New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1867-05-10
COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES.

MFRS. -, ....,
Although but littlo has been done toward es'ao'
fishing the cooperative system III thlS country 'no
,,ovement il becoming general throughout Europe
~ 10 ,ad,allv extending in France it has made eX-
,,oiinorv uroeress in Germany in Italy it Is we'll
l,o,vn and understood it is working its way Ill
Switzerland in Holland, Belgium, Spain, and even
in Russia the advantages of cooperation are peeOn
,nR recognized and in Engaudit has achieved sumo
of its greatest triunphs. 1t Will suhlce loI O,u
present purpose to select our illustrations no H ~
Inass Of facts and statistics which the recofds oi W
lucrative Societies in this latter country Iurnsh
I'm the wear 1874 a few weaveTs anu co'Von-op
:; 4La t,,rr of Rocbdale whose average earnings
- rrlor a. per week, each, and vino, we may
s;l imagine found il very hard WORK 10 inahe t"0
-s.-.et ,,ou with the most rigid economy, deter
,niDe6 nc a measure promising them some relief 10
establish grocery store on the cooperative Prlh
inIe They accordingly held meeting, resolved
themselves into a Committee OF Management ana
erd;np ont cauvassers and collectors, enrolled what
members they could gain over to their prOJeCt
Gathering subscriptions from them TO the amount u
500 With this small capital they e9Iine a citing
s,eas They rented a small shop at $50 year. hot:,S
Ut up with few plain, necessary fixtures an9 ~
the remainder of their capital less than SO, onos
laid in, at wholesale prices STOCK OF gQodi tt
and nrovisons purchasing Only such articles as tney
were sure of selling and being guided In their seec
zion by their own domestic wants. Ihey alopltu aS
Fundamental principle of b6sinesS the cash system
both i'm buying and selling, never themselves ashl.3
for credit ana n the Soeiey were few the
store was opened only IN the evening, aIIer Moihik
hours, and they thus managed without hlreu MP
Int a. sales were.nOt confined to the members, their
store sOon became widely known for the good quar-,
jfy and the cheapness of the articles supplied, anu
their trade among the working classes OF the to"h
ncnased TO such an extent that it was found neces
eary to obtain the services oil Ialo aItenuHn ~
:, POSITION to enlarge their operations: AS they
bought more largely, theyf0nd they cOuiu sen oto
che9Py and they sold con ~ do With Safety allow
ing only such margin of pr0ht as couid SGhce "
pay expenses with per cenage Oyer MOn he he
members They had everything now IN their favor;
Their expenses were SMALL their PROVISIONS weIe 2i
mime quality free from adulteTat0n; ana tneI
hrices were low The system, consequently, eXtehueu
itself rapidly To the provision store they aoded hIe
shOemang and then tailoring aePaI'he men o anu
them confidence, they went into wholesale oeHlng'
The members at first numbered ohy 20 DuS u t6 IT,,
Fix years after the Society had been az W9h LILY
lad Increased to 600 in 1856 they amounted 10 5OOG
and at the close of 1866 they exceeded 6,240 FROM
the last Quarterly Report of the Ploneers-the Lqul-
table Pioneers is its MISUNDERSTANDING up the &C
counts of the Society to the 18th December Iogo IL
,appears that the affairs of the Association are IN
Very prosperous conditions; that the number OF mem
bers steadily increases; that the tOtal names Oh e
ro at the close of the quarter We're ~ Una. nor tg
was SOS 210 1874 lover 400Oo being an increase on
the corresponding quarter of the year 1850 OF tI%C4s
kO1; that the profits for the quarter were t9S IO9
teGua TO $50 100 in gold that after the usual deduc,
lions for educational and other purposes there would
reGa on every s. of purchases; and that the gross
profits for the year were eS 1884 Sl9s or lSl26Igl A.
