THE 



TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST 



AND 



MAGAZINE OF THE 



CEYLON AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Vol. XXVIII. COLOMBO, MAY 15th, 1907. No. 5. 



Co-operation in Agriculture. 



We may be forgiven for returning once more to this subject, for it is one 

 of the most important in connection with agriculture. It is by no means necessary 

 that co-operation should be simply for the supply of money— by Co-operative Credit 

 Societies. In fact, judging from Indian experience, where the money borrowed 

 is at times spent on weddings or other festivities, it is rather doubtful if this is the 

 best way of working. Rather the co-operation should be in the supply of seed- 

 paddy, for example, is already supplied by two or three local Societies in Ceylon- 

 manure, or other things which are generally needed for the carrying on of agricultural 

 enterprises, or for the sale of the products of those enterprises, as in the case of 

 Vavuniya, where they are sent fortnightly to Colombo, and even after subtracting 

 the cost of freight, realise better prices than they would if sold locally. 



It is almost needless to remark that in most places in Ceylon the word 

 co-operation can only be used in a general sense. The villagers alone, in any parti- 

 cular village or district, if required to co-operate and find money, would be like the 

 inhabitants of the famous island who eked out a precarious living by taking in one 

 another's washing. The capital required to start any undertaking must be otherwise 

 found, but after that there is no reason that we can see why complete co-operation 

 should not come in. 



Articles dealing with the working of co-operative societies in other countries 

 have been given in many numbers, and we shall not let this subject drop till it is in 

 a fair way of being taken up more thoroughly in Ceylon. 



