The independent. [volume] (Lincoln, Neb.) 1902-1907, 1906-01-11
No Cooperation For This Man

No Cooperation For This Man
Omaha Neb., Dec. 3O.-To the Editor of The
Independent: 1t was with feelings of anstonish-
ment | read Tin your December % issue) your
editorial advocacy of cooperation carried
in Great Britain You depict glOwngly an ideal
situation, but the fellow who has gone through
the cooperative" mill in Great Britain knows
that it's one Of the hugest Steals" that ever af-
ficted the old country. It's rascally system of
exclusive dealings"
The cooperative movement is as rotten and
pernicous as the Mutual or the Equitable insur-
ance fakes. Operating under the Friendly
cietys act 1t is exempt from that taxation fall
ing upon all legitimate businesses This fact is
of itself evidence of the manifest unfairness Of
cooperation" trading concern. It's an
ganized hypocrisy and in its democracy 1t is thor
Oughy abstract You say "the cooperative con-
Germ Is managed according to an ideal'-it's moth
ing OF the kind. 1t passed from the ideals of the
Rochdae pioneers score of years ago. You say
there is no watering of stocks and sales OF
watered stocks to gullable purchases"-there's
even worse, there's an unconscionable Soaking"
OF prices, and sublime Indifference to values-cO-
operators themselves cannot gainsay this. In the
end this Is even more devsh than watering
stocks.
The observing visitor to Great Britain can
not fail to impressed with the dire malicious
ness of cooperation" in every CITY, town and
hamlet throughout the United Kingdom
Art in modern retailing is stifed and killed
Retail merchandising itself, j. e. private trad
ing, with It's healthy competition is threatened
with extinction. One cooperative retail store in
any district will do as much business as ten or
dozen shops" The institution of the "coopera
tive" store has been known to close dozen flour
shing retail stores, not one of which ever at
tempted extortionate profits. Is this promoting
of competition? Is this an ideal situation? See
how property suffers decrease in value, how
thousands of people thrown idle and left idle
with no apprecable gain for anybody but the
officers and "harpies' of the cooperative move
fxrhn cta nlarJ
of Walsh
Not only has retail merchandising suffered
but manufacturing and jobbing we'll The Co
operative system has its soap works, it's to-
bacco works its preserving factories and all the
ef ceteras for manufacture required. The money
back of such is used by section of the COM
mnnity, "the cooperators;" it's in nature pre-
scribed, and because of this it is of no service
whatever to the common good
In the west of Scotland especially, the i'll
effects OF this system are evident as the
mighty hills; shoe factories, established genera
tons ago have been compelled to shut down and
their workers driven to the large cities to swell
the ranks of the eternal unemployed.
Do not start in, sir, to advocate the estab-
lishment of this system in this country; it is an
Illogical method of merchandising positively cruel
in its operations It's huge delusion from every
point OF view. Although adjunct of trade
unionism, the Cooperative societies of Great
Britain and Ireland are seldom free from strikes
and lockouts!
| write who has had experience as
one capable of looking at any economic problem
dspassonately and am rather surprised that
you should rush into an editorial advocacy of
system that has been found lacking Other
methods for checking the evils of the American
trust had better be resorted too than the estab-
lishment of cooperation" of the British sort.
WILLIAM KENNEDY
Causes Of Better Times
PASADENA Gal Dae Tho E,;io, 90 III