THE AMERICAN-SC AN DIN AVIAN REVIEW 
483 
strawberries served to each of us in the 
inevitable birchbark trays, not our first 
mess of strawberries that day, nor the 
last. She and Iwana were very glad 
to have guests from such an industrious 
country as America. They were glad 
also to see Magistrate Jormaka, whom 
they saluted with the full and honorable 
title of Ivunnallislautakunnan esimies. 
They were especially happy to see their 
friend and neighbor, our good guide 
and host, the Konsulentti, Mr. Juhani 
Leppala, manager of the rural credit 
bank of which Iwana is a devoted mem¬ 
ber. For Mr. Leppala is the local 
schoolmaster, and indeed the safe of the 
bank—the Kirjavalahti Co-operative 
Rural Credit Society—is housed in his 
school. At the same time he works his 
own farm and finds time to represent 
his district in the Riksdag, a journey of 
Where the Banker is Schoolmaster: 
A Karelian Teacher and Co-opera¬ 
tive Banker with His Flock 
a day and a night by train. Such is the 
sturdy stuff that Finns are made of. 
Risti-Jarvi, Cross Lake, the banks 
of which Iwana farms, used to be but 
an eye in the korpi, the wilderness. 
Now its shores are dotted with green 
pastures and modest frame houses, in¬ 
habited by members of the co-operative 
rural bank. Iwana gave the bank credit 
for everything he has accomplished. 
The bank was a wonder worker and 
none of its members was more happy 
than he. 
It is doubtful if any social-eco¬ 
nomic institution ever accomplished 
more good with less capital than the 
Central Co-operative Credit Society of 
Finland of which the Kirjavalahti Bank 
is a member. It is one of the six co-op¬ 
erative central societies which have their 
headquarters in Helsingfors and owe 
Co-operative Banker and Rural 
Magistrate, Mr. Leppala (on the 
I left) and Mr. Jormaka 
