The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-11-15
COOPERATIVE MANUFACTURING
AND CAPITAL.

erS of that city were planning to start CO.
operative factories there and elsewhere if
their demand for an increase of wages was
not complied with. According to the state
ment issued by the local preceptory the de-
mand seemed to be just, though it is not
! always safe to judge on a statement of one
side only. The statement concluded: "If the
combine or window-glass trust of the man.
ufacturers does not want to pay the work.
ers fair and just wages, let them nail their
factories up The workers can and will start
cooperative factories all over the country,
and that before long,
The Journal would be glad to see the CO.
operative factory scheme tried, and would
do all in it's power to win it sympathy and
success. There is a great deal more in the
idea of cooperative profit-sharing man
ufacturing than has yet been developed in
this country, and it is somewhat surpris-
ing that our intelligent workingmen have
not taken it up in systematic way. We
| hear a great deal about the slavery of
| labor the robbery of workingmen ETC., but
the only remedy suggested by those who
talk this way is in strikes, boycotts, etc.
AS these have proved disappointing, so
much so that some labor leaders have de-
| clared they would never be connected with
| another, why not try cooperation? If there
| is big money in manufacturing, why should
| not workingmen those who make finished
products out of raw material, club together
| and by working to a common end enjoy
| all the profits themselves without having
| to divide with an employer? But it is not
| thing to be undertaken hastily or with
| out counting the cost as well as the posi-
| bilities of profit. Labor is an essential fea-
| ture of production, but without capital it
| is helpless. To make it effective it must
have something to work with and upon. It
must have tools, machinery appliances,
power, raw material, furnaces, fuel-in
! short, a plant. AS plants cost money, the
| first step towards establishing a co-opera-
tive factory must be to raise money
| enough for plant and to enable the work.
men to live until they can market their
| products Ordinarily the employer furnishes
the requisite money for these purposes, as
Stunning the cost of the plant and of the
process of manufacturing and paying the
workmen wages until such time as he can
realize the products. But in a co-opera-
| tive factory there is no employer and no
wages. Consequently the workmen must
| furnish their own plant and support them
selves until the profits begin to come in.
This takes money Some glass workers at
| Anderson have made this discovery. num-
| Der of them recently banded together to
establish factory of their own in that city,
to be run on the cooperative plan. The An
derson Bulletin says:
| Gray & Son, who own the cathedral art
| glass works West Eighth street, have
made the men an offer on their plant. They
| will sell 1t to them for less than 81, 500. The
| price is looked upon as cheap but the
| great trouble is that the Manufacturers
| Gas Company wants cents a thousand feet
| for gas. This would neceSSitate the drilling
| of we'll. The equipping of the plant after
| purchased would involve a large expense
| and the promoters did not want to have to
build their own gas plant.
We gather from this that while the price
| at which a building was offered was con-
sidered cheap the men were not in a con-
dition to pay it, nor did they feel able to
pay for gas, sink well or equip the plant.
ALL these things are as necessary to pro-
duction as labor is, and capitalist engaged
in manufacturing has to put up the money
for them. "A manufacturing plant costs
money, and calling it a cooperative fac
tory will not lessen the cost of the plant
or the running expenses a particle. More
over, manufacturing business cannot be
| run with any degree of success whatever
without an executive head to look after the
| buying and selling, a competent bookkeep-
| er, a cashier, one or more statesmen and col
| lectors, and a clerk or two to attend to
| correspondence and details. These are not
| called workingmen, but their work is quite !
| as essential to the success of a manufac-
| turing establishment as that of those who
| labor with their hands and turn out the fin
ished product. A cooperative factory must
| have that sort of supervision and manage
| ment the same any other, and it must
| be paid for. A cooperative factory will not
| run itself, make its own purchases and
| sales keep ds bank account make it's COL
| lections, conduct its correspondence, market
| it's products, pay off it's men, ETC. 1t takes
| executive ability and business training and
| experience to do these things, and even if
| the workingmen knew how to do them they
could not attend to their work and perform
these duties also. 1t is, therefore, absolute
| ly necessary that competent persons should
be employed to perform these duties, and,
of course. they must be paid. Workmen
who think of establishing cooperative fac
tories should look at all sides of the ques-
ton before going into it, and should con-
| slider well whether labor can succeed with
| out capital Cooperative manufacturing is
entirely feasible and has great possibilities
| provided it is we'll organized, well equipped,
| we'll managed and conducted strictly
business principles. All this, however i'm
| plies capital. and before going into it the
men should have working capital in hand
| or in sight.
| After being begun the Thorne trial has
| been discontinued because one juror is UNI
able to sit during the hearing. This in