FARMING BY CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES
[To the Editor of the SPECTATOR.] SIR,—Sir W. Beach Thomas, in his interesting notes on " Country Life," stated that " the great urban co-operators have surrendered their farms." If he is referring, as apparently he is, to farms owned by consumers' co-operative societies affiliated to the British Co-operative Union, his statement is ill-founded and misleading.
It is true a few societies have parted with farms in recent years, but the latest statistics published by the Co-operative Union, for the year ended December 31st, 102'7, show that 143 of these societies were then engaged in farming, and that the total acreage farmed by them was 65,611. Certainly most of the societies have not achieved great success in their farming operations, but there is no reason to assume that they wilt cease to farm. Sir W. Beach Thomas made a similar state- ment some months ago, but unfortunately it was not then
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