During the fourth year the Society had made considerable progress, and the trade for the year showed a substantial increase, but it had not been very profitable. Indeed in the fourth quarter, after provision had been made for interest and depreciation, there was nothing left to divide, while nothing had been added to the reserve fund during the year. The aggregate output for the year was 7,955 sacks, equal to an average of 153 sacks a week, which was an average increase of 31 sacks per week over the turnover of the previous year. The Society was still much hampered in its operations from lack of capital; the total share and loan capital being only £1,618. During the latter half of the year the price of flour had been very high, reaching in the later months of the year 45/6 per sack for the average quality used. Yet, although there were still many anxious days ahead for the committee and not a few lean years, with the close of the fourth year the Society had been established on a firm foundation. Henceforth there were not the same defects of management to contend with, and what difficulties did arise were due to weakness in the societies which were customers of the Bakery rather than to causes operating within the Federation itself. In a later chapter mention will be made of some of the difficulties which arose owing to the weakness of some of the societies which were members of the Federation. CHAPTER V. THE BRANCH CONTROVERSY. A LENGTHY CONTROVERSY—TO BRANCH OR NOT TO BRANCH?—AN OPTIMISTIC REPORT—LACK OF CAPITAL—STRONG OPPOSITION—BARRHEAD THREATENS WITHDRAWAL—THE QUESTION REOPENED—BARRHEAD DECIDES TO WITHDRAW—SHELVED AGAIN—DISSATISFACTION IN PAISLEY AND JOHNSTONE—BRANCH OPENED IN GLASGOW—THE FINAL DECISION—BARRHEAD, PAISLEY PROVIDENT, AND JOHNSTONE WITHDRAW. In the preceding chapter we noted that a proposal was made at one of the general meetings of the Society that branch bakeries should be established. It was a proposal which occasioned a great deal of discussion and was the cause of several heated debates during the next few years, and it is therefore important enough to merit a chapter to itself. The idea was first mooted at the quarterly meeting held in December 1871, when Johnstone Society delegates in the course of a general discussion brought forward the suggestion “that the Baking Society should think of the possibility of opening branch establishments as their business extends.” The idea was favourably entertained then; but it was obviously impossible to do anything at the time, and it was not until the quarterly meeting which was held on 30th November 1872, exactly a year later, that anything further was heard of the subject.