74 CO-OPEKATION IN DANISH AGEICULTUEE 



which a special committee was appointed to consider the 

 proposed reform of the egg trade. Opinions were divided on 

 two very important questions, whether local societies should be 

 aimed at or one large society for the whole country, and whether 

 the proposed marking of eggs was advisable. Enghsh mer- 

 chants were consulted and discouraged the idea of marking 

 eggs. Nevertheless, Moller and Rasmussen considered the 

 success of the reform inextricably bound up with the question 

 of marking. Severin Jorgensen wrote to the Co-operative 

 Wholesale Society in Manchester, who sent a very sympathetic 

 reply, and later on the C.W.S. gave the newly started Egg 

 Society their practical support by purchasing largely from the 

 Society. Moller also was very decidedly of opinion that one 

 society should be formed for the whole country with local 

 branches. This latter point was carried at a meeting held in 

 October, 1894, and on the 27th of February, 1895, at a meeting 

 in Vejle, " Dansk Andels CEgexport," or " The Danish Co- 

 operative Egg Export Society," was formed as a society for 

 the whole country, with Fr. Moller as its chairman, a position 

 which he holds to the present day, having resigned his modest 

 office as a village schoolmaster a few years after the formation 

 of the Society. The marking of the individual eggs was 

 introduced from the first, and this striking innovation which 

 has since found many imitations in various countries, both 

 genuine and otherwise, has brought all the advantages which 

 were hoped for. 



The Society began operations in April, 1 895. It has branches 

 all over the country ; each branch has its distinctive number, 

 and each member has his number within his branch. Before 

 the eggs are delivered to the collector for the branch, each egg 

 is marked by means of a rubber stamp with the number of the 

 member and the number of the branch, and these two numbers 

 prove the origin of the egg, so that when a " spotted " or stale 

 egg is delivered it can at once be seen who is the offender. At 

 the packing and exporting warehouse the trade mark of the 

 Society is stamped on each approved egg next to the two 

 numbers. 



D.A.CE., as the Society is called in the trade, started with 

 24 branches, and less than 3000 members, it now counts 540 



