NOTICE

Being desirous of forming ourselves into a religious society to be known as the society of Seventh-day Adventists of ----, to legally hold and manage our church property, an election will be held at ----, on the ---- day of ----, in the year 18—, for the purpose of electing three persons to serve as trustees of said society.RESO 10.4

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Elder, Deacon, or Member ^{1EXPLANATION.
OFFICERS of the church, such as local elders, deacons, and clerk, can be trustees. Hence the following statement on page eleven of “Religious Societies,” is not correct:
“The President must caution the voters not to write the name of any officer of the church on their ballots, for the law says the trustees shall be laymen.”
The above-named officers are laymen. A local elder, a deacon, or clerk, cannot be a trustee by his name of office-see page 14-but they may be appointed trustees, through whom, as trustees, the legally organized society can hold property.
Hence, strike out the lines on page eleven, quoted above, and this book is all right.} (as the case may be).

Such notice must be given at least fifteen days before the day of election, and must be read in two Sabbath meetings, and those two Sabbaths must be the last two on which you have meeting before the day of election. See sec.4.RESO 10.5

When you come together to hold your first election, you will organize your meeting by choosing your elder as president. This may be done by some one moving that the elder act as president, and then vote upon it by voice or uplifted hand as you choose. The next step will be to elect a clerk for the time being, who may be nominated and elected in the same manner as the president. Your next step will be to select two inspectors of the election. If there are two deacons of the church present, they are lawful inspectors without any vote for them. If there is one deacon present he is an inspector, and the second is to be chosen by circulating blank ballots and letting all who have signed the articles write upon the ballots the name of the person they wish to act as inspector. The one getting the greatest number of ballots is the other inspector. If there is no deacon present, both inspectors shall be elected as above.RESO 10.6

The president shall then announce that the inspectors are to pass blank ballots on which he wishes you to write the names of three male subscribers to the articles, to serve as trustees, the three names to be written at one balloting. The president must caution the voters not to write the name of any officer of the church on their ballots for the law says the trustees shall be laymen. The inspectors shall take up the ballots and examine and report to the president, who shall declare the vote. The three persons receiving the highest number of votes are the three trustees. The trustees shall then draw cuts from the hand of the president, to decide who shall serve one, who two, and who three years.RESO 11.1

When they are thus divided, the president, clerk, and inspectors should make a writing like the following:RESO 11.2

At a meeting of persons who had signed Articles of Association for the purpose of forming a religious society, to be known as the society of Seventh-day Adventists of ----, Michigan, notified according to the provisions of the statutes of the State of Michigan, held at ----, on the ---- day of ----, 18—, -------- was by a plurality of votes, chosen president, and --------, clerk. Whereupon, ------------ and --------, deacons, acted as inspectors of election for the election of trustees for said society, who make the following certificate. In case two laymen are chosen as inspectors, or one layman to act with one deacon, let it read, Whereupon,--------, layman, was nominated by a plurality of votes by ballot to act with the deacon,--------, as inspectors of election, etc., or if two laymen, let both their names be mentioned as nominated for inspectors.RESO 11.3

--------, President,
--------, Clerk.