56 RURAL DENMARK 



To this memorandum I should add that Mr. 

 Waage informed me verbally that no capital is required 

 to be put down on the formation of such a Union, and 

 that the losses incurred are rare and insignificant. I 

 believe also that the terms obtained by the borrowers 

 are so advantageous that very many, if not most, of 

 the landowners in Denmark appear, so far as I could 

 gather, to take up some mortgage on their real property 

 in order to furnish themselves with floating capital. 

 In England a person rarely borrows upon the security 

 of his land unless circumstances oblige him to do so. 

 But in Denmark the case seems to be otherwise. Of 

 course, however, I may be mistaken in this conclusion. 



I add some further information on the interesting 

 matter of these Credit Unions which I have obtained 

 from other sources and believe to be reliable. 



The two first Danish Credit Societies were founded 

 in 1851. They are called the "Credit Society of the 

 Danish Islands" and the "Credit Society of Real 

 Estate Owners in Jutland," but since that time the 

 number of such societies has increased considerably. 



On the 1 st of April 19 10, the total of the loans 

 advanced through the Credit Society of the Danish 

 Islands was about ^25,440,000, of which sum about 

 ,2,280,000 had been repaid. The number of its 

 members amounted to about 33,000, and its reserve- 

 fund stood at about 810,000. 



The losses incurred during the period of the 

 existence of the Society have been trifling. Not only 

 has the reserve-fund been able to meet these losses 

 with ease under regulations which provide that after 

 it has attained a certain figure it shall apply part of 

 the surplus in reduction of the debts of the members ; 

 it has also proved sufficient to benefit those members 



