172 
Co-operative Farms. 
risk their fortunes, witli little ground to trust tlie agents they 
employ, and \a) knowledge of the field which they are working. 
It offers a trarle profit, instead of the modicum of interest given 
by the savings' bank, and c*:ill does not remove the workman 
from his field of labour, r.ioreover, its influence is not felt by 
the members only, but by all who look forward to availing them- 
selves of a vacancy or an extension of the system. 
For the parish generally its influence cannot but be beneficial, 
especially in reference to the rates, as Mr. Gurdon has pointed 
out. Four of the shares in the older farm are now held by 
widows, who, as well as the other shareholders, refrain from 
seeking parish relief. The proceeds of their share must in some 
instances be their sole maintenance. This consideration alone 
speaks well for the profits of an undertaking consisting of 20 
shares now valued at 50/. each (or 1000/. in all), which com- 
menced with a capital of only 440/. 
The position of the widows of members requires especial con- 
sideration : first, that the reversion of the share may be assured 
to them for life, or, if this cannot be made certain, that they may 
be put in a fair loaij for succeetling to it. Secondly, since this 
property debars them from receiving parish relief, it is important 
that the shares should be sufficiently large to insure them a sub- 
sistence. This object will have to be balanced against another 
consideration, viz. that the share must not be so large as to 
represent a greater amount of capital than a prosperous labourer 
can command or save within a reasonable period of time. 
Let us put the case of a vacancy occurring Avhen a share is 
worth 50/. Suppose that the candidate, elected by ballot and 
approved by the landlord, can only pay 5/. down — say that their 
undertaking pays 10 per cent, on the average: it will then take 
the new member 9 years to pay up his full share at the rate of 
5/. a year, and till he has done this he gets no dividend ; if the 
share bore a value of 80/. he would have 6 more years of expec- 
tation, and yet it can hardly be calculated that a share of less 
than 80/. should afford a comfortable provision for a widow. 
Mr. Gurdon informs me that a steam thrashing-machine has 
also been worked in connection with the association to consider- 
able advantage. This I can well believe, for, with skilful 
management, the profits of such a calling arc larger than those 
derived from farming. ' 
In these days when strikes and other combinations antagonistic 
to freedom, to intelligence, and to progress are rife, for the sliort- 
sighted purpose of protecthig one calling to the injury of the 
community at large, (and especially of the largest and poorest 
class, whose right to gain an entrance into a trade or craft is 
thwarted), any plan which assists workmen legitimately to unite 
