480 CALIFORNIA FRUIT SOCIETIES. 



Some were financially dependent on commission houses, and 

 all thought they saw that any organization which should 

 thoroughly educate the growers, and furnish them an inde- 

 pendent outlet for their product, would not be to their interest, 

 and but two or three, except those already in the board, would 

 subscribe stock, and of these none ever sold their pack through 

 the Exchange; nor, in fact, did the buyers who were on the 

 board of directors. It became evident that a cooperative 

 society of producers must depend upon producers for mem- 

 bership and support. A.s the permanent management of the 

 Exchange would be attended with considerable expense, and 

 as its means of living could only come from commissions on 

 sales, it was essential that a large business should be reason- 

 ably assured before going on, and when it became evident 

 that the support of the local buyers would be wanting, the 

 management of the Exchange, in self-defense, promoted the 

 organization of three more drying associations, whose fruit 

 was expected to be sold through the Exchange, and thus 

 assist in its support— the Exchange taking the place of the 

 commission houses which had been accustomed to handle the 

 product. The manager of the Exchange spent considerable 

 of his paid time in this work, and the president and some of 

 the directors much volunteer time. The total result of the 

 cooperative movement, up to May, 1893, was the establishment 

 of the Exchange and five cooperative drying associations, with 

 an aggregate paid-up capital at that time of about $75,000, 

 since considerably increased. The Exchange purchased five 

 acres of land in the outskirts of San Jose, and erected and 

 equipped a substantial warehouse, and the drying associations 

 supplied themselves with the plant and ground required for 

 their work. 



In May, 1893, the Exchange was ready for business, but 

 before starting, an effort was made to secure such pledges of 

 business as would assure an adequate support, from commis- 

 sions, to the Exchange. It was found, however, that abso- 

 lutely no pledges, except that of the manager, could be 

 secured. The original society, whose success gave the impetus 

 to the movement, declined to risk whal n 



