Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1912-05-30
COOPERATION IS
LARGELY 4 MYTH
When Capitalists Speak of II
They Usually Mean Non
Competition.
Rv q. c. EoRREs.


NEW YORK, May 30.-Co-o operation in
this country instead of being founded on
the Golden Rule, is too often of the pinch
beck order. 1t seldom rings true. 1t is
usually one-sided. Cooperation should
work, not one way. but both ways-for
the benefit of the buyer as well 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 co-opera tion instead of
competition do not mean the Golden Rule
kind of cooperation; 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 cooperation likely to
lasto 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 a certain
class of merchandise 1t means. as rule,
the organization Of societies for the sup
plying of goods TO members and for the
division of all the profits to the purchas-
ing members. ! have in mind one very
important concern which, from modest
beginnings III lIle IGldll uciNp mas SioNfAi
into an enormous enterