296 THE ECONOMIC JOURNAL sell. The two Wholesale Societies are confederations formed by the ' distributives' for the purpose of supplying the latter. The greater part of the articles sold by the Wholesales are bought in by these societies from outside manufacturers and dealers; but each Wholesale owns certain 'productive' departments--factories in which a part of the goods required are produced. The name of ' Supply Association' is given to a small number of associations (including the Civil Service Supply, the Coal Co-operative Society, and the Agricultural and Horticultural Association), fo.rme?l. for ' distributive' purposes, the last-named, however, producrng ?n its own workshops a large part of the goods which it sells. Class TABLE III. (Showing total number of associations included in the Returns of the Co-operative Union, May, 1891.} Nature of Societies. ' Distributive ' Societies ..... English Wholesale Society .. ' Distributive ' .............. ' Productive ' .............. Scottish Wholesale Society.. ' Distributive ' .............. ' Productive ' .............. ' Supply' Associations ...... ' Productive ' Societies ...... Total ........................ Nmnber of Societies. 1,418 1 1 Number of Member?. 1,026,912 941 261 15 61,727 119 1,554 27,214 1,117,055 S?les in 1890. 28,260,946 7,087,796 341,2771 2,366,692 108,646 2,167,656 43,200,319 E consists of associations carrying on various branches of manufacture. Taking, first, the question of Profit-sharing, so far as it affects the salesmen, &c., employed in the 'stores' (Class A), we find that the Co-operative Union very recently instituted, in respect to this matter, a systematic enquiry intended to embrace the whole of the 1,418 'distributive' societies;but 'the replies were not very numerous.' The probability is that societies which did not reply may, for the most part, be taken to be societies which violate the rules of the Co-operative Union, and defy the resolutions of the Co-operative Congress by declining to share their profits with their employees. ?Ve are told that ' about sixty societies state that they share profits with their employees, but to
