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12 THE REPORT OF THE No. 38 esteem. For many years I have been identified with Institute work and have been drawn close to many of the members because of the splendid work they have doneâ€"so many splendid women of Kenora, Rainy River and other districts, women who have found themselves in their Institute work. They have dis» covered they are great organizers and great leaders. It would be a pity if those women with their talents had been lost to the community. Nothing seems to fill the place of the Institute in our lives, once we fully understand the work and its aims; no matter how many organizations you may belong to, nothing just takes its place. This is due, no doubt, to the fact that opportunities are unlimited, and the members are nearly always earnest, practical and energetic women from all walks of life without distinction, the rich and the poor, the city women and the country women mingling together and working in harmony. When we hear that the Women’s Institutes are the largest organization of women in the world, and that the idea which began in a gathering of women in one small village in Old Ontario about twenty-five years ago is now spreading over Europe and down to our cousins of Australia and New Zealand, we begin to look for the meaning of such life and growth. And we seem to find it in the very simplicity of the platform on which the Women’s Institutes are founded. Essentially it is a neighbourhood club, where neighbour women meet and become better friends, where also they put their united efforts into improving conditions in their own neighbourhood. Since one must be a good neighbour before one can be a good citizen, such organizations ' do gather up the best impulses of a community, and action and reaction establish a glorious circle. No matter what their affiliations in other ways, in the Women’s Institute they unite to work for some community project; and diverse groups learn to respect and to like one another, even if they must agree to continue to differ on certain points. . Because you have been given the privilege of attending this convention you have added responsibility. You are sent here to gather new life, fresh interests, enthusiasm and a fund of knowledge which you are to impart to your own Institute. You are to take to your own branch such information as will make them glad they belong to such an organization, and make them feel there is a burden of responsibility resting upon them for the welfare of home, com- munity and national life. Impress upon them the knowledge of the many opportunities open for service and their ability to take advantage of the same. Many suggestions for new work can be gathered at this convention, and I hope every member present has heard suggestions that have appealed to her as being appropriate for her own branch. Again we bid you welcome; may your visit with us be long remembered; may your discussions be free and strong as the waves upon our lakes and as fruitful of good as seeds sown in our fertile district soil. WHAT THE INSTITUTE MEANS TO ME, MRS. O. O. GLENN, WARDSVILLE. What the Institute means to me, and to many who, like myself see little outside the four walls of their own homes is the question that is asked today, and if each would speak, many and varied would be the answers and when summed up would circle around two words, helpfulness and serviceâ€"the help received, the service given.