Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1912-05-30
COOPERATION IS
LARGELY A MYTH
When Capitalists Speak of It
They Usually Mean Nom
Competition.
BY 3. c. FORBES

NEW YORK, May S0.-Co-opera ton in
this country instead Of being founded on
the Golden Rule, is too often of the pinch
beck order / seldom rings true 1t is
usually one sided Cooperation should
work. not one way. but both ways-for
the benefit of the buyer as wen as the
seller for the consumer as well as the
producer Here the consumer is left out
of account in most cases. The capitalists
who plead for cooperation instead Of
competition do not mean the Golden Rule
kind of operation they mean coop
Grafton only among themselves-to pro-
tect themselves without any regard what
ever to the poor, defenseless user Of their
products
Is this brand OF CO. operation likely to
last? Does it deserve to last? Weighed
in the scales OF Justice the advantages
are nearly all at one end of the beam
In other lands cooperation does not
mean the banding together of the prin
cipal producers or sellers OF certain
class Of merchandise. 1t means. as rule,
the organization of societies for the sup
tplNing Of goods to members and for the
division of all the profits to the purchas-
ing members l have in mind one very
important concern which, from modest
btElulllll6S III Tue ItNdii Heits H69 stgNA
into an enormous enterprise, including
wholesale distribution. manufacturing, i'm
porting etc 1t is a real cooperative So
ciety All the profits are distributed
among those who have contributed to
them not to a handful of directors or cap
italists.
Coz operative stores are being founded
in an transformations way in New York.
II, .yrt4 .t-f lee L. oatr
ing some ground in this country, Is cal
culsted 10 stimulate the movement
Had not our capitalists who preach Co
operation" better give some thought TO
what constitutes genuine effort Of that
kind? Is il not time that they realized
that cooperation instituted solely for
the benefit of their own class, with scant
regard for the consumer, is not worthy
OF their better selves? Cooperation
which is only eighteen inches when it
should be a yard long is not anything to
brag about Rather is 1t a species of
selhshness. selfshness on a grand scale.
When capitalists combine merely to fur
Their their own interests, to SO entrench
themselves that they have the public at
their mercy, then instead Of bestowing
upon such action the term Co operation,
less fattering word should be used
The anthracite producers cooperate
in the capitalistic sense Of the word
Wei. we have Just been treated to fine
specimen Of their handlwork. They an
lounce that they must tighten the screws
upon housanolders because II they at
TEMPT ia so treat the corporations, the
factories. the big workshops, that con-
sumo part Of their product competition
from soft coal would he encountered
Think of it, Their unblushing plea, put
in plain terms. is this:
The big people the corporate con-
sumers, would resent an advance In
anthracite prices. They would use
bituminous Therefore. in order that
we may not antagonize them, we have
doubled the advance to the ordinary
householder because he has no way
Of escape, because he is at our mercy
No more untimely and mpolite ecorom-
ic blunder has been committed in many
dav. The twenty five cent advance does
not end the matter so far as the con
sumner is concerted That is the add
tion made by the closely organized mine
owners How much profit the retailer
will demand remains 10 be seen. A coal
man with whom | talked last evening
explained that as the retailer would have
to employ more capital to handle given
number of tons. clearly he would have
10 add something to the twenty-five cent.
In Justice TO this authority / should add
that he strongly advocated restriction
Of the producers increase in price to ten
cents per ton instead of twenty-five cents.
He characterized the action taken as I'M
likely to lead to trouble for everybody in
the business.
Were given TO prophecy. would fore
cast an early abolition Of The twenty
five cent advance Are the anthracite
mineowners large enough to reconsider
their action II not. they are not likely
to remain as great power as they are
now They viii, of a certainty. have their
wings clipped They are flying too high.