Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1902-04-23
Cooperation Pays.

The great captains of industry all
over the country are rapidly coming
to acknowledge the fact that the in
terests of capital and labor, being 50
close and dependent one upon the
other, must be conducted on liberal
lines rather than in d spirit of compe-
titiOn. Events of recent occurrence
STOW that the great organizations of
the future will be built on the idea
that the interest of each part is the
interest of ali and that some portions
of the profit should be shared in some
way directly or indirectly, among
every individual concerned. This
sort of religion is being preached by
the greatest financierS of the country
and of the world and indicates the
natural trend of business along a sane
and sensible basis.
In Kansas one OF the greatest in
duStries has been organized upon
these lines. The Continental Cream
cry company on January ], adopted
plan Of cooperation with their pa
irons on large scale. Their business
had been fairly lucrative under the
old system, but the new was adopted
in recognition of it's right and propri-
ETY. and also with the knowledge that
with the mutual good will engendered
by the profit sharing idea, their busi-
ness would grow more and more rapid
ly. The arrangement, however, was
a rather hazardous experiment. Tt
has now been in progress about three
months and on being asked today
as to the result Mr.. J. S. Parks, presi-
dent Of the company, said:
Our prott-sharing plan is rapidly
proving itself an unqualified success.
The more generally it is understood
the more popular it becomes: The
plan is very simple. The prices we
pay for butter fat are absolutely out
Of our hands. We have arranged
matters SO we cannot control the
price. We base the price every day
upon the New York market, paying
always two and one half cents less
than the quoted price. Then we ask
the patrons to pay the actual running
eXpences of the Swimming station.
This eXpence runs from ole-half cent
to five cents per pound, according to
the amount OF milk received at the
station. 1t takes about the same
labor and expense to manufacture
10000 pounds Of butter as it does to
make 100000 pounds. If we receive
10000 pounds of milk per day at the
station it takes very little more labor
and expense to handle it than if we
were receiving LOCO. So the running
expens c OF the station is in the hands
of the patron. He gets all the profit
gained by the greater quantity of
milk received. With every pound of
milk received there is correspond
ing decrease in the cost per pound for
handling and the patron gets all the
saving. Under the arrangement, it is
my expectation that when matters
get settled down to an even basis, our
patrons will be getting regularly only
three cents less than the New York
market price.
The farmers of the west are gradually
coming to see their greatest profit
after all is not from their fields direct
The Horse Useful, and Beef Steer and
His Sister, the Helpful Hen and other
good things of the farms are getting
more and more attention, but the
Humble Cow is rapidly proving her
self the greatest money maker of
them all.
Cooperation is not new thing in
Kansas. Cooperation in the cream
cry business dates back a decade or so.
But the plan has failed more times
than it has succeeded. Wherever it
has failed the fault has not been
with the management, CT from lack
of support. but from the fact that
there was no surity of profitable
outlet for the product. The capital
was small, the market variable, and
the field limited. Cooperation was
the pray of other interests and could
not defend itself.
Whatever has been lacking to make
the cooperative idea success; what
ever was needed to bring the profit
sharing business to a permanent and
paying basis, the Continental Cream
cry company have supplied. We are
able with our larger facilities. grasp
of the market and immense avenues
OF outlet, to dispose of every pound of
our product at good price, while if
we were smaller or broken up into
little companies, We would do little or
nothing.
We have been accused of being an
octopus and of attempting to control
the market. | want to say that it is