io8 AGRICULTURAL ORGANISATION 



The insufficiency of funds was, in fact, at this time, and 

 for some years afterwards, a constant nightmare to those 

 concerned in the task which had been undertaken, and 

 a great debt of gratitude is due to those who so loyally 

 supported the Society in this anxious period by money and 

 by personal service. The work had to go on, whatever the 

 difficulties, and it was impossible to retrench in face of the 

 ever-increasing need for further expenditure to meet new 

 developments or even the natural expansion of what had 

 already been taken in hand. 



METHODS OF OPERATION. 



How the A. O. S. started on its task of organising the 

 agricultural industries of the country may be illustrated by 

 some references to its second annual report, for 1902 ; and 

 it will further be seen therefrom how materially the methods 

 of the Society differed from those that had previously been 

 adopted in this country. 



A very good beginning indeed had been made in the 

 Midlands. Five societies had been registered there ; a 

 conference on organised co-operation in agriculture had been 

 held at Worcester under the auspices of the Agricultural 

 Sub-Committee of the Worcestershire County Council and 

 the A. O. S., and the movement was being eagerly discussed 

 on all sides. In the way of accomplished results it was 

 reported that certain of the societies had come into consider- 

 able prominence owing to the vigorous action they had taken 

 in breaking up some rings formed by dealers who had sought 

 to control the green pea and cherry markets. One of these 

 societies had acquired the apples and pears in a number of 

 orchards, had had the fruit gathered by trained fruit- 

 pickers, and, utilising a large warehouse, had made up, not 

 only such consignments as the railway people preferred to 

 handle, but consignments properly graded and packed, and 

 likely, therefore, no less to satisfy the dealers. Plums, 

 damsons, and blackberries, together with potatoes, carrots, 

 and other vegetables had been graded and dealt with in the 

 same way, the declared experience of the society being that 



