252 THE GRANGER MOVEMENT 



through the failure of Morgan's Sons, and in 1882 the master 

 of the state grange reported that the business ventures had not 

 been successful and had entailed a considerable debt upon the 

 state grange. 1 



Numerous Grange agencies were also established in the 

 southern states; but they operated, as a rule, on a smaller scale 

 than did those of the Middle West. In Maryland the executive 

 committee of the state grange made arrangements in 1874 

 to enable the members of the order to purchase fertilizers at 

 wholesale rates, and soon after a Baltimore firm was placed 

 under bonds to act as business agent for the Patrons of the state. 

 This firm was reported to have done a Grange business of $185,- 

 ooo in 1875 ; but the arrangement apparently was not satisfactory 

 for in 1876 a warehouse was rented in Baltimore and a member 

 of the order put in charge on a salary basis. A fund of about 

 sixteen hundred dollars was raised by subscription among the 

 local granges and the agency did a business of $358,000 during 

 1877. Complaints were made that the support of the agency 

 by the Patrons was not universal; but it seems to have had a 

 successful career, and in 1881 was reported as having a " sur- 

 plus capital " of over ten thousand dollars. In 1882 plans 

 were being laid for reorganizing the business on the Rochdale 

 plan. 2 



In West Virginia the Grange was not strong enough to estab- 

 lish an independent agency, but in 1877 five hundred dollars 

 were contributed to the fund of the Maryland agency. Trouble 

 soon arose, however, because the West Virginia Grange was not 

 allowed any share in the control of the agency, and it withdrew 

 after a few months. 3 In Virginia, the Carolinas, and Florida, 

 little seems to have been accomplished in the way of distributive 



1 Oregon State Grange, Proceedings, iii (1876); Illinois State Grange, Pro- 

 ceedings, iv. 17 (1875); National Grange, Proceedings, xvi. 39 (1882). 



2 Maryland State Grange, Proceedings, i (March, 1874), special session (De- 

 cember, 1875); Maryland State Grange Agency, Circular (March 20, 1876); 

 American Farmer, v. 138, vi. 33, vii. 12-14, 147, viii. 7-12, 148 (1876-79); National 

 Grange, Proceedings, xv. 38, xvi. 31 (1881, 1882); R. D. Randall, " Cooperation 

 in Maryland and the South," in Johns Hopkins University, Stiidies, vi. 506. 



8 American Farmer, vii. 13, viii. 148; National Grange, Proceedings, xv. 44 

 (1881). 