We now proceed to describe more particularly the
Constitution of this Society, and TO show the mOue Oh
doing business at the ROchdale store livery member
Is proprietor to the extent of his investment ana
the Society is therefore joint stock company, with
unlimited liability, though. owing to the cash primer
pie which it is conducted ITS liability Is oy non nc
inal The original plan was to constitute shares Oh ~
80 EACH than four shares 10 be held by one
member. Each member pad shilling lsteTitlngI Oh
until his shares were paid up Upon the completion
of these payments the of these shares received
every three months his interest and proportion or
pro6ta: or AT his option instead of receiving the
cash. he might add the amount to his account ah9
not be allowed TO accumulate stock III the Society
heyOnd the amount of GOO. 10 prevent the STOCK
from becoming the subject OF spegqSioh anu JC9
}ndeed the shares are not TRANSFERABLE; III lneuper
esires to realize his stock he mas but 10 declare ms
wish to withdraw, then his account is made out,
and the amount to his credit PAID over 10 NM
The Society also reserves to ltse Ig9S 70 COMP
<gheneyer there is more capital IN manu- uial
ran be prOhtably invested. If mom6el
dies, the Society PAYS to bis representative the
balance due to him The Association has the power
f enforcing all its regulations being registered ppr
Huant to an act of Parliament. BY this act the rules
of all cooperative societies, duly registered, are
rendered binding on the one hand, and on the other
members and their representatives are enabled 10
enforce their claims and guarded against any fraud
nlent dissolution of the Society to which they
belong. The common property of the members -
vested in q trustee or treasurer who may sue OF be
sued III his own name; frauds in respect 10 the
EOcieiy's property punishable by magistrates
aud all members are admitted witnesses IN legal
proceedings regarding the SOcletys property 1t 10
not however, till the ROchale Society had been IN
existence for eight years and when there were many
OtheT OuTishng cooperative associations IN eXsJeiCo
i'm different parts Of England, that tins law was
passed. The mode of doing business ut the Rochdale
sore is very simple. Every customer on purchasing
pn article always for CASH receives TIN ticket w'th
Ihe goods, which ticket is stamped the amount OF
his purchase and which ere vouchers FOR tie receipt 81
tho money The buyer preserves these ticket until
the expiration of the quarter, when no brings them
30 the store, and for whatever amount Of them he
produce he is entitled to prOpOrOnaG share OF
che profits of the concern during the QJerter Thus
If we have expended during the quarter say $50 and
the profits have been 10 per cent, he gets back s.
which he might either receive III cash or have the
Same transferred TO his account credit in his pass
book. in which case IL would 90 to increase the
deposits on which he receives interest In tine
social Science Tracts of Messrs. Chambers of
Edinburgh, it is, among other instances of the kind,
recorded Of a rockingham with wife and two
rhJdren-who, in the year 1850 was possessed of $50
in he Society chat he had by these means recovered
AMI paid in to the increase OF his original invest
alts no less than f94, 12s Cd and another remark
tbe case is given of a wOTkingman Who in 1854
9t lust &c in the Society and had paid since only
81 yet who has withdrawn 992 lGs Oh, and has still
Ief to his credit So showing a clear pIoIt OF
All les. 9d. in six and half years.
We have been thus particular IN giving an account
a! the Rochdale Pioneers, because the hundreds OF
ginilar associations now in existence in the United
Kingdom are nearly all of them formed on the model
ut this One but there other Cooperative Societies
in England whose success has been hardly, if at ALL
Inferior to that Of Re Pioneers sTeh is the Halifax
Informed is situated in the best thoroughfare in the
town, and consists of handsome stone building
erected aud stocked at expense Of $4,000. The
basement consists of seven shops and ofices-a
butchers, provision, boot and shoe, a lmen-dIa-
pePs. grOceT's, a wOOlen-dTaper's, and tailOrs.
In addition to these there magazines of general
goods. well arranged on the upper floor; together
with cofiee-rOoms for the members of the Society
male or female; reading rooms, dining room, and
SInOk0g room. Tho bOaTd-rOOm," says paper
printed ON the transactions of the National AssOca-