The patron of husbandry. (Columbus, Miss.) 1875-1883, 1879-11-29
through the Order of Patrons Of H.

Brother Allen, chairman of the
mittee on Co operation, submitted '-n'
port, which was changed, amended &c;
returned TO the committee, and on the va, ,,'.l
day of Nov. 1876, the final report T ysn
made, extending from page IA to macs as
I54. This report is valuable, for it she's 81
the exact views of many upon the snb
ject of cooperation, its compleyitv =.
utility, its philosophy, its experience ,nS S
les possibilities. This report received %
votes in favor ofits adoption and "a against
A supplemental report respecting wool
and tobacco was made and the recon
mendations of the committee were con.
CURED in. A protest was made by Rro
theirs Lang, Hemingway, and Moor
against the entire action of the National
Grange upon international trade, because
it is scheme of business unsuited to tba
wants and conditions of American farm,
ers; is more in the interest of English can.
italists than American agriculturists; viii
lead to complications in business, which
they believed, will result in financial EN-
barrassments and loss; and that it is the
better policy of our farmers to buy and
sell as near home as practicable
On motion of Brother Blanton, the Ma.
tional Grange recommended that the Ex.
ecutive Committees of the several States
adopt uniform system of State agencies
to meet the present wants of the Order
At the session of the National Crane.
at Cincinnati, in 1877, Worthy Master
Jones commends to the National Grange
the expediency of adopting this session
some general systematic plan of propa.
ganda, especially of the principles which
underlie cooperation, our great lever pow.
er, its true forms of development and an.
plcability to every phase of our domestic
social and political life. He believes much
good has been accomplished by the re.
print of thousands of copies of English
tracts upon this subject, and the publica.
ton of the same by the agricultural and
Grange press over the whole country: that
cooperation is now regarded science.
needing definition and exposition simply;
that this system, if rightly understood,
will heal the feuds between laborers and
capitalists; that it develops business capa.
city; that it begets fruitful thought and
associative habits; that our great want is
knowledge; that the real mission of co
operation is to give knowledge; that it
unfortunate that any agencies were estab.
lished until the principles were better I'm.
derstood that the Grange press has done
a noble work in educating members, and
that if the leaders of this great Reform
will take an advanced position, the mass,
es will certainly follow.
The Executive Committee in their re.
port feel warranted in advising the discon
tinuance of all agencies as now establish.
ed that honest competition is wanted, not
commission houses; and that they recon.
mend the National Grange to use every
effort to encourage among Patrons the es.
adjustment of retail and wholesale stores
upon the strictest principles of CO. opera
ton.
The Worthy Lecturer reports that some
State Oranges in their anxiety to benefit
their members, and to bring the business
benefits of the Order more nearly to their
people have impoverished their treasures,
SO that it will take years to recover. Some
have been too fast and others too slow,
but the golden mean will finally be reach.
ed. One mistake has been, too many have
supposed that the material or business
plan of the work was the end and aim of
the Order. The Grange is not in itself a
business organization, but school of in.
struction. Pecuniary advantages diverted
from cooperation in making purchases
and sales, are the incidents resulting from
our organization.
The committee on cooperation through
Brother Blanton, reported that IN the or.
ganization of Patrons cooperative sooie.
ties, local and wholesale, they believe it
is best for the safety, success and perpe,
tuity of the true cooperative principle,
I1afc fr~ h. 1.oI
bers of our Order. They pay a high com.
pliment to Worthy Master Jones for his
laborious researches, as well as the very
able manner in which he has discussed
the principles in his address and other pa.
pers to the National Grange, and through
the Grange newspapers.
They are of the opinion that information.
al CO. cooperation to be successful must be
the natural outgrowth of the cooperative
principle, first in the work of local stores;
second in the establishment of wholesale
stores; and third, these being successful
and satisfactory, will eliminate in the de-
mand tor international cooperation, and
that the National Grange should use every
effort to keep this important subject be-
fore the members of our Order.
AT the Richmond session, IN 1873, the
Worthy Master in his address says that
without correct knowledge of, and strict
adherence to, the principles of co-opera-
ton, the fate of our Grange stores, the
efficiency and reliability of our State agen-
cies, and the prospect of international
associations are easily conjectured. That
probably there will be no great realiza.
ton until greater comprehension and
closer cohesion shall be developed through
the education and experience of the mem
bers at large, and that there will be no in
tellectual progress no social development
and no pecuniary improvement until we
make "a long pull, strong pull and
pull all together
The testimony of the Worthy Lecturer
is, that the "Rules for Patrons Co-opera
tive Association" sent out by the Nation.
al Grange have been of vast benefit to our
members; that if this body had never ac.
complished any other work, this alone is
worth many times the cost of all its ses:
90