PROVISION OF BORROWING FACILITIES. 323 



peasants from debt and to supply them with funds for maintenance 

 and production. This is the problem, such are the conditions, which 

 BAIFFKSBN had before him, and, in his solution of it in its most 

 unpromising form, he has solved the problem so successfully, that the 

 system is now developing with immense rapidity, so that the end of 

 next decade may easily see at least 5,000 rural banks of this class in 

 full operation. For India the solution of the problem presents an 

 absorbing interest, for there are few, if any parts more difficult, to 

 deal with, than the scene of RAIFFEISEN'S first success, while in this 

 presidency (Madras) alone there are 10,000 villages far more suitable 

 than Flammersfeld. But the conditions of the country and of the 

 peasantry do not exhaust the factors of the problem, there must be 

 imported into it for its solution, the energy, skill and devotion of 

 promoters of the Raiffeisen stamp ; so difficult is the problem that it 

 has nowhere been solved, save by such imported elements, and it is 

 well to recognize this at the outest ; given a SCHULZE DELITZSCH or 

 a RAIFFEISEN, and they will bring bread out of stones, credit out of 

 poverty, isolation and ignorance ; without them or some similar 

 influence the problem remains insoluble. 



General Results. The increase in numbers has already been 

 mentioned, and it should be noted that this enormous increase has 

 practically been obtained since 1868 when the societies first began to 

 develop.** ME. WOLFF considers that there are probably above 2,000 

 including those that have seceded on minor points only. As 1,730 

 were entered in a report for 1889, and they are said to be increasing 

 at the rate of at least one or two per diem, this seems a moderate 

 estimate. 



The loans granted are small; in 1887 in three societies taken at 

 random, 200 loans were granted for 3,094 or 15-10 each ; of these 

 35 were below 5, and averaged about 2 ; 139 were below 25, and 

 averaged 9-8 ; only 26 were above 25, and none was above 112-10. 

 It is clear that these societies have the true peasantry as their 

 clientele. 



Prirfiples. There is little difference between the aims and objects 

 of SCHULZE DELITZSCH and RAIFFEISEN, and that which has been said 

 above of the former applies equally well to the latter; they differ only 

 in the less essential matters of method, and in the clientele which they 

 had in view; the former founded popular credit for all classes, but 

 especially for townsmen, tradesmen, artisans, &c., while the latter 



