Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1873-01-18

How Farmers Nay CO.Operate.

Farmer Jones invites farmers Smith,
Brown, and Robinson to drop in of an
evening, and they have chat. Of
courae the subjects discussed are those
in which they hold a common interest,"
stock, crops, the results of labors and
experiences, and their hopes and plans
for the future. The interchange 0f ideas
smutually entertaining and instructive,
and they desire that the conference
may, like Ledger story, be continued,
80 farmer Smith asks the company to
meet next week at his house. Other
friends drop in, and thus it comes about
in very natural way, that a farmers
club is instituted with no parade or
noise---grows, in fact, like Topsy This
is the whole affair; rules, bylaws,
places of meeting to accommodate grow
| ing numbers, are mere matters of con-
venience provided for as the occasion
may arrive. Three years ago club at
Elmira, N. Y, was commenced with
seven members. It has 100 members
now, who meet weekly during Winter,
and at longer intervals during Summer:
who possess already 900 volumes, and
add yearly to the library fund $500.
The result is that this Club has intro
duced improved stock and new seeds
and implements; that valuable expert
ments have been tried and their issues
noted and discussed. A farmers club
in Connecticut has kept up its organiza-
tion for IA years continuously; another
on Long Island has, during the past few
seasons, purchased ut wholesale over
$50, 900 worth of fertilizers for the use
of its members, saving thereby a third
of that large sum.
A recent convention of farmers club
in Illinois had delegates from IL local
associations, whose members aggregated
1000, ranging from 38 to 800 for EACH
Several of these clubs cooperate in buy
ing supplies at large saving in cost.
Now these are illustrative cases of the
thousands of associations among intel
hgent and enlightened farmers. But
only a commencement has been made
as yet. This cooperation is nat ex-
ceptional, and not until there is farm
ers' club in every township throughout
America, or possibly several, will the
work attain completeness. Think of
the business to come before the farmers
in these associations. Our English
brethren have found vast profit in
them, and many companies own engines
and plows worth $4,000, with which
their fields are plowed at an expense Of
So per acre, and dividends 25 per cent.
paid each year on the cost of machinery.
Our stock is in an immediate need of
improvement. Horses, COWS, sheep, and
hogs pay now not half the profit they
might if the best and most suitable
breeds were used. Thoroughbred ami
mails cost much money, but by coopera-
ton may easily be procured, as has
been done by the Elmira Club, before
referred to. Insurance against fire by
such cooperative associations is a com
mon thing throughout Pennsylvania,
and in that way is established the cheap
est and most trustworthy insurance
company possible to conceive of.
When there is no loss no premiums are
paid when there is a loss it is divided
among the whole number insured, and
the veriest trife from each builds up the
brothers barn again, or pays for his
stack of grain. It is needless to say
more but we urge farmers to think of
these things, see how they are done, and
" act accordingly"