I only wish I could have been with you throughout the day and tomorrow but since our annual partners meeting is currently under way, I believe you will understand why this is not possible. However, it is a pleasure for me to have this opportunity to be with you tonight and to touch, at least briefly, on some important matters which are and should be of concern to each of us. The subject of accounting principles has been discussed so often over the last few years there would seem to be little more to be said. But this is not the case. The accounting profession through the AICPA has always recognized that much more remains to be said and done to answer the many critics of our present structure and methods of establishing accounting principles: Today, however, we are experiencing renewed-or entirely new-thrusts from concerned bodies outside the profession. It is unfortunate that some, if not most, of these critics have been given their arena for comments as a result of past efforts of the APB or its predecessor committee. It is equally unfortunate that some outside of the profession have been able to seize on their pet areas without our having any better defenses than are currently available. I hasten to add at this point that I do not suggest that little or nothing has been attempted or accomplished by the profession or the APB. Neither do I want to leave the impression that those who have worked so diligently over the years have given less than their best efforts or that their motives have been suspect. No one could have been expected to work more diligently or tried harder to reach satisfactory conclusions than have the members of the APB. Such problems as have existed have stemmed to a large extent from the lack of unanimity of philosophy or understanding of the general objectives of corporate financial statements, despite the fact that one of the original charges given the APB upon its formation in 1959