The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1869-09-11

BIZ RICHARD HARPER,

: Among the commonest and most fata
UAu'es OF confusion and failure in Oo-opera
uve enterprise, is the nearly universal pre-.
contra distinguished from universal bsnsf.
Inis ls the largest cause-opera,ing n !
! great variety OF forms-whv 90 manv Of on,
sometime promising societies 70 down. The
Oiu, olu story OF se6sm. Surely it Is not
would be dismayed, if it were Emir.c,
among the various manifestations Of the AL
nsm OF Oo-operators, 10 the very common
exnioitlon OF concern about the dividends
ineee are, with a very large number. the
touchstCne OF affection for Co-ora-s,;o.
when these caanot be KEEP: uo Al what IL
considered Q respectable figure. the in.a,a.s
% many so-called Co-operstors falls swav.
ana they no longer pay the attention or give
.ne support necessary to make the society
succeed. Another OF the causes Of the nom
success, especially OF the distributing 40.
Cleues' Is the want Of experience in the busi-
ness or businesses undertaken, This has
oesA the rock upon which a large numbsr Of
once promising societies have split. Thew
are all earnest men, well-intentioned. severe
Critics upon expenditure, and not . little
snsrp oown upon anyone who might wish to
Aauncn o0t In TOO expensive premises. for in
ssance but they do not know the business:
suey commit eggregious errors 10 buying the
wrong articles, Or buying 10 the wrong
some other failures have occurred from
700 great ambition to make show in the
"oriu' clever you0g men have been an.
pointed to the offico Of secretary, and they
nave worked hard TO render the affair suc
cessnI 10 their way /; but the affair could
NOS possibly succeed, because of the too
great expense entered into from too great
ambition to appear successful. Some Other
disasters have been caused by conditions
which were absolutely irremedable without
the employment Of years of teaching. and
some considerable change in the organic ation
OF tne members. The Lancashire and York.
snlre grand successes have been caused
cnieny Dy the vastly greater fitness of the
men. Those Northern Oo-operators are
MADE OF the real grit They know one an
otner to be honest men. They know, too,
tnat once thing is taken in hand by thei {
brethren and themselves. it will be tuck to
-nos leit to take care Of itself, but be slow
~ ana patiently developed, unlil the balance
snees IL the sole advertisement, and growth
10 rapidly accelerated. The men of the Mid
lano aod Southern counties are different
men, They have not the same f1xedness Of
character, having less iron IN their constitu-
tion' They have less faith in one another,
because less foundation for it. They are
less provident, because much more governed
oy their appetises. They are equal in edu-
cation, II not superior; bat the education is
OF the wrong sort. They are better versed
10 poAslcs, oot not 10 well In perseverance,.
Iney can dress and talk better, but they do
not 90 well know how to ssve money. The
total OF these differences constitutes q set OF
conditions which it requires time-proba5ly
mucn ume-to radically after. Every one
OF THESE oinerences being more or less here
oltarlly acquired, the revolution needed re-
CURES some generations to effect. Some of
sne Co-operators of the present time are very
inferior TO those Of the time OF Mr.. Owen
Do we wish to know the difference (? Why.
the men Of Ovens time were men of simple
deINgn to the truth Of Cooperative prIn-
they saw them 20 be foands cd
In na.ure, ana therefore eternally true. They
saw tnat the sooner We are able to substitute
Ior tne individual and conflicting in nserest Of
society one general interest-in which the
truest individual interest should be secured
the sooner would the real happiness of ag-
gregate Humanity be realised.
cucn are some OF the causes Of failure,
ana some OF the more patent difficulties still
in the way OF successful Co operation.
! The great need OF the time appears to the
writer TO be az follows :-Firss and chiefly
"A thoroughly organised system of teach
ing the principles OF o-operstlon-not on
the basis OK exhibiting its pecuniary bene-
hts merely (shough these will be by far the
most readily perceived), but exhibiting the
deeply radical nature Of the principles as
necessary In practice to secure human hap
plness. Second-the creation of q central
board or directorate, composed OF men
thoroughly versed in the principles OF the
science, and some Of them, at least practi-
cally acquainted with the conduct OF both
producing and distributing societies. This
J central board should offer its services in the
way OF directing or advising any persons
commencing the experiment of Go. ope ration,
and also be available for the settlement Of
disputes OF any kind without the interven-
tion of civil law. Such board would DOS
sess great weight in the direction of induc-
ing socreties at present competing with each
other II the same town, to smalgamate their
forces, ,and so carry out the principle into su-
perior outgrowths much earlier than they
could hope to do separately. Third-the-e
needs q much more general distribution Of
the literature OF Cooperation. While on
this matter, 1t is entirely appropriate to
mention and to applaud the devotion Of one
very uncommon man in spreading the statis-
tics and general knowledge of the subject.
MIR. Henry Pitman stands very high 10 the
galaxy OF worthless who have helped to make
Cooperation a concrete fact. The thanks
Of thousands OF workers are to-day given to
him for the means Of acquiring such know
ledge OF Cooperation ne has made not only
rich men, but better, and therefore happier,
men. Sons additional means Of conveying
Y the knowledge Of the general subject to the
non cooperating public, is urgently required; (;
some organisation for the purpose Of pour
ing out, through the current popular litera-
~.ture OF the time, so much OF Cooperative
lacts and arguments as shall excite the sell
nsm OF society to inquire further regarding
It. The simplest statements Of fact alone
would be OF immense service in bringing
the subject under cognitlOn. Every one Of
the solid serried ranks Of facts, which so
enectually rebut assertions of impossibility, /,
may De made to tell their tale upon the dull
ear OF public opinion, dntil Gas in many past
instances OF the triumph Of once unpopular
loeasl the public opiaion of the United
Kingdom shall be educsted. to the sticking
place, so that Cooperation may become az
general favourite az Education is to-day.
Some Of the ideas of Co. operators them
selves need to be corrected and supplement
ed oy wider knowledge. Such matters as
the necessity Of improving the means of
education for the rising generation, the
knowledge Of correct sanitary conditions,
and the reduction Of every mans expendi-
ture within his income,-are in the way very
important, as helpful towards such Cooper
tlon as is needed to practicalise such re-
rorms as are most urgently needed in mid
die and lower r-class society.
Robert Ovens was once asked why social
progress depended upon conditionss The
explanation is easy. Since conditions are
merely another name for laws of nature, 1t