INFORMATION RELATING TO AGRICULTURAL ECONOMY IN GENERAL 1 23 



property, and approves reports for the general meeting and balance-sheets 

 drawn up by the executive committee. The latter administers the charity 

 udthin the Umits of its budget, and prepares and submits to the general 

 council budgets and balance-sheets, the report on the moral and technical 

 acti\'ity of the charity, etc : 



If the general meeting should decide to dissolve the charit}' its pro- 

 perty will pass to the National Bank of Thrift. 



Propaganda in favour of the formation of the agricultural colonies 

 and protective agencies, already mentioned, has met with excellent re- 

 sults: there are already several agricultural colonies; and numeirous pro- 

 tective agencies for the assistance of peasants' orphans have been consti- 

 tuted, especially b}' the initiative of provinces, each of which will have its 

 own agency. There is in Ital}^ a typical example of institutions of this 

 kind, the Opera per I'assistenza e la educazione professionale degli orjani 

 dei lavoraton della terfa, a charity for aiding and technically educating the 

 orphans of agricultural labourers in the province of Bologna. 



* 

 * * 



5. AN IMPORTANT SCHEME FOR THE FOUNDATION OF A PROVINCIAL INSTITU- 

 TION OF SOCIAL AID. Communicated by the provincial deputation of Bergamo on 

 7 April 191 6. 



At a recent meeting of the provincial council of Bergamo the found- 

 ation was proposed of a large institution of social aid which should be 

 formed on the initiative of the provincial deputation, and with the co-oper- 

 ation of aU public and private institutions " interested in and responsible 

 for the protection of public health and the economic and social welfare of 

 the working classes ". The proposed institution would act through two 

 sections — a hygienic and sanitary and a social and economic section. It 

 would be the task of the latter : 



I. Statistics : a) To collect, collate and publish information as to la- 

 bour — chiefly in regard to its organization and renumeration in Italy 

 and in foreign countries, preferably those to which there was emigration ; 

 and as to the relations of labour and capital ; the number and conditions 

 of labourers and the conditions of unemployment ; strikes and their causes 

 and results; and the number, causes and consequences of accidents to 

 workmen ; b) To discover the development of the retrogression and the 

 technical and economic conditions of social institutions in the province, as 

 well as their influence on the welfare of the working classes and on the 

 progress of agriculture. 



II. Legislation : c) To disseminate among the people a knowledge of 

 social legislation, and to undertake all the studies and researches in matters 

 of legislation which the government, the higher council of labour or other 

 institutions should require. 



