The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1904-09-19
COOPERATION GROWS.
Fifty Thousand Societies Now
Organized In America.
STORES ON THE ROOHDALE PLAN

Estimated That one-fourth of the
Total Population OF the Country Is
Interested = Especially strong In
the West-Pacifc Coast the Pioneer.
A few years ago the fruit producers
of California, or at any rate In many Of
the small towns and villages, realized
that they were getting little for their
crops, says a recent writer in the Sat
urday Evening Post. They also real
tied that they were paying far too
much for the supplies which they need
ed to conduct their business and to
i've They formed cooperative socie-
ties. They banded together to sell their
produce as one man. They bought their
supplies by the wholesale for them
selves.
Last year forty-flye societies on the
Rochdale cooperative system and rep
resenting societies from Dos Palos,
Santa Rosa, Sacramento. Oakland and
so on through all the California cen
tiers, did a business amounting to over
$150O0,000 They have formed for
themselves wholesale society in San
Francisco
In the state of Washington there are
over twenty-four successful co-opera-
tive societies on the same lines.
In Kansas there are thirty-six sue
cessfuI cooperative stores now in full
blast
In Iowa there are hundreds Of coop
erative creameries, and attention has
been already drawn all over the coun-
try to the wonderful achievements Of
the Rockwell Cooperative society.
formed OF farmers, with a membership
Of few hundred at $40 apiece, which
did a business last year OF $500, 900. or,
as they figure IT, both ways. buying
and selling. a business of $500, 900, and
at cost Of less than per cent.
a western federation Of miners has
run four quasi cooperative stores at
Cripple Greek, colo; the mill men Of
Monessen, Pa. have started co-opera-
tive store; the Cooperative Creamery
association of Utica, Mich, did busi-
ness of 100000 pounds Of butter last
year, bringing an average of % cents
pound; the labor unions of Denver
have organized cooperative store;
the people of Elwood, Ind, have sub
scribed shares for a cooperative coal
company and have already saved 10
per cent on their coal; Deposit, N ",
has d cooperative store OH the same
lines as those of Delphi and Port Jer-
Wis. The last named has accumulated
and paid in profits 100000 in the last
twenty-five years; Montana has CO..
operative ranch with 600 shareholders
scattered all over the United States,
nearly 100 Of whom are women; EN-
ployees Of the Chicago and Alton rail-
way have a cooperative society in
Bloomington, ILL., the labor unions of
South Omaha. Neb have established
q cooperative store; the Farmers Sup
ply company is a new cooperative SO
clety Of Anita, Ia: Milwaukee has now
a large cooperative department store,
and a great cooperative enterprise Is
spoken Of for the establishment Of
branch cooperative stores in various
parts Of the country; the employees Of
the shipyards at Newport News, Va,
have started a cooperative store; the
miners of Ohio have by unanimous
vote decided to open several co-opera-
tive stores; Lansing, Mich, has a CO.
operative association with capital
stock Of $4,000
The Central Pomona Exchange at
Syracuse. N. X, and others at Herki-
mer, Little Falls and other places are
doing well.
The railway men at Parsons, Kan,
have started cooperative store. The
farmers Of Albert Lea, Mimi, now
have a cooperative store. The farm
ers Of Manitowoc, Wis, have lately
established cooperative store. The
unions OF the Black Hills district of
South Dakota have started co-opera-
tive store at Lead, s. D. Lake Lin
den society Of Lake Linden, Mich,
has just declared it's fourth annual
dividend OF ~ per cent on purchases
and per cent on shares, to be divided
among AIS members.
Most of the stores now being estab-
lished are on the Rochdale system.
Membership is obtained by purchase Of
shares at So or $40 apiece, which is
used as fund to buy supplies in guam
tity, and the profits made out Of the
saving effected by buying In quantity
are divided among the members ac-