MISCElvTyANEOUS NEWS 39 



And the people's banks, also 63 in number, showed at the same date 

 the following : 



Members 1.274 



Capital Frs. 29,714.40 



Deposits » 1,205,455.63 



I^oans » 527.755 



In the province of Bergamo other forms of co-operative societies have 

 arisen, also on the initiative of the CathoHcs. In fact, there are 10 dairy 

 societies and 30 collective farms. Twenty three of the latter had 1,026 

 members and leased 4,026 ha., for which the total yearly rent was 

 553,071 frs. 



The legal form these organizations prefer is that of civil societies and 

 the land is worked on the system of divided management recognised as 

 the best suited for the moral, technical and economic progress of the 

 peasants. 



Almost all have the assistance of a priest, a managing director and a 

 technical director. The land leased belongs to charitable institutions or 

 to private owners. 



There are also in the same province 52 horned cattle insurance soci- 

 eties, organized on mutual lines and Hmited to a commune or a parish, with 

 altogether 5,226 members and 10,435 head of cattle insured. In districts 

 where there is a rural bank, members of the mutual horned cattle insurance 

 society can obtain loans from it, on the security of the Uvestock insured. 



(b) Federazione delle cooperative cattoliche delta provincia di Ferrara 

 (Federation of the CathoUc Co-operative Societies of the Province of Fer- 

 rara). — This federation, formed in igo6, unites 32 rural banks which, at 

 the end of 1912, showed the following figures : members 3,707 ; capital 

 (members' contributions and reserve funds) 58,063 frs.; deposits 791,634 frs. 

 debit current accounts (for 22 societies) 305,367 frs. ; bills and acceptances 

 968,951 frs.; credit current accounts (for 10 societies), 154,073 frs. 



Other members of the Federation are : the Unione agricota cattotica 

 di Argenta (Argenta Catholic Agricultural Union), a hmited liability society 

 for collective farming with 49 members, 40,000 frs. worth of livestock and 

 60,000 frs. worth of laud ; the Unione professionale jra muratori e affini per 

 costruzioni editizie di Argenta (Argenta Professional Union of Masons and 

 Bricklayers for House Building), a limited liability co-operative society 

 with 46 members ; and two legally recognised labour co-operative societies 

 of Ruina and I\Iezzogoro, with 80 and 45 members respectively. 



(c) Federazione delle associazioni cattoliche economico-sociali della Pro- 

 vincia di Parma (Federation of the Economic and Social Catholic Associa- 

 tions of the Province of Parma). — At the end of 1912, there were 65 soci- 

 eties in this federation, amongst them 41 rural banks, 14 labour co-operative 

 societies and 10 agricultural co-operative distributive societies. All these 

 societies have taken the legal form of co-operative societies: the rural banks 



