The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1868-04-11
COOPERATIVE NEWS,


Pro- &c London Spectator.
VI cooperative societies in France M.
rane gives an interesting, and, as far az II
\ goes, accurate account, thoulh his statistics
are not as complete as might be. he Justly
uIa"s attention 10 the fact how, OF the forms
when cooperative associations can taxa
consumption, credit and production-the
latter, the most riskfu Of The three i the
most congenlal TO France, which il. indeed
the mother country Of cooperation Long
before the Rochdale pioneers stirred snch
societies had been insugurated by Bnchez
anh one, that Of jewellers, founded in 1894
is s'lll hourishing. The constitution of ID !
society las one peculiarly which deserves
10 De POINTED our, for it survives to mark a
nov oygone stage OF the cooperative move
ment. This Association owns a specif;ed
iund, set apart, and not in the power Of the
member 10 touch until the termination of the
original contract sort of mortmain for
hxed period-the intention Of the founders
nAvlng been IN accordance with the gnjld
spirit Of earlier socialism 10 provide IN this
Iund capital destined to roll BIZ degrees
into permanent and common treasure
tha' aould ultimately aliment the onera.
tions Of the whole trade brigaded into one A
sOciatlon. From such economically unsoand
aspirations the members have long come
bacE, but as the settlement was made by
legal instrument, they must await its ter
minatIon before they can dispose differently
OF the fund. In l94S cooperative societies
sprang up like mushrooms, under the i'm
pulse OF the donation in aid voted bv the
assembly. Mr.. Fame puts their number at
90, oi which he saws AZ collapsed. We be-
eve that only two have survived which
shared 10 TINS Subventi0n and that the few
others stiil existing from that date-amongst
which are some Of the best 10 do, as the
spectacle-makers and mssons-have worked
Their way quietly BY themselves. The strug-
gies Oh the fourteen plano-makers have often
been Tecounted, who began business with
Ez|s irancsy and now passes A capital w
ioU,tV0 francs Another striking testimony
70 industry ~ afforded by the chairnskers,
association, which u IS4S actually refused
the subventIon pressed on it by Albert. ana
Is now dong hOurIshing business. after
standing the ordeal Of intense hardsbips.
AZ present there are in Paris 81 associations
q production, and l5 stores. Of these 62
IN al, no less than 4S have been started
since 1865. Of course il will b. premature
10 afnrm tnat these are al sound Several
have failed that were recently started. but
even though more were to col'apse this
would not DO away with the significance Of
the movement that has been Set afnot and
Thich u no longer confined TO Paris. In
our opinion, indeed, the importance Of What
. going On in this respect in France consists
manly In It's spread to the provinces
Whereas lew years ago there was not half
dozen co-ope ratlve associations TO We found
outside of Paris, there are now over l50 in
actual existence 1--WE have their names before
us), while dozen more are ia formation.
There ls not centre of industry IN France
which since 500 has not come to have its
association, and it il curious to observe that
While N Paris the store has not thriyen
IN the provinces it has met with marked
success. There are no less than twentv-four
stores IN Lyons alone, besides eight pro-
dacuon and four credit associations. These
latter establishments promise to spread
largely 10 France, and we are surprised that
Mr. Fame should quite have overlooke
the important feature in the CO. operative
movement which was inaugurated by tha
foundation OF the credit az trapail of
which We gave at the time some account IN
this journal It's success has exceeded an
ticipation, and has led to the creation Of like
Institutions 10 several provincial cities. Nor
y THIS the only symptom Of the kind that has
shown itself In France, for of late wears 4
number Of small mutual credit banks have
been founded on The basis Of The Schulz.
Ueltish system, 50 popular in Germany.