WORK DONE OR PROJECTED 193 



societies devoting themselves chiefly to eggs and poultry in 

 districts where a society confining itself exclusively thereto 

 could scarcely hope to avoid failure, though the majority of 

 agricultural co-operative societies have been reluctant to 

 undertake this work. 



The best example of a co-operative society's success in the 

 direction of egg-collecting is afforded by the Framlingham 

 (Suffolk) and District Co-operative Society. Originally 

 formed, in 1903, mainly for the purchase and supply of 

 agricultural requirements, the society started egg-collecting 

 as a subsidiary branch of its main line of business. The 

 experiment answered so well that in 1907 the society sold 

 for its members 1,593,000 eggs, and paid them, according 

 to the calculations made, between 1,000 and 1,500 more 

 than they would have received before the society was 

 established. In addition to the central depot at Framling- 

 ham, a number of branch depots have been opened through- 

 out the district for receiving and dealing with eggs, and the 

 business has grown so substantially that in 1911 the society 

 sold for its members 3,922,000 eggs, of a value of 16,000. 



In the same year the egg department of the Eastern 

 Counties Farmers' Co-operative Association sold over 

 1,225,000 eggs, for which 3,614 was received. 



The complete returns for 1911 in respect to the two classes 

 of societies undertaking egg-collection show the following 



totals :- 



VALUE OF 

 SOCIETIES. NUMBER. EGGS. 







Trading and dairy . . . . . . 12 25,700 



Egg- collecting only . . . . . . 21 8,600 



Total . . . . 33 34*3oo 



These results are, however, only approximately satis- 

 factory, since there is still a great deal to be done. 



NEED FOR FURTHER ACTION. 



11 Until," as was said in the annual report of the A. O. S. 

 for 1910, " we have a thoroughly practical training of 

 A.O. o 



