■222 NEBRASKA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 



5. Excessive Growth of AVood — Blossoms often drop in great 

 numbers when the tree is forming excessive amounts of wood. 



6. Over Abundance of Nitrogen Fertilizers. 



7. Diseased Buds. 



8. Spraying. — Heavy spraying of trees, especially before pollina- 

 tion, has in some few instances resulted in. a loss of blossoms. This 

 is not serious, however,. — From "The Fruit Belt." 



CO-OPERATION. 



THE COOPEKATIVE SOCIETY AM) THE OUDlxNAllY IJLSINESS 



CORPORATION. 



AV"m. R. Canijis, Chief Division of Markets, N. C. Expt. Station. 



One great difference between the organization of farmers and 

 that of those in manufacturing, transporting, mercantile and banking 

 enterprises should be emphasized. In the ordinary business corpora- 

 tion there has been no consistent effort to distribute the profits to as 

 many as possible. Some business pools have been domocratis. IMem- 

 bership has been open to all on equal terms. As many as possible 

 have been induced to join. But usually the great movement for the 

 organization of all business except that of agriculture has had for 

 Its motive the profits which the leaders hoped to obtain out of it. 

 The great fortunes of today are not made by the rank and file within 

 business corporations but by their directors. Such profits come as a 

 result of promotion, reorganization, consolidation and sale of securi- 

 ties generally. The promoters of the United States Steel Corporation 

 received $150,000,000 par value of stock, or one-seventh of the total 

 capital stock, for their services. Upon this stock they were able to 

 realize a net profit of $62,500,000. It is by such efficient methods as 

 this that wealth has become centralized in a few of the financial cen- 

 ters of the United States. 



In the organization of the fanning btisiness the appeal for leader- 

 ship can not be made to the self-interests of the few. The aim in a 

 co-operative society is not to give any special profits to promoters. 

 Ownership of shares in an agricultural corjwration must be distributed 

 among ns large a number of gTowers as possible in order to presents 

 a united front in the market. Shares must be made transferable only 

 at the option of the growers so as to prevent the shares of the or2:an- 

 ization from falling into the hands of buyers, who naturally would 

 control the organization for their own interests. If the shares are 

 distributed to and kept in the hands of the growers in the proportion 

 of their acreage, then it may be possible to distribute the profits to 

 all growers in proportion to their contribution of products. This 

 method of division of profits is the main distinction between a co-oper- 

 ative society and the ordinary business corporation. 



