it as one of the books in its International Library.

The ten orations that have been selected for this volume out of the
twelve hundred have all won the first prize in interstate contests.
The first five are the first prize orations in the national contests
of the first five years before the group c