The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1866-11-10 00:00:00

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TEE INDUSTRIAL AND PROVIDENT
SOCIETIES OF ENGLAND.
According to an abstract in the Reporter of an offi-
cial return for the peat year regarding the industria
and provident societies in Eng:and, the number re.
gistered under the Act 26th and 27th cif Victoria,
cap. 87; moults to 651:
Lancaster shows a total of 139, York 125, Middlesex
only 45, Durham 36, Northampton 28, Staff ordehire 27,
Chester 23, Surrey 22, Northumberland 20, Norfolk is,
Derby 18, Kent 14, and Warwick 10. The other counties do
not reach beyond single figures, descending to two each in
• sllitlford, Sums, and Westmoreland, and to one solitary
society in the county of Bucks. It would Seem, *further-
more, that there are five counties which are altogether Inno-
cent of the presence of a single co-operative society, for no
lind the following live do not ,prwar in the return at all,
• e,ry; _pgo, "ridge, Hereford. H utl tingd on, Oxford, and Rutland. The number in Wales is only 16, and of these
nine are•in the County of Glamorgan.
Of the 651 societies comprehended In the return, 417 have
sent In the required statements. while 192 have neglected to
do em and 52 have been actually dissolved The greatest
delinquents in respect of the returns are found in the
counties of York, Lancaster, and Middlesex, the absent
returns from each of thaw counties being 80, 26, and 23
respectively. Eat tbesecountles, as we base already elided,

1 form thallret three In point of nitaillera. es regards "lades '
actually estakilhhog—a fact which must he taken Into
account hi dealingwith this part of tie guntion. Thus, in
York, thlt non-returning so -braes 'me 80 out of Asi in
-
Lancaster they aussunit to 24 out 0,1,9, hut in 1i earn
i they amO Mete so. less than 23 out eta totakOf ft-, or more
than h the entire number. It ie viumainkta note that
this lotv..' ed comity is the very Wool in which the
Registrar.* office-fa situated, and -. therefore the appaer-
ance It *merits lithe more remarkable.
Turning next to Vie actual. number of menibers enrolled
In each county, on the 31st of December, 1465, we find Lan-
caster is again highest on the list. It possessed no less than
46.963 naemners at that date. York is second, its numbers
being 38768 middleses is a long way behind, its total only
amounting to 1,711 members. The next connties are—Dar-
ham, 6,855 ; Northampton, 848;6 Northumberland. 4,000
exactly : Chester, 0,269 : Derby, 2 749; Kent, 2,534 ; (daces.
ter, 2,366 ; Stafford, 1,777 ; sod Mimmouth, 1,101 All the
;otber sories me below 1 000 in number. The total
number member. in (he !sir Web& comities amounts
t0,7:i3, With one or twel-ex6ptione ell, the counties show
an lateen In their number daring the year, the total result
throughout England aim Wales under this head being an
admission of 29,1e2 members, and a withdrawal of 11,815,
showing a clear gala of 17,367 members duller/ the year.
Lancaster contributes the larg-st item towards this inereare.
it shows an midition of 10454 new members, as against a
withdrawal of 3,9,3 old members, being ii clear Rain of 6.521.
York :rise shows a . advance by 4 064 over 2 205 ; Northum-
berland, by 1,434 over 733; and Durham, by Late over 803.
Chester also shows an Increase cit 549 over MS, while Derby.
Ott the other hand, shows a loss 13 CIO withdrawal of 4 3
mernhers Muiltuat 369 admitted
The hext point upon which the return enlightens us relates
to the total amoul.t received or credited upon th dna learn
the vommencem,nt of each society to Decemher last. Liu-
carer is here again Brut upon the lint, for it allows it has
're-I,d In its time. an astnal share capital if 110 less than
590 0391, while York, the second in order, cam boast of the
very handsome 'sum of 3-18,005/ AU the other societies fall
'lmmensely AMA' of Inhi, 110 tis of them reaching Leen to
40,000/ , Durham, the highest in the lists maly reaching to
39,4341., followed by Northuinherlind. 246741 De.ceneing
below 311,001., wa find Glonceeter has raised 19,1391 : Chester,
14.6781. ; Northllapten, 11,549/. ; Sussex, 10,1)171 ; Kent,
9.571.4, ; 4tafford,k-N6/. ; Ihrby, 6.75e1 : 311,101,.... 6,1051 ,
Wiles, 0,7071. : Leicester, 4,699/ ; Monmouth, 4,0501 : Essex,
3,4641. ; and Norfolk, 2,8161 ; the other counties falling
below this amount by may gradations till we get down to
Dorset, 2091. ; and Bedford, nil. In Wales we find that
Glamorgan. With only ex societies, has nevertheless raised
a capital of 4,6051 , and Moregomery society a capital of all.
The total existing capital on the 31st of December last, alter
allhwing for withdrawals was 761,313/.
The .oblycti far which the roc Lties are estaliiished are
verfous. OrocerV, butchering, shoemaking, drapery, coals,
flu*, tialtmg, the., form the miner/rat items in this depart-
; mead. These are, X.ll is well knout.. the main colleen; of the
co openitive movement. But we were not prepared to find
that the movement had extended to Grosvenor-square, and
that, to the immediate vicinity of that aristocratic neigh-
bourhood, 45 members had set up an eetablashorent tor
"fernery!'

