ACCOUNTING FOR FRUIT SHIPPING ORGANIZATIONS. 19 
growers’ fruit ledger. It includes also the limited number of accounts 
payable which it will be necessary to open with creditors. In order 
to make the general ledger complete in itself and to include all the 
elements necessary to effect a trial balance, controlling accounts 
for the mercantile and the fruit ledgers are opened in the general 
ledger. Further explanation of this very important principle in 
modern accounting is given in the description of the controlling 
accounts for the mercantile and fruit ledgers. 
EXPLANATION OF GENERAL LEDGER ACCOUNTS. 
Capital stock.—All sales of capital stock are credited to this account 
and the credit balance measures the amount of capital fully paid 
up, for which certificates of stock are issued and outstanding. 
In cooperative organizations having no capital stock a member- 
ship fee is usually required from members for the purpose of providing 
a working capital. From an accounting standpoint this represents 
capital invested in the business and its value should be maintained. 
The treatment of such contributions of capital is practically the 
same as under the stock plan. 
In organizations where a membership fee is paid each year by 
the members at the time they contract with the organization for 
the handling of their fruit these fees are looked upon as revenue, and 
are used to defray operating expenses. 
Land, buildings, and spur track—The cost of the land, packing- 
house, and warehouse should be set up in accounts under those 
captions. 
In many instances it has been found necessary for the shipping 
organizations to pay for the grading, construction, and the ties for 
the spur track leading from the main line of the railroad to the 
warehouse. The cost of these items is charged to spur track account.' 
Equipment accounts.—All items of furniture and equipment used 
in the office are charged to office equipment account. The cost of 
the equipment of the packing house is shown in the packing-house 
equipment account and that of the warehouse in the warehouse 
equipment account. Repairs and renewals should be charged to 
expense. 
Cash.—The excess of the total of the ‘cash’ column on the left- 
hand side of the cash journal, representing: the receipts of cash, over 
the footing of the “cash”’ column on the right-hand side of the cash 
journal, representing the amount deposited in the bank and disbursed 
as petty cash, demonstrates the amount of cash on hand. In order 
to avoid the necessity of referring to the cash journal for the amount 
of cash on hand when taking a trial balance, an account under the 
1 Several large shipping organizations have written off the entire investment in spur tracks over a period 
of three to five years. 
