INFORMATION RELATING TO CO-OPERATION AND ASSOCIATION 



prices ; and generally the^^ take advantage of every possible circumstance 

 to exploit the cultivators as much as they can. 



Under the alternative and co-operative system a credit society or a 

 central bank obtains a supply of approved seed through the Agricultural 

 Department. It is sold at market rates or at something above cost price 

 to selected members living within a convenient distance of the centre of 

 distribution. Only persons known to be good and careful husbandmen 

 are supplied and the cultivation is supervised by trained officials of the 

 Agricultural Department. When the crop has been harvested the seed 

 is cleaned and graded, and when it has been passed by experts it is bought 

 back by the bank or society at a slight premium over market rates. Ade- 

 quate arrangements are made for storage in specially constructed godowns. 

 In the following season a limited quantity of the stored seed is sold to se- 

 lected members while the bulk is disposed of at market rates to the general 

 body of members. The distribiiting agency stipulates that it ma}^ buy 

 back the produce of selected cultivators if tlais prove to be of sufficiently 

 good quality. I'he general body of members may dispose of their produce 

 in the open market. All transactions are in cash, and a member without 

 enough read}' money to buy must borrow from a credit society. 



This system has had satisfactory results in freeing the cultivators 

 from bondage to the usurers and in notably improving the quality of crops. 



Co-operative Water Supply. -- The Agricultural Department is bear- 

 ing the initial cost of an experiment in establishing a co-operative water 

 supply, namely of pumping water in Sultanpur District from the Gumti 

 to irrigate the fields of members of two or three adjacent credit societies. 

 The cost will eventually be repaid in instalments by the societies, who will 

 le\^ a rate from each member proportionate to the area irrigated. 



If the experiment prove successful, as it promises to do, there is every 

 prospect of organizing water supply societies in suitable tracts to pump 

 water from rivers, streams and large, shallow lakes and supply it to agricul- 

 turists, whether or not they belong to credit societies, although if all of 

 them belong to such the collection of dues will of course be simplified. 

 There might be like organizations to allow pumping installations to be at- 

 tached to wells having large supplies of water, especially tube- wells, in tracts 

 where they can be sunk with advantage. It is not very often possible for 

 individual agriculturists to undertake the cost of a pumping installation, 

 but a number of them might combine to do so. 



FRANCE. 



A NKW SYNDICATE FOR MECHANICAL AGRICULTURE. — Journal d'agitculturc pri- 

 tiquc, Paris, ii Jamuiry 191 7. 



A certain number of agriculturists in tlie nrrondissement of Pontoise 

 have formed themselves into a trade syndicate in order to acquire traction 



