The Sunday morning news. [volume] (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1886-1891, 1891-01-04
TRUE COOPERATION.
The Advantages and Bene-
fits Of the System to
the Wage Worker.

The short outline of the cooperative
scheme which Is to be put IN operation In
this city in short time, published in THE
SUNDAY MORNING NEWS of December q,
has Interested SO many people, and SO
many questions have been asked about it
that have waded through statistics to
present the following for the considera-
tion Of those who are anxious to partici-
pate in the benefits of cooperation.
The cooperative idea WAS first born In
the British Isles, but IL was intended for
the benefit of d beggaTed aristocracy
rather than the honest. hard working
toiler. Certainly the same law was there
for both to take advantage of it, but the
writer knows from experience that CO..
operation was confined 70 the middle
classes" OF the reduced aristocracyH
Nevertheless, their success is q lesson to
the manly and independent wageworkers
the term classes" as these applied
Previous to 1862 the laws were III such
condition that CO. operation WIS impos-
sible. the restrictions defeating the
proper working Of such an idea. In that
year law was passed which widened
the breach and cooperation received a
boom which has kept on developing until
now there is hardly town in the United
Kingdom which cannot boast of q CO.
operative store. They buy and sell goods
and transact their business on strictly
cash basis and the profits come back to
Everything bought and sold is OF strictly
first class quality, which is in itself 3
profit, adulteratiOn to make profit being
strictly prohibited
Crossing the Atlantic, the idea first
took root in New York State, where
iox ri rsn t11f 1r,xsa ts,a
passed in 1867 Pennsylvania followed
suit ia 1868, and amended the law IN 1887:
Massachusetts next came into line Ia 1870
followed by Minnesota Ia the same year.
Connecticut ia 1873. New Jersey in 1881,
and new law. which superseded the old
one. in 1884: Tennessee In 1882. Ohio Ia
1884, Kansas in 1887, and Wisconsin in the
same year. making ten States in all
where corporation has been recognized
by law. Eacn State has made few diff
ferences in minor matters, but IN the
main the same idea pred0n1inates.
The law OF this State is very plain on the
subject. but owing to the fact that IT'S
benefits have not received the attention
they deserve the matter of its perfection
has not been determined.
Now, as to the benefits OF such an asso-
citation, it does not require great deal of
study to find them out. A body OF men
imply form themselves into corporate
body and start store. Sometimes the
store is limited to certain commodities,
but the most successful have been gem
erai stores. where che members can pur-
chase anything they want Only the best
est number Of people naturally put the
question :s Where does the profit come
imp, Well, there are two ways OF deriv-
ing profit One is to sell goods at the
regular price prevailing at the time in the
market, and every three or six months
n Lei a DIN af ha lad ~
ing expenses and providing for reserve
fnnd. The other way Is to sell goods at
the lowest price, putting
percentage on the goods sufficient to
pay running expenses, lay by reserve
fund to prevent against fire or accident,
and provide a place where members Of
the association can meet TO read, con-
verse, or in other ways amuse themselves
The first way holds out an inducement to
young unmarried men TO invest their cap
ital, the second only reaches the married
! folk, as the profit only returns in proper
ton to the goods purchased. There is
considerable difference of opinion be-
tween the friends of both schemes for
deriving profit, but all agree that there is
an immense profit TO be derived. IL the
working people will but look around and
view the immense fortunes that have
been raised by the profits on the commo-
dities which they are constantly running
to the store for they will realize that 4
| large percentage Of those fortunes would
be their prosperity were they only mem
bers of a cooperative association.
Nearly all laws on the subject provide
against the controlling OF stock or inter-
est by individuals, thus vesting the power
| In the hands of the majority. By the
laws of this State the association can
| limit the number of shares to be held by
one person, and he can have but one vote
no matter now many shares he holds SO
that an associate who has five Shares has
an equal say by vote as the man with
twenty-five.
To sum up the advantages Of co-opera-
| ton are numerous, and every working
man who is trying to make both ends
| that he can accomplish his object and
| have a good deal Of one end TO spare
which IL rightly applied will become of
infinite use to him when the rainy day,
which ne is now afraid to think Of. comes
along.
The association Of the members is not
| the least valuable. nor are the profits of
only monetary value. There is in such
an association an instinct born of mutual
beers 20 know that by assisting one an
other they are elevatlng themselves.
Then the constant intercourse socially
and in business has it's charms; the IL
brary and reading rooms will tend to-
wards education, the great many neces-
saries Of life that are at present Viewed
from distance can be placed within
their reach; in short as the members de-
elop their industry so viii they De re-
warded Next Sunday will tell how some
of the most successful of these institu-
tons have been started and what has
been accomplished