In the purchase and employment of implements, or
whatever be the instrumenta muta — or, as in the case of
Stotfold, the instrumenta semivocalia — employed, co-opera-
tive societies will do weU to bear in mind that, although
such articles may perfectly well be purchased with the
use of credit — ^we have had instances of this also in this
country, for instance, at Muskham, in Nottinghamshire,
where a reaper was bought with money borrowed from
a bank and paid off out of the receipts— it is essential that
this should be done only in cases in which there is a certain
prospect of the machinery repaying itself out of its own



WORK, POWER AND MACHINERY. zSr

use in comparatively little time. And provision should
be made for its doing so. For you caimot give such
appliances a long Ufe. Use is likely to wear them more
rapidly than in a single person's possession. New inven-
tions may come in. And there is always the chapter of
accidents to reckon with. The society should place itself
upon the safe side. Small farmers are not as a rule
particularly flush of cash ; and accordingly resort to
credit, such as has been instanced in the case of Raiffeisen
societies — ^which are in an exceptionally favourable position
for the purpose — is frequently suggested. However, credit
is not the only, nor perhaps the ideal way of providing the
first funds. Members will do well to raise at any rate a
certciin proportion of the capital required among them-
seh'es. There may be difficulty in this. Nevertheless an
effort will have to be made. In some cases it is held that
there should be some proportionality in the contributions
to share capital. In such the number or value of shares
to be taken up is apportioned either to the acreage occupied
or else to the amount of work to be done. When it comes
to motor cars, of which we shall still have to speak, the
outlay is often distributed among members according to
the weight of goods that they undertake to have carried.
