THE HOP TRADE. 321 



districts ; a similar service for the " town " hops is performed 

 by the local Hop Growers' Association. Differences, however, 

 arose in course of time between the town and the producing 

 communities, which in 1891 led to the formation of the 

 Saaz Hop-Producing Communities' Union, with the follow- 

 ing as its primary objects : Furthering intelligent methods 

 of cultivation ; subsidising and supervising experimental hop 

 gardens ; holding meetings at different centres ; reading papers ; 

 in short, everything calculated to restore the reputation of 

 Saaz hops and protect them from malversation in commerce. 

 The Union may also build market halls to store members' 

 hops and sell them to the best advantage for the owners ; 

 and, finally, approach the Administration and the various 

 traffic managers with a view to the readjustment of taxes and 

 tariffs. The main accomplishment of the Union has been 

 the registration of a trade mark, the first of the kind ever 

 granted for raw agricultural produce in Austria. 



This Union, which now numbers upwards of 300 hop- 

 producing communities among its members, finally dis- 

 sociated itself from the town of Saaz by establishing an 

 independent marking institution (the Hop- Marking Institute 

 of the United Hop-Producing Communities of Saaz) . 



An idea of the working of the Institute may be gained 

 from the following brief sketch of its methods :— 



The object of the Institute is to certify the origin of hops 

 produced in the Saaz district ; to ensure that none but 

 hops grown in the district are marked and sealed as Saaz 

 hops ; and to see that parcels are kept unadulterated so 

 long as they continue to bear the stamp of the Union upon 

 them. 



The only hops admitted for marking are the fine red 



hops grown in the district, and these must be in an 



unspoiled condition, and not of such low quality for the 



season as to be classed as "outshots". 



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