224 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



Household engineering. 



During this winter and spring, a model of our septic tank has been devel- 

 oped, and ten of these models have been placed with county agents. It is 

 hoped that with the use of these models it will assist the county agents in 

 explaining the construction and operation of the tank as well as assist those 

 interested in building a tank. It is the plan to have these models passed 

 around to the agents as they have occasion to use them. Already they have 

 been made use of by fourteen of the county agents. Eleven demonstration 

 septic tanks were constructed and about 200 plans were sent out. Plans 

 were also prepared for a number of water systems and small water power 

 plants. 



MARKETING ORGANIZATIONS. 



The work of the Markets department during the fiscal year was continued 

 along the line of the policy to which the department has been committed 

 for several years. This policy being simply, that, in response to demand 

 from farmers for assistance in their marketing problems, efforts are made 

 to organize farmers into permanent and substantial institutions for the 

 purpose of undertaking any marketing or distribution functions which they 

 may deem desirable or necessary. 



This work may be divided into three classes: 



{First) Assistance to a local corporation of farmers in establishing a local 

 cooperative institution. 



(Second) The combining of these local organizations into state or district 

 commodity exchanges for the purpose of taking over some of the certain 

 marketing or producing functions which the local associations have in com- 

 mon. 



(Third) The working out of a comprehensive plan for uniting and har- 

 monizing the commodity exchanges in the State through the Michigan State 

 Farm Bureau and the re-organization of the latter in order to assume the 

 coordinating functions of the commodity exchanges as well as the general 

 state-wide activities for which the Farm Bureau was originally intended. 



The assistance given to local organizations has covered practically all 

 types, including cooperative elevator, potato, fruit and live stock associa- 

 tions, cooperative creameries and milk shipping and distributing associations. 

 This work consists in the formulation of the proper working basis or by-laws, 

 a cardinal feature of which is contractual relations. The adequate financing 

 of local organizations is also a major problem in the solution of which assist- 

 ance from the Markets department is being continually solicited. The 

 general theory of cooperative enterprises in contra-distinction from capi- 

 talistic types of organizations is given important consideration. 



The Michigan Potato Growers' Exchange now includes approximately 120 

 local organizations and has finished its third year of successful operation. 

 This organization has handled a large percentage of the potato crop of Michi- 

 gan and is without question the most important factor in the distribution of 

 that crop. The institution now has a surplus of approximately $70,000 and 

 is in sound financial condition. 



The Michigan Live Stock Exchange now consists of 123 locals. This organi- 

 zation has thus far devoted its attention principally to transportation and 

 rate problems, but has been studying carefully the sales problem in receiving 

 markets, with a view of taking over the sales service as soon as the directors 



