Seneschal's Report at Feb Curia

["E.T. Smith" <etsmith@scsn.net>]

Dear Friends,
     Since the inclement weather in the northern portion of the kingdom kept
so many home who would normally have attended Curia, I'll post my report for
your information. The short take on business conducted was the enactment of
two new non-polling awards to be given by the Monarchs at Their
pleasure--one for fighting prowess and one for arts and science
accomplishments. Too, the White Scarf Treaty was ratified. The full language
of these proceedings should appear in the next Acorn.

Warm Greetings unto Their Royal Majesties Cuan and Brigit on the Occasion of 
Their Curia Regis held in Their Incipient Canton of Fortaleza on 18 February
A.S. XXX

Here Begins the Report of the Kingdom Seneschal:

1. My entreaties regarding Domesday reporting had the desired result. I'm
missing just two reports. There are several groups who have chosen to be
suspended by failing to report after several reminders. These groups are: 1)
Cathair Daibhidh (they have elected to quit altogether and their remaining
funds ($56 and change) have been transferred to the Barony of Sacred Stone;
2) the Incipient Royal Canton of Hyrnkeep has shown no life in the past year
with no reports and no response to several inquiries and is recommended for
dissolution; and 3) the Incipient Canton of Wrattingham Lynn has chosen to
be reassimilated by the Barony of Storvik and is recommended for dissolution.

2. The Board of Directors killed the non-member surcharge at their January
meeting and the Crown of Atlantia chose to enact that decision immediately
rather than waiting for the expiration of the sixty (60) day waiting period
mandated by G&PD 18. That's the good news. The other news is that the
kingdom incurred a $1200 annual income shortfall by canceling the NMS.
Baroness Amanda, the kingdom fundraising czarina, has suggested that people
consider offering services such as babysitting, toting ice at Pennsic,
fetching and carrying and such. Such services as these and their ilk don't
take skill, only a desire to feed the kingdom's coffers. What a wonderful idea!

3. The October 19 Board of Directors meeting needs a site. Atlantia has
risen to the very top of the "we've not been there in a long time" list. If
your group is interested and can provide the requisite travel, lodging,
meeting perquisites, please contact me for further consultation.

4. Hal Ravn, the chairman of the Interkingdom Advisory Council, has mailed
all of the kingdom seneschals a draft proposal for changes to the SCA's
banishment policies. I've chosen to ask the populace to submit their
recommendation to Hal and in addition to posting the letter on the Atlantia
list, I have brought fifty (50) copies of the document for your use. 

5. I am happy to announce that Lord Corwyn Sinister has relieved Baron
Terafan Greydragon as Deputy Kingdom Seneschal for North Carolina. Baron
Terafan has done a magnificent job of keeping in close contact with what is
the largest concentration of Atlantians and we all owe him a sincere vote of
thanks. Well done, Terafan and thank you! For the interest of his many
friends, please be advised that he is being reassigned to Fort Lee, Virginia
in the Spring.

6. After the storm of protest at the Unevent Seneschal's meeting regarding
the Membership Services Office and their mistreatment of people, I expected
a deluge of responses to my request for "up close and personal horror
stories" regarding Milpitas. I sent three instances to Duchess Sedalia for
her use in fighting the battle. That was not putting one's money where one's
mouth was. Similarly, there are good reasons for us to rethink the entire
California-centric basis of SCA, Inc. I'll excerpt a portion of Marian
O'Liam's Rialto message of 25 January 1996 for your consideration:

	One of the most interesting proposals advanced over the past year was that
it's not clear that we need a corporate office--if we're willing to settle
for a considerable reduction in corporate services in exchange for a
considerable reduction in costs.

	We need a post office box somewhere in California (unless we reincorporate
elsewhere). We need a telephone somewhere in the country. We need some level
of secretarial support and some amount of filing space, but these can be
rented anywhere in the country, especially in small quantities. (It could
also be handled by an Executive Assistant working full-time out of the house.)

	Such a scheme is not simple and not without potential hazards that would
have to be safeguarded against. (One implementation would tie memberships to
kingdom newsletter subscriptions rather than vice versa. Each kingdom would
decide on its own whether to handle its subscription list with volunteers or
not, and a weekly or monthly standard-format-flat-file membership list would
be sent to a central corporate master list.)

The idea of decentralizing the SCA into autonomous kingdoms operating under
an umbrella organization whose function would be to negotiate interkingdom
disputes and to have the kingdoms take control of their administrative and
communication chores is not a new one. It is becoming increasing apparent
that the linkage of international groups into a US-centric non-profit
organization is coming unglued. The revenue authorities in Canada,
Australia, Sweden, and other countries are hot on the trail of SCA funds,
bank accounts, and profits. Think about your vision of how the SCA should be
organized and share your thoughts with the Board, the Crown and me.

Yours in service,



Thomas

Done by my hand this 17th day of February, A.S. XXX being 1996 C.E.