"Whether credit in goods is allowed to a member," ,tc.,
gives rise to a wonderful dive, sity ~f answer* ; hut thy *n-
ewer "7so" emphatically vedorlditte es Some few societies
master courage to put down the word •• Yes :" but the tree;
answer is, on the affirmative site of the question, generally
evaded as much as poseinle. Thus we find such answers as
•• s me," '. Of tio•easity," ihree-fourtigs,"
Teu-thlrels," "Sometimes," etc Wady money is, however,
ohvione y the ore, of ire .ay ',rid this, no doubt, is one '
element In tne onto/int of the profits whis•M the sometira are
en ,bled to reala,:•for we do net find, 'on looking throttgh I
the return, that any striate society has experienced a loss
The profits appear in the main, to be influenced by the mum 1
her of the members, arid the conseqiient amount of the !
1.,u4..e.ks done. Tnus we find in York that, while time
societies realize pr, fin such as 1.2,5411 , 6 9sl/ 4.6621.,
others in the some county only attain to a modest 501 • that ;
in each case there is a proportionate profit In L ineaster,
again, one society has realized 110 less a profit than 2.1,1561,
whilelhere are othsr somettemffivioing as little as 191. But
the re/sitiva value applies in both easel
The mode of deist.'u of profits, of course, varies in the
iiiffierent societies, but the general rule is to set aside certain
prim rebus for interest on paid-up snares, dividends to
nienv era depreciation fund, reserve fund,
The uiventive faculties of the promoters of these societies
10 1101 appear to have.been much called into requisition in
the seleriou of names for their several institutions limy
age mostly confined to a sober indication of the purposes of
the society, such Utiles as "Industrial C i•operative" or "Co-
oper/dive: lu'ustrial," largely . predominating There are,
however, a feet cases of fancy names. p. q, "United Fel-
lows,"" Energetic,' " Universal Good," '- Industrious Bees,"
"Self-Assistance." " S.A., of Toil," '•Equitanie Progression-
is*" Ind •‘ Equitable Pioneers," " Good Design," "Good
Intent," f`lutearity," and • Perseverance," have also found
favour. There is too a society called the "Autt•Mill Indus-
trkal," for carrying on the busine!s of corn millers. This
sosdesy lathe oldest on the list, having been established as
far back 4. the year 1795 I's locus in quo is "3, lALI of
Green Ginger, Kingstoteupon-Hull." The most singular name
of all is, Who Would Have Thought I.l—the title of a
sordety in Chester
Our space will not permit us to enter into the details of
the expenses incurred in managing these several societies.
They all appear to be very economically conducted. The
accounts, It maybe added, are in the great majority of cases
audited -,by members, sometimes assisted by a professional
accountant . In some instances, a weekly audit is adopted,
and we observed one or two cases of annual audit. But, in
every case, the mode of audit is prescribed—a quarterly audit
tefing by far the most common.
Nearly every society throughout the list exhibits a balance
in hand, and the asset.s are, lon almost every instance, largely
in excess of the liabilities." -