144 CO-OPEEATION IN DANISH AGEICULTUEE 



at a rate of interest not exceeding 4 J per cent, per annum (in 

 1908 increased to 5 per cent.). The amount of the loan was 

 not to exceed £2 16s. per head of large cattle normally kept on 

 the farm. To such societies certain privileges were granted, 

 such as exemption from stamp duty, and certain legal facihties ; 

 while on the other hand, certain restrictions were imposed upon 

 them, submitting them to a control by the Minister of Agri- 

 culture. Two years after the Law had been passed, the total 

 sum of £280,000 had been allocated to 168 societies, representing 

 on the average about 1000 head of cattle, having a total 

 number of 22,000 members, mostly small farmers and small- 

 holders. The loan from the State to the societies varied from 

 £1000 to £5000. Half the loans to the members were for only 

 £10 or less. The amending Law of 1908 required the loans to 

 the societies to be repaid to the State by instalments, two- 

 tenths in June, 1908, and one-tenth in each of the following 

 years, and the last tenth in June, 1916. Many of the societies 

 were dissolved when the loan from the State was repaid, but 

 some continued to grant loans from their own resources. A 

 Law of 12th August, 1916, granted these societies some of the 

 privileges on condition that they placed themselves under some 

 control by the Minister of Agriculture; but it is uncertain 

 whether these societies can maintain themselves. At any rate, 

 most of the Land-Loan Societies have been dissolved, and the 

 need of small loans for a short period to provide small farmers 

 with working capital is therefore still felt in many districts. 



It was a very natural thing to meet these needs in the 

 village by forming an institution which could act both as a 

 savings bank and as a loan bank, and the Co-operative Village 

 Bank was designed for that purpose. But its chief use was 

 soon found to he in another direction. In every place which 

 can be considered as a centre of co-operative activity, there is 

 a great deal of money changing hands ; every week the co- 

 operative dairy society pays the farmers, who are almost all 

 co-operators in the dairy, for the milk delivered ; the co- 

 operative store receives money for goods supphed ; the same 

 is the case with co-operative societies for supplying seed, 

 manures, and so forth. All these transactions, even the 

 distribution of considerable amounts paid annually as surplus 



