Rural Credit 295 



borrowers, and while performing services of the highest 

 importance in testing the security offered by the borrowers, 

 and in guaranteeing to the public the safety of the capital 

 lent by them, they charge absolutely nothing for their 

 services beyond a small commission, perhaps one-fourth 

 of 1 per cent or even one-tenth of 1 per cent, to cover 

 actual expenses. It is usual for each association to be 

 restricted to a particular area of operations within which 

 every proprietor, whether noble or peasant, may obtain 

 a loan if he can offer sufficient security. There is always 

 a minimum limit either to loans or to the value of prop- 

 erty on which loans will be given. This is usually low. 

 In the new Bradenburg Landschaft, affiliated to the old 

 Kur-und-Neumark Landschaft, loans may be granted on 

 property having a net income of only $25. The minimum 

 limit is seldom even approached. 



"Members are those who borrow from the bank. They 

 are generally responsible in all their property, not merely 

 for their own borrowings, but for the debts of the society 

 to the outside public. But in some cases only the prop- 

 erty pledged to the society is responsible; in others 

 they are bound, in case of need, to pay a sum proportion- 

 ate to the amount of their own borrowing. There are 

 no shares to be paid up except in two societies. These 

 two resemble cooperative societies, for the shares are 

 personal and nontransferable, are of unlimited number, 

 varying with the number of members, and their value is 

 claimable by a withdrawing member. The share seems 

 to be demanded simply to provide a first working capital 

 and the nucleus of a reserve. The amount of the share is 

 frequently a certain percentage of the amount of the loan 



