Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1874-01-29
you know whal subject will come

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reference TO perfecting the business
details OF their organization.
Another subject suggested by the
Indiana Farmer, an intense Grange
paper altogether in the charmed cir
Gle, will be as to the disposition of
their surplus $4,000. As the Rural
World suggests that the choice of
permanent location for the National
offices may also be determined here,
the inference might be drawn that
the surplus would be expended for
buildings somew here. perhaps in st.
Louis"
81 have seen that the Boston Mer-
chant Grange Master, had appealed
to the decision of the Grange. l
presume that it will find settlement
here ?"
eyes, it probably will, ahd if
Messrs. Thompson d Abbott are as
determined in the matter as they
represent themselves, it may be
subject cf considerable Importance.
Mr.. Abbott claims that the Masters
ruling would exclude several mem.
bers of The National Grange, and
several other subordinate Oranges,
one of them at ST. Louis"
THE QUESTION OF SECRET.
"There is one advantage of secre-
cy which / had not before thought
of. They can have their family
quarrels to themselves, and not annoy
their neighbors and the outside
world with them."
"Yes, and that is about the only
advantage l have ever discovered,
except that they can dispense their
charity SO that the left hand may
not know what the right is doing,
in the fcriptural fashion. In view
of the difficulty experienced in let>
ting politics alone, this feature of Sc
crecy is likely to cause them much
embarrassment. 1t is certainly too
late to entertain the idea of secret
political party: strictly as such, and
the political influence of any secret
organization must be seriously COM
promised by the fact of such secrecy.
Again, this feature of the Grange,
and the ritualistic ceremonies inci-
dent to it occupies an in mense
amount of very valuable time, and
| the more substantial business men
among the farmers, who count its
value, soon tire. 1t is evident, from
all the reports we have seen, that
rot one-half of the Oranges are pay
ing their dues, sure indication
that the interest in them is flag
ging."
NOT LOSING HEADWAY.
'You consider, then, that the move.
ment is losing Roadway ~
mot at all. The open associa-
tons are now gaining ground, and if
there was any system of record such
as the National Grange has adopted,
the extent of the open organizations
would surprise you. One great adj
| vantage for the open associations
which the Oranges iose-and which
they cannot afford to lose--s the
assistance of the press in disseminate
ing their work. Look, for instan ce,
at Illinois meetings last month. The
four days proceedings Of the State
Grange, with its seven hundred and
| fifty members, were all recorded in
less than three columns of the daily
papers, while the proceedings of the
Decatur meeting fer three day 8
filled page after page of the Tribune
and Times, multiplying the influence
exerted by them many thousand
fold. Its expressions are still being
discussed, and will be for months to
come, because it's ideas were set in
motion. Really, this secrecy breeds
a selflshness entirely foreign to the
agricultural character, and it sur
prses me to see the agriculf ural pub
fishers, 80 folgeLful OF their journal
istic rights as to encourage privacy
of discussion which deprives them of
their most valuable subject matter.
The seeking of many OF them after
the loaves and fishes, in the form of
subscriptions, is certainly liable to
subject them the charge of being
subsdized-it may be. justly,
THE AGENCY SYSTEM.
"Do you anticipate that the Gran
gers Will succeed in substituting the
present mercantile system OF their
new trade arrangement 7"
They will only succeed in stimu.
lating thought in regard to the sub
ject at present, except, it may be, in
substituting the agency systems,
which have been established by pat
ent protected manufacturers. Here
the margins for profit are large, and
the manufacturers would not, as a
class, regret any organ zed system
which is sufficiently general to re-
lieve them of the agency tyranny
under which they suffer as much as
the farmers, and which would enable
division of the profits between
producer and consumer. That the
ordinary business relations require
romodeling and improving there
can be no question. The regular
business of exchanging eommodi-
ties could certainly be conducted at
great saving of aggregate expense
| if the business we've concentrate in
fewer hands. The element OF risk
can be very naturally reduced by
which the farmers may realize some
gain; but all of these changes and
improvements must be the result of
reciprocal effort between the con-
versatiye men of the respective
classes, 1t cannot be done by OK.
citing violent antagonisms, or by
starting out with the idea that there
is necessarily to be q contest. Every
solid, prudent merchant suffers as
much az the farmer-far more than
any individual farmer, except be BIO
the direct loser-from that other
class of merchants who do their
business regardless of business prin-
ciples, gathering into their hands the
the property of their creditors and
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