INFORMATION RELATING TO CO-OPERATION AND ASSOCIATION II 



Congested Districts Board its loan for the pnrchase of his boat and gear; 

 from the other half he deducts a small sum to cover the provisioning of the 

 boat at sea and other expenses ; and the remainder is then divided among 

 the crew in equal shares, from which, as already explained, they pay a shill- 

 ing in the pound towards the accumulation of share capital. In the case 

 of motor-boats the running expenses of the engine are deducted in equal halves 

 from the share which goes to pay for the boat and the share which goes 

 to the crew. In the case of a curragh, where the initial expenditure on buy- 

 ing the boat is small, the money received for the fish is paid in equal 

 halves, the one to the skipper and the other to the rest of the crew. 



The society has brought about a very important rise in the price of fish. 

 Before it was formed the fishermen received from 4s. to 65. for a long hun- 

 dred of mackerel. Since its formation the corresponding average prices 

 have been as follows : autumn 1915, 12s. ; spring 1916, 8s. ; autumn 1916, 

 17s. to 22s. ; spring 1917, i8s. ; early part of autumn 1917, 17s. Thus pri- 

 ces have been doubled and in seme cases trebled. 



An amazing increase of turnover has been secured. During the first 

 eight months the turnover was £760 ; and the expenses amounted to £380, 

 including £224 for barrels and salt, £110 for wages and £27 for freight. 

 In the last eight months the turnover has been £14,000 ; and the expenses 

 have amounted to £4,700, made up of £2,800 for freight and commission, 

 £450 for wages, £1,100 for packing and £350 for ice. 



It is seen that the ration of expenses to turnover has throughout been 

 very h^gh, a circumstance almost unavoidable in the fish trade owing to 

 the high prices which have to be paid for requisites. Thus boxes, which 

 are returnable but are seldom returned, cost 2s. each two years ago but now 

 5s. ; barrels, which are not returnable, 4s. 2d. each two years age but now 9s. 

 6d. ; salt 32 s. a ton two years ago, now los. a ton. The Congested DivStricts 

 Board used to sell a basket of crushed ice, weighing 6 stone, for about 2S. 

 During the war they raised this price to 3s. 6d., and recently they have 

 ceased to supply ice to the West of Ireland, so that the society will have to 

 buy ce from a Dublin firm at 30s. a ton onthapier at Aran. In order to avoid 

 this large expense, which is likely to increasvi,the societ}^ contemplates buy- 

 ing an ice-making machine, which it could use profitably owing to the ex- 

 cellent water supply provided by the Congested Districts Boards. As 

 prices are daily rising the expenses of tho society will probably grow, but 

 the increase of trade will lessen the ratio of expeiises to turnover, a fact 

 illustrated in the last two years which have been years of rising prices. 



Th ': share capital of the society amounted at the time of foundation 

 to £5, at the end of the first year it was £,27, and at the end of August 1917 

 it was £[43. A very satisfactory reserve fund has moreover been accu- 

 inulated. 



Thi membership has risen from 100 to 184. In September 1915 the 

 members used only fifteen curraghs but nr w they use nearly forty curraghs, 

 and eleven nobbies of which four are mctcr-boats. Of all the boats of 

 Inish:nore only five curraghs and a couple of nobbies, one of them belong- 

 ing t ) a lyondon firm, are outside the society. 



