Denaby Main Co-Operative Society, Limited

The 30th quarterly meeting was held in the Rosteron street school, Denaby Main, on Saturday. Mr. W. H. Chambers presided, and he was supported by the secretary, Mr. T. J. Baylis, Mr. G. W. Roberts, A.C.A., one of the auditors, and the members of the committee.

The secretary read the minutes of the last quarterly meeting, which were confirmed, also the minutes of the committee for the past quarter, and the report, which stated that the sales for the quarter amounted to £6,438 1s. 8d., being an increase on last quarter of £631, and an increase on the corresponding quarter of last year of £1,310.

The results enable the committee to pay a dividend of 4/6 in the £ on members’ purchases, after paying interest on members’ share capital, and the usual allowances to the reserve fund, educational fund, depreciation of fixed stock, and non-members’ dividend, £69 7s. 4d. being carried forward to next quarter.

Mr. Chambers moved the report and balance sheet, which he said no doubt would be satisfactory to all the members. He also said that the members’ share capital was creeping up to its former position; it now stood at £10,068 5s. 5d., or £580 less than a year ago.

The reserve fund stood at £1,481 10s. 1d., the educational fund at £195 16s., and the penny bank at £574 8s. 5d., in addition to their invested capital with the C.W.S., which amounted to nearly £2,000, they had in the bank upwards of £1,200. They had also kept up their stock-in-trade.

The committee had let the contract for the remaining eleven houses, which would make 55 in all, the price being the same as for the others, and most of them had been applied for. Their building scheme no doubt was a great blessing to those members who took advantage of it.

Mr. Roberts (auditor) said the society was financially sound, and the committee had ample funds to carry out the remaining part of their building scheme without in any way affecting the members or their stock-in-trade. He had nothing particular to draw their attention to, as the books and accounts were very satisfactory.

A member of the committee seconded the adoption of the report, and considered it very satisfactory. He knew societies that had been in existence longer than theirs, and they had practically no reserve fund, which they all knew was the backbone of limited companies. He considered their building scheme a very satisfactory one, and one which would prove a blessing to those members who had taken advantage of it.

Then again, co-operation encouraged thrift among the working classes, and if they could only let their dividend remain in the society till it reached the limit provided by law (£200), what a grand consolation it would be in declining years for the members. He said their society held out many privileges to members, and whenever a member wanted a few pounds it was always paid on demand, whereas they could enforce the proper notice in all cases.

Mr. Baylis corroborated what the previous speaker had said, and assured the members that the committee did all in their power for the benefit of the members generally. They had more members now than they ever had, although their purchasing power did not seem as great.

Messrs. I. Hunt and Wm. Terry were unanimously re-elected members of the committee; the number of members now stood at 589.

Mr. J. Hoyle moved a vote of thanks to the chairman, who humorously acknowledged that his interest was their interest, and that had always been his motto. He also said the committee would consider the question of the annual tea shortly.