CO-OPERATION IN RUSSIA 23 



of agricultural machinery etc. Altogether, therefore, there are now in 

 Russia 30,500 co-operative societies. 



However, Russia comes second among the countries of the world in 

 regard to the number of its co-operative societies, Germany taking the first 

 place. So, we observe to-day in the various classes of the popidation, above 

 all in the agricultural class, an awakening to the sense of common interests 

 and the idea of self help. There are in the country districts many people of 

 intelligence, on whose initiative various co-operative institutions have been 

 founded. Add to this that the governing classes have clearly learned, in 

 the last ten years, the necessity of contributing to the development of co- 

 operation. In proof of this it is enough to mention the recent laws and pro- 

 visions relating to co-operation. These are the following : (a) laws on credit 

 co-operation, of the years 1895, 1904, and 1910 ; (6) model rtdes of the 

 year 1897 for distributive societies and agricultural co-operative societies 

 for purchase and sale ; (c) model rules of 1898 for societies for agricvdtural 

 improvement; (d) law of 1902 on co-operative societies for production 

 (artels) ; (e) model rtdes of 1908 for agricultural co-operative societies. 



Nor is this all ; it cannot in fact, be denied that in the last ten years 

 many co-operative societies have been founded through the influence and 

 with the immediate support of Government officers. 



* 

 * * 



I^et us now proceed to show in greater detail the present situation of co- 

 operation in Russia. 



T^et us begin with co-operative credit. There are two kinds of co-oper- 

 ative credit societies : (i) co-operative loan and savings societies (System 

 Schulze-Dehtzsch) ; (2) co-operative loan societies (Russian System) These 

 latter are institutions, neither of the Schulze-DeHtzsch nor of the RaifEeisen 

 system. They have no share capital, nor dividends, while the Schulze- 

 Delitzsch credit associations have both. Further, their field of action is 

 usually very large, including sometimes from 2,000 to 3,000 households 

 and even often more than 1,000 members. In the co-operative soci- 

 eties of Russian system the members' liability is almost always limited, 

 while in those of Raiffeisen system it is unlimited. Besides this, in 

 the former the board of management is almost always remunerated, while 

 in the latter only the accountant is paid , finally the co-operative loan 

 societies do not grant loans for very long terms, that is for terms of over 

 5 years, and limit themselves for the most part to short term loans, while 

 the Raiffeisen banks generally lend for long terms. 



As we see, the Russian loan societies conform neither to the Schtdze- 

 Delitzsch nor the RaifEeisen type; they have really their own principles which 

 may be styled : the Russian system. Such a designation is the more natural 

 as the number of these associations is somewhat large, even compared with 

 that of similar associations in other countries and is daily tending to increase. 

 According to the most recent statistics (July i.st., 1913), there are in 



