POPULAR CO-OPERATIVE CREDIT 



21 



for each hoiisehold. This is to say that more than a tliird of the whole 

 Russian population belonged to them. 



The membership of each co-operative societj^ increased at the fol- 

 lowins; average rate : 



1912 



1913 

 1914 



1915 



40 



47 

 46 



51 



The number of the members of the deposit and loan funds which 

 reached 595 in 1915 has since been slightly reduced. These funds are less 

 popular than the co-operative credit societies. The latter included as 

 their members, in 1912, 47 per cent, of the population within their spheres 

 of activity, a fraction which has now probably come to be more than 

 half, whereas the funds grouped only 24 per cent, of the population within 

 their spheres. 



The capital of the co-operative societies was distributed as follows : 



I July 1914 



I January 1915 



I January 1916 



Capital : 



belonging to them- 

 selves 



belonging to depo- 

 sitors 



belonging to the 



State 



belonging to the 

 Zemstvos and others 



Total . . . 



in terms 



of 

 thousands 

 of roubles 



[in terms 



of 

 thousands 

 of roubles 



% 



96,687 12.5 



487,508 63.0 



148,159 19.2 



40,808 5.3 



14.0 



66.6 



99.501 

 472,862 

 105,218 15.0 



32,464 4.4 



in terms 



of 

 thousands 

 of roubles 



110,078 



535.372 



95.509 

 42,900 



% 

 154 



68.6 



12.3 



3-7 



773,162 100 710,045 ICO 783,859 100 



In a certain number of districts the inflow of deposits was so great 

 that the co-operative societies could not utihze them. Paper and specie 

 have therefore augmented considerably, their value passing from 86,416,000 

 loubles to 141,416,000 roubles, that is 20 per cent of the amount on the 

 balance-sheets. 



b) Purchases and sales effected by small credit establishments. 



Owing to present circumstances the co-operative societies are under- 

 taking business usually outside their range of activity or only a very sub- 

 sidiary part thereof, such as the lending of agricultural machines for the 

 field work of their members, the lending of seed, the purchase and sale of 



