Farmers' Co-operative Societies. 



37 



societies, and 38 societies for the development of the flax in- 

 dustry, fruit growing and for the promotion of home industries. 



The chief function of the agricultural societies in Ireland 

 is the joint purchase of agricultural requisites, especially 

 manures. Some of these societies have also undertaken 

 sales of live stock ; others have been useful in procuring 

 implements and spraying machines, which are hired out to 

 the members at a small charge ; and three have hired grazing 

 lands and let them out at reduced rents to their members. 



The Irish dairy societies or creameries, whose main 

 business is the manufacture of butter, are organised on the 

 lines of similar associations in Denmark, and their process 

 of butter-making follows closely the Danish system. Few 

 of the Irish dairy societies were started with sufficient share 

 capital to cover their outlay in buildings and machinery. 

 In many instances, credit was obtained from the contractors, 

 or the extra capital required was raised by means of a loan 

 from a local bank. The shares in the dairies are owned, for 

 the most part, by the members. In some cases, persons who 

 do not keep cows hold shares, but they have become share- 

 holders to help the associations as local institutions rather 

 than for the purpose of investment. Shares are usually 

 taken up by farmers in proportion to the number of cows 

 they keep, at the rate of il. for each animal. This arrange- 

 ment, however, is not uniform in all the societies. It is the 

 practice to pay for the shares by instalments, generally of 

 five shillings at a time. After the creamery has been started, 

 these instalments are frequently paid in milk : sometimes 

 a reduced price is allowed for the whole of the milk 

 delivered, and sometimes the member delivers a certain 

 quantity free of charge, until the call on the share is paid up. 

 The liability of the farmers is, in all cases, limited to the 

 amount of their shares. 



The accounts- for 1900 ot 171 of these dairy societies showed 

 a membership of 26,577, with a paid-up capital of ,£74,223, 

 and a loan capital of £4.6,262. The value of their buildings 

 and plant, after allowing for depreciation, was estimated at 

 ^129,528. The quantity of milk handled by them in the year 

 was 35,630,000 gallons, from which 1 3,601,000 lbs. of butter 



