The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1876-11-30
THE NATIONAL GRANGE.
Address OF the Worthy Master-Th
WoF6hy Lecturers Report.

THE NATIONAL GRANGE.
Address or the Worthy Master-Th,
Worthy Lecturers Report.
.- The following extracts are taken from
the address of Worthy Master John T.
Jones, OF Arkansas, to the National
Grange at its recent session in Chicago:
At the last session of this body several i'm.
portant amendments to the Constitution
were proposed and subsequently ratified BY
the State Oranges, of which proclamation
As a part Of the system and plan of the or.
ganization and government of the co-opera.
tive societies of Great Britain, which it was
our purpose to adopt, these rules, with some
slight changes, will be most valuable, but
taken alone they are disiointed link in a
l4lAin, the perfection of which by our Brit,
ish friends has been the work of their edu.
Gated, thinking, practical men, for the last
thirty-five years. The fraction which we
have given our Order has been utilized to an
extent which we can only conjecture Hun.
dreds, and it may be thousands, of cooper.
alive stores have been established in the
various States and Territories of the Union.
with various amounts of share capital, and
perhaps as various in other features and in
their fortunes. They arc without head or
connecting link, like SO many islands in
the sea, without even boat plying from one
to the other"-without that principle of
unity which is the life of co-optrations and
the guiding star of humanity.
With the perfection of our system of or
ganization, is the necessity of educating our
members in the true principles of co-opcra-
ton. Let us follow the example of our En-
glish friends in this also. Through their
courtesy have received a large number of
tracts, with the proceedings of their cooper
alive Congress from 1868 to the present
time, making most valuable collection of
cooperative literature. We have to reach
the minds OF many who are ignorant, and to
stimulate In them thirst for knowledge
The latter, which is the first requisite is
better accomplished by living missionaries
If we could send out some OF the friends of
cooperation lwho could be namely to act as
pioneers in this work. we would soon see a
large demand for cooperative intelligence.
1t may be thought by some who take
that am giving an undue prominence to it's
material objects. Ii SO, cannot think they
have studied the deep philosophy, pure
morality, lofty virtue, and genuine religion,
that undcrlics cooperative life. Rightly un-
derstood, it is the practical realization of
pcrance, forcthought, just dealing, and fell
'owship in work, will do more to correct the
moral disorders which darken our land, and
have tainted our Government, as well as
trade and commerce, than all the penal
statutes that have been or can be devised
The material, moral, social and Intellectual
influences are in near connection with each
other. The most material thii gs have great
influence Oh mental subjects, a sentiment
that ages ago the poet Homer gave vent to,
in saying that "when man becomes slaUe he
loses half his virtue"
At the last session of this Grange much
interest was expressed in the action which
had been taken by the cooperative societies
OF Great Britain to inauguratc a system of
exchange between them and the agricultural
producers In this country; and in their
friendly messages to our Order, through
their special dcputation, and subsequent
correspondence with our Executive Com
mittce, which was directed, by a resolution
of this body, to continue, as | did, until
point wac reached when, III my Judgment,
with the approval of the Executive Commit
tee, it became expcdient to send special
commissioner to confer with the authorities
i'll those societies upon this subject, and to
represent our ideas and interest in this con-
ncction. Brother J. W. A. Wright was APP
pointed to this office, and it affords me sim
cerc pleasure to bear testimony to the abili-
ty, dignity and grace with which he dis
charged its important duties. Complca-
tionS of a very serious character had arisen
through the misrepresentation of unfriend-
~ parties, the character and extent of which
were unknown to us until asccrtained by
our Commissioner, after his arrival in En-
gland. These matters were fully discussed
in the Cooperative Congress which met at
Glasgow in April last, the courtesy of open
ing and closing the discus ion having been
extended to our Commissioner. The result
was reinsurance of that body of the earn
estness and integrity of our Order in these
negotiations, and their reference to Mr..
Neale and our Commissioner, by whom i'm
portant notifications and changes of the
original articles were agreed upon, submit
ted to The Executive Commi ttcc of the Com
pany on the other side, and assented to by
that Committee.
The plan of organizing the American Sec
ton of this Association, which | submit,
may be improved by your joint wisdom an
united intelligence Of the extended field for
which it is designed. By some it may he re-
gardcd as yielding much of the authority
and fostering care, which our Constitution
wisely provides the National Grange shall
exercise, directly and through subordinate
Oranges, over the business interests of our
Order, in only becoming an "adyiso,y body."
On the other hand it might be objected
that the National Grange is not elected by
those who may be Stockholders in the enter
prise alone, but by the representatives of all
the members, and therefore should not eXcr-
else supervision over their interests. Of
these opposite opinions the last would lead
to consequences, l think, fatal to our
Order, and our cherished hopes. The
purposes of our Order are so blended, each
SO in harmony with the others, and
SO dependent upon one another, the separa-
ton OF one and especially that one which is
the life blood of the whole, would paralyze
the system. It is not to the share capital in
these enterprises that our members will look
for greatest benefits, but in the facilities
they will afford for the sale of our products
and the purchase of our supplies. The men,
Der that holds tut a single share will be en-.
titled to the same benefits, and have an
equal voice with the member holding the
maximum. Some of our members may not
be able to take singh share, yet such may
contribute to the profits, By their custom,
more than others holding the maximum of
seBfatrv,is Shall sufA meaMtiRsIs have no repre-
the support of which they contribute per-
haps the largest share?
A Cooperative Congress, elected by stock
holders, could not be more responsible, or
represent the interest Of their constituents
more intelligently or faithfully, than body
chosen from the Order, as is this National
Grange.
That we have opposition to our plans,
powerful, and energetic, we know, but the
source from which it comes should nerve us
to put forth whatever effort may be neces-
sary to secure to the toiling farmer the right
full profit of his industry, as prerequisite to
the proper development of what arc called
8 the higher objects of our order.' Do we
not see an educational power of the highest
kind underlying this cooperative movement
for the great masses of our people? The
further we have gone the faircr and
wider the prospect before us. Do we mean
to go on! Have we faith enough in the princi-
Piles of our Association to follow them
wherever they may tend? trust we have,
and that we shall take our forward steps in
the reorganization Of labor. and therefore
of society. carefully and steadily, but reso-
lutely, and with a perfect Indifference to the