The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1897-07-14

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election, and he is expe = to come at
once and do business Z n the associa-
ton. Mr.. and Mrs. Sm : and the three
children arrive, and e 3nitiation con-
sists largely of the p tent of $500 for
a share in the proper cof the commun-
ity. He and his family are then escort
ed to house and his life as a practical
socialist starts.
HOW THE PLAN WORKS.
Smith finds that his future is no long
er question with him or his family.
He has been guaranteed work for every
day that he can work and pay for every
day that he is sick. He finds that bur-
dens have been lifted from him, in the
plan of the association, covering nearly
all the troubles which beset the work
ingman. The house and lot are free.
His taxes are paid by the association.
There is no expense for schools or
schoolbooks. Medicines and medical
care costs nothing. The weekly laundry
is sent to the cooperative laundry and
sent back without charge. His older
children get music, languages and indus
trial training at the expense of the
community. The goods at the store
cost him no more than they cost in car
load lots, and all the goods he has to
buy are his household furniture and the
clothing the family wears.
Smith gets this much, which the asso-
citation calls his maintenance, and Mrs.
Smith and the children get the same.
He is now ready to go to work. He is
assigned place in the community
where his trade will do the most good
in case there is work for him in the
trade. He, must work, and is entitled
to work at something, and the associa-
ton sees that he works. 1t may be nee
essary for Smith. who is a bookkeeper,
to dig in the garden, but he gets just as
much pay as though he were at work
over books. His membership entities
him to draw checks for fifty hours
work each week. Mrs. Smith draws as
many checks each week, being allowed
to work five hours each day for the COM
munity and four hours in her home.
The association pays her as much for
one work as the other, and as much
as it pays the man.
Smith children each draw checks for
twenty hours work each week, getting
their maintenance as pay for going to
school. The work checks are to pay for
the time they spend out of school, and if
Smith allows his children to wait on the
table in the cooperative dining hall, the
three children earn checks for twenty
five and One-half hours extra each week.
This brings Smiths labor check receipts
for the week up to a total of 1854
hours. This is the capital out of which
his single expenditure shall be for cloth
ing and furniture in the house-a week.
ly balance with all bills paid Of $3.71,
calculated in the coin of the country,
but equal to twice that amount when
figured in the purchasing power of the
scrip of Ruskin. Ruskin scrip buys
twice as much at the community store
as United States money will, since the
man who buys with the scrip gets the
advantage of the wholesale price, plus
the labor of the man behind the coun-
ter. He who buys with coin buys at
the wholesale price, plus the customary
profit which the middle man adds.
R,Ic
in his new world is not the cent or the
dollar, but the hours labor Things do
not cost so many cents in Ruskin. They
cost so many hours labor, and the cur
rency is prepared in denominations Of
hours of labor. The smallest scrip is
one-half hour. There Is then the one
hour note, the two hour note, and along
the scale to the highest denomination
the ten hour note, or a days labor. He
holds them in the house or puts them in
the vaults Of the association. He will
not take cash for them unless he wants
to make an excursion into foreign parts
say to Dixon City or Nashville. If ne
offers cash at the store he finds rne
price has doubled on him. If he wants
a shave he finds the barber will charge
him in cash the price of the outside
world-not the half hour check, which
has a face value of only cents.
A UTOPIAN GENERAL STORE.
Ruskin's general store has probably
the most unique prt-e list in this coun-
try. 1t is as bad as Greek to the man
on the outside, but perfectly plain to the
UtOpian. I saw a broom marked 35
cents, the price to the native. 1t had
on the other side of the ticket 12h
hours. There Is 10 cents difference be-
TWEEN the two prices. the latter repre-
senting the exact cost plus the store
keepers time, and the former represent
ing the cost price and the customary
price Of the merchant. The natives do
not understand the values of the Ruskin
hour in dollars and cents, and it hap
pened that two women buying the same
tea at the same time-one a native and
one a socialist-paid two prices, and the
socialist housekeeper was the only one
who knew what a bargain she was get
ting over the native woman. This Is