TWENTY-FIRST ANNUAL MEETING. 



33 



erative buying- of fertilizers. In England, as long ago as 

 1895, there were over 1,000 co-operative societies who were 

 members of a co-operative wholesale society, which in tliat 

 year sold over $275,000,000 worth of goods. Such societies 

 will eventually do much to reduce the cost of living to the 

 consumer. Your Committee suggests that it be empowered 

 to arrange for the co-operative purchasing of fertilizers and 

 other materials for the season of 1912-13. if it finds that it 

 is assured of sufficient support from the members of the So- 

 ciety to insure success. 



ELLICOTT D. CURTIS, 

 C. L. GOLD, 

 STANCLIFF HALE, 

 • Committee. 



Mr. Curtis : "I think, Mr. President, that every mem- 

 ber of the Society who is engaged in raising fruit for sale 

 ought to consider the question of over-production, which, to 

 my mind, is one which is rapidly becoming serious. I do not 

 know just how soon it will be necessary for us to do some- 

 thing definite in the line of decreasing our regular supply, but 

 it seems to me that the subject ought to be taken up before we 

 begin to lose money on our crops. I think that most producers 

 of agricultural products wait until they have lost money for 

 three or four years before they begin to co-operate in planning 

 and for the saving of money. It seems tome that if we can get 

 together in the first place we will save money. We ought to get 

 together in some co-operative way Avhich Vv^ill prevent loss, 

 and not wait until the loss has occurred, and then try to avoid 

 its repetition. 



President Rogers: There is certainly a whole lot of 

 truth in what this comuiittee has said in regard to co-opera- 

 tion in buying supplies, and also in the selling of fruit. I 

 am in hopes that in the future this Society will work more 

 along on those lines than it has in the past. 



I will now call for the report of the Committee on New 

 Fruits, of which Mr. George W. Smith is Chairman. 



