The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1877-10-11

z. R:~B!kStWN-- w. ID.
Grange Mestiug2 TAgEj2
We hear complaints !, from different
Oranges in the State of non-attendance
at regular meetings at the appointed
hour, and if we do not look we'll to our
interests our Grange will lose some of its
laurels. We ought not to give our Wor-
tby Master any occasion for complaint.
Think of it Patronsl Can we afford it?
Will it pay? To those who accept the
trade benefits of the Grange it has saved
altogether several hundred thousand dol
lars the last year, and we are not saving
one-quarter what we might if we all at
tended our meetings and massed our
orders. There is no question about this,
it has been demonstrated already. We
see it; We feel it; we know it. Even
our worse opposers acknowledge there is
no doubt We can make great saving by
buying together. Although they said
when the Grange was first organized that
it would not live six months, as farmers
could not do business, buy as cheaply-
neither knew where or what to buy-you
know we now have facilities for buying
as low. if not at lower rates than they.
Now will we allow this saving, with all
the other opportunities the Grange affords
us in knowing every month what goods
are actually worth, together with the
social and educational features, to go by
the board by not attending our meetings?
It is Just as much our business to attend
our Grange meetings sickness and abb
sence from home excepted) as it is feed.
ing and looking after our stock, farm and
housework. It does not pay to neglect
the Grange for the same reason. We
should make it part of our business to
attend our meetings. If we do not, let
us never wonder again why more farmers
vino do not know the value of the order
do not Join us, when we who know its
value by experience stay away. Now let
us think for moment what the business
arm of the Grange is. In short, tits SIM
ply working together; helping one an
other to make each others burdens
lighter to bear. Now let us think what
q shop or store is. We all know it is a
place where we buy goods of certain
kinds, and that we can buy of the shop
keeper such goods as he chooses to sell,
and if we are not pleased with the goods
he sells we can sometimes better our
selves by going to another shop. Now
we do not say there is any harm in the
shop-keeper's making fortune if he can,
but we do say that the hundreds who
buy their goods at his shop are worth
considering as well as the shop-keeper
himself. There are a great many ways
of getting what people call Giving"
One man will get q living by selling poor
articles dear; another by selling good
articles cheap. Now we don't have the
slightest ill-will toward the shop-keeper
who tries to get living or a'fortune by
keeping his shop, but we do say that if
one hundred can contrive under the
Grange system of cooperation to suit
themselves with the same goods cheaper
than the shop-keeper can suit them, they
are quite right in doing 80.
We believe sclf-sacrifce to be very
good thing, but we believe at the same
time there is more reason in one man
sacrificing himself for one hundred, than
one hundred being sacrificed for one
man. ..a
Then there is another thing to consider
he shop-keeper will generally find it
worth his while to get as much profit as
he can out of his customers, but If the
customers do their own buying, they can
save this profit to themselves.
Now it would be absurd to say that any
intelligent person does not care for the
benefit that the Grange through its vast
membership and wealth is able to give,
but in order to receive them of course we
must be willing to take little trouble
about itAindeed it can reasonably be sup
posed that nearly everybody in the world
would like to be rich if he could become
80 without 90 much trouble, but whether
making everybody rich in the world
would make everybody happy in the
world is question easily answered. We
know very we'll it is inconyenient to be
Door. and we know many kinds of crime
and evil in the world are caused by poverty.
There are reasons enough why we should
seek and care for that which will keep us
from being poor if we are not, because
there are SO many bent on keeping poor
by not accepting the opportunities to
make them independent. The man or
family that spends more than the income
is whatever the income be-and if
all the wealth ia the world were divided
to-day amongst the poor, next month or
next year there would be some people
lust as poor as ever. So then the busi-
ness feature of our order has just one OBJ
iect viz. to better our conditions fnan-
cially, simply to provide ourselves, our
families, our farms, our households, with
such Implements as we require, Of as good
quality, and at the lowest price obtaina-
Bile of manufactures and wholesale deal
ers-and this is just what the Oranges in
the United States and Canada are doing
as fast and as quietly as can be done.
We all know "if we do not SOW we cannot
reap," likewise if we do not keep up our
meetings we cannot reap the benefits OF
the order. Now let US have an attend
ance 30 that we can open our meetings at
the appointed hour, and try to make them
so interesting and profitable that none
will be willing to stay away. Let each
one of US make arrangements to give
half day every two weeks to our Grange,
we can do it, it is part of our necessary
work, as much so as to attend to our other
farm work. Why are we so punctual in
affairs on the farm? We bend all our
energies to this and to that, and find time
for It. There is no excuse as to time.
We all waste more time every week than
we give to the Grange. 1t is not only
the officers especial duty to attend regu-
larly, but at the hour; but it is the duty
of every member to "assist in promoting
the welfare of the order according to his
or her ability" Likewise We have "sol-
emnly promised to perform the duties
enioined in the order and aid others in
the performance of the same"