The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1873-06-19
The Cooperative Movement.

Bat it is impossible to bring before
you in the space 1 have at my disposal
any thing like proofs of a 1.-THE of the
good which this movement has done
how it is steadily strengthening and
purifying the daily lives of a great sec
ton of our people. wish I could
induce all here to look into the matter
carefully for themselves. Meantime I
may say that it has In the first place
delivered the poor in a number of our
great towns from the credit system.
which lay so hard on them twenty years
ago, for the cooperative system is
founded scrupulously on ready-money
dealings. Next, it has delivered the
poor from adulterated goods and short
weight and measure. It has developed
among them honesty, thrift, fore
thought, and made them feel that they
cannot raise themselves without help
ing their neighbors.
The management of business concerns
of this magnitude has developed an ex-
traordinary amount of ability among
the leading members, who, in com
| mittees, and as secretaries and BUYERS,
conduct the affairs of the stores through
out the country. As their funds have
accumulated, they have been invested
in corn-mills and cotton-mills, most of
which have been managed with great
ability and honesty, and are returning
large profits. There have been failures,
of course, as there must be in all move
ments but in scarcely any cases have
these been owing to the deep-seated
dishonesty, the lying, the putting, and
trickery, which have brought down in
disgraceful ruin $50 many of our Joint
stock companies. 1 have been speaking
hitherto chiefly of the societies known
as cooperative stores which are con-
cerned with distribution; but associa-
tions for production are now multiply
ing, and at least as great results may be
! looked for from them. In those few
which 1 have had the opportunity of
watching, can speak with the greatest
confidence of the admirable influence
they have exercised on the character
! and habits of the associates. But /
prefer to call in here the testimony of
one who has had as much experience
and done as much work for the CO.
operative movement in England as any
living man. eff, writes Mr.. Ludlow.
ga cooperative workshop has sufficient
elements of vitality to outlast the in.
evitable storms and struggles of its first
few years, it begins to develop a mosi
remarkable series of results. Co-opera-
ton first expels from the shop drunken.
ness, and all open disorder, which are
found wholly inconsistent with its sue
cess; introducing in their stead n mum
Der of small adjustments and contri
vances of a nature to facilitate work, OF
promote the comfort of the worker. By
degrees it exterminates, in turn, tn,
small tricks and dishonesties of worl
which the opposition of interests be
tween the employers and employed too
often excuses in the workers eyes it il
felt to be the interest of each and al
that all work should be good-that n,
time should be lost. Fixity of employ
ment meanwhile, coupled with a com
mon interest, creates new ties between
man and man, suggests new forms O
fellowship till there grows up a sort o
family feeling, the only danger of whicl
is, its becoming exclusive toward tn
outside. Let this state of things last
while and there is literally developed
new type of working-men, endued no
only with that honesty and franImess
that kindness and true courtesy, whicl
distinguish the best specimens of tn
order wherever they may be placed, bu
with dignity and self-respect, a sens
of conscious freedom, which are pecu
liar to the co-operator. The writer me
with such type first in the Associa
tions Ouvrieres of Paris. He has sine
had the happiness of seeing it repro
duced, with variations as slight as tn
differences of nationality might rende
unavoidable, in English co-operativ
workshops and he therefore believe
that its development may be confident
" looked forward to as a normal resul
of cooperative production. "-llacDaii
laR's Magazine.