For matters requiring detailed consideration the Committee appointed small Sub-committees. Members were drawn from the elected members of the BFBS Committee, and experts from outside were recruited as necessary. The loss of the first two volumes of Committee minutes makes it impossible to tell what Sub-committees were set up at the beginning, especially as some of these kept no minutes. Owen's History (I, 87-8) suggests there were three: one to deal with finance, one to gain support for the Society, and one to supervise printing. A number of standing Sub-committees soon emerged, corresponding to the increasingly diverse range of the Society's work. In addition, special Sub-committees were set up from time to time to deal with specific issues, such as procedural reviews or jubilee celebrations. In 1939 the Society's whole administration was reorganised, including the Sub-committees, which were reduced in number, but due to the war, during which the work of all Sub-committees was handled by the General Purposes Sub-committee, the new system did not function properly until 1945. In 1966 the Sub-committees, hitherto executive, were made advisory to a new Committee of Management. Further streamlining occurred in 1969, when they were reduced to four Advisory Committees (Home, Overseas, Administration and Translations), and in 1972 they were abolished, except for the Overseas Committee, which was transformed into a World Service Committee linked to the United Bible Societies and continued until 1976. Their place was to some extent taken by internal 'working groups'..