In the preceding chapter the decline in the turnover of the Federation, and the circumstances to which that decline was due, have been detailed. During the latter half of the tenth year three societies had withdrawn or been paid out, and the membership of the Federation, which had consisted of twenty-six societies at the beginning of the year, consisted of only twenty-three at the end. For three years no new societies had joined, and the increase which had taken place in the trade was due entirely to increased membership of the societies which were members of the Federation, and to a growing demand on the part of the members for co-operatively produced bread. Two of the societies whose names had been struck off the roll had been little more than nominal members for years, and their loss scarcely affected the trade at all, while, by the beginning of the eleventh year, the substantial decrease which had resulted from the withdrawal of Barrhead Society showed signs of being completely overcome. The turnover, which had averaged 185 sacks per week in the last two quarters of 1878, as compared with 226 in the third quarter of 1877, rose in the first quarter of 1879 to 207 sacks, and by the end of that year was up to 216¾ sacks. The prospects for the immediate future were not too bright, however, as Johnstone Society, in reply to a letter which had been sent by the Bakery board, stated that they had definitely decided to begin baking for themselves. On 21st February 1880 the committee had before them the formal notice from the society of their withdrawal from the Federation, which was accepted. At the same meeting Mr Green, who had been the representative of Johnstone Society on the committee for eight years, was thanked by the committee for the great interest he had taken in, and the valuable services he had rendered to, the Baking Society. Mr Small, Johnstone, who had been one of the auditors since the beginning of 1876, had resigned six months earlier, in view of the fact that his society proposed withdrawing from the Federation. Notwithstanding the fact that the withdrawal of Johnstone Society was imminent, and that the quarterly meeting of delegates had given no decision on the subject when it was before them at the fortieth quarterly meeting, the committee, by a majority of 9 votes to 2, decided at their next meeting to proceed with the erection of two ovens additional in the premises just vacated by their tenants. At the same time the work of installing machinery was proceeding, and by the middle of the summer the work was completed, as was also that of reslating the bakery roof. The whole of this work was earned out at a cost of almost a thousand pounds, and placed the Federation in a position to handle a considerably larger trade than they were doing at the moment. RELATIONS WITH EMPLOYEES.