THE DISTRICT OF TRENT, A MODEI, CO-OPERATIVE DISTRICT 25 



The Industrial Agricultural Syndicate now has its own extensive buildings 

 with large and convenient storehouses, splendid offices, modern cattle 

 stalls, large courtyards connected with the railway and a numerous staff. 



The syndicate owes its progress not only to the support of the associated 

 co-operative societies which contribute to form its share capital as well 

 as to its sales and hence to its gains, but also to the Catholic Bank of the 

 Trent District and the Rural Banks which provide the necessary funds for 

 its working on favourable terms. 



§ 4. Mutual insurance. 



We shall finally say a few words with regard to the livestock insurance 

 societies. In the district of Trent, private insurance societies were first formed, 

 with imperfect rules, without fixed annual premiums, but calls were made to 

 meet each claim, and there v. as an obHgation to take a proportion of the flesh 

 of the dead or slaughtered animal corresponding with the amount assured. 

 Other societies, on the same fines, only estimated the value of the animal 

 at themomentof slaughtering, and, generally, all the societies had a rule re- 

 lieving the member of any expenditure with regard to the treatment of sick 

 Hvestock. As we know, in order that an insurance society may work well, 

 it must be governed by rules which oblige the members to pay a fixed an- 

 nual premium in advance (unless the cases of death are too immerous, when 

 corresponding increases of the amounts are not to be excluded), estabUsh 

 a valuation on which the claim may be based, compel the member to take 

 an active part in the work, and do not exempt him from any trouble or 

 Uabifity: the rules should also subject every member to strict supervision 

 in regard to his treatment of his hvestock, especially when sick. 



In 1897 the three first insurance societies, with approved rules, were 

 founded at Ala, Rovereto and Aldeno. In the mean time, the Provincial Coun- 

 cil of Agriculture prepared other rules for the constitution of an association 

 in every legal district to be placed under the management of a veterin- 

 ary surgeon, who should not only treat the animals, but extend the know- 

 ledge of good principles of hvestock improvement. The association should 

 pay 90 % of the value in case of losses, provide medicines freely and have 

 the animals valued once or twice a year, leaving the members free to replace 

 their livestock, provided certain precautions are taken. Two insurance 

 societies were founded on these principles at Trent and Vezzano in 1899, 

 but they did not give the results expected, in fact, whether it were due to 

 the small amount of supervision that could be exercised, as their spheres of 

 action were too large, or the excessive expenditure incurred in the pur- 

 chase of medicines, or, finally, because the members, sure of realising 90 %, 

 found it more to their interest that their livestock should die, instead of 

 remaining under treatment for a long while, even if certain of cure, it is 

 certain that the expenditure increased gradually more and more and the 

 premium, instead of remaining stationary about 1%, rose from year to 

 year, tiUin six years it had become 1.8 and 2 %. 



