THE M0NTHU5 BUI I. I.TIN. 147 



stockholder will be protected; large and small stockholders thus are 

 ,ers of the company upon an absolutely equitable basis, rhe 

 duties and powers of the trustees are very carefully denned m the 

 subscription and voting trust agreement. 



Growers who subscribe for stock also agree to sign over their fruit 

 to the association for a term of three years with option of renewal for 

 two years more, according to the terms of the contract attached to the 

 subscription and voting trusl agreement. Growers who sign this agree- 

 menl are uo1 bound for anything more than organization expenses, 

 unless by March 1. 1917, contracts are executed covering at least 7o per 



q1 of the prunes and apricots grown in California and unless at Least 

 $750,000 worth of stork has h en placed by that date. It is made plain 

 that failure to secure 75 per cenl of the apricots, for example, will not 

 prevent the association from operating with the prunes, should 75 per 

 cenl of the prunes be obtained. Just whal constitutes 75 per cent of 

 the acreage is Left for the board of trusters to determine, but every 

 effort is being made by the information bureau and the organization 

 committee to ascertain accurately the acreage of every bearing prune 

 and apricol orchard in California. 



The fruit contract which the growers will sign provides, in the case 

 of prunes, for a paymenl of a 4-cen1 basis on delivery to the associa- 

 tion. At fast half of this -tent basis must be paid in gold coin, the 

 balance may be paid in interest-bearing notes, payable in three or six 

 months. These ao tes ougb.1 always to be readily negotiable and there 

 is no good reason why. with business conditions ordinarily good and a 

 crop of normal size, the full 4-cent basis should not be paid in cash 

 on delivery. The apricot contracl will provide for the payment of 

 8 cents per pound for apricots of a quality equivalent to one-third each 

 of the grades, choice, extrachoice and fancy, payable on the same terms 

 as the 4-cent advance for prunes. Both these contracl prices may be 

 reduced by a four-fifths vote of the board of trustees. This provision 

 introduces an elemenl of elasticity into the workings of the proposed 

 association and oughl to make it a much more attractive business 

 venture, as through its operation the price can be made to follow the 

 genera] market trend. The history of past unsuccessful cooperative 

 organizations shows that they frequently failed becanse of the arbitrary 

 selling of a price too high for the disposal of their crops under the 

 conditions involved, which are sometimes the reverse of ideal. 



In addition to the advance payments on delivery, the association 

 agrees to use its besl efforts to resell the fruit of its members at higher 

 prices and to return to them all it receives, except 5 per cent reserved 

 for the cost of doing business. With reasonably good management, 

 the 5 per cent together with the packing profits will supply a liberal 

 advertising fund, meel all overhead charges and pay a fair dividend 

 on both preferred and common stock. 



BENEFITS. 



In addition to the many indirect benefits that will result from the 



formation of the association, it will eliminate speculation: it will make 



ble the standardization of the pack and finally it will result in a 



general raising of the price level for both prunes and apricots through 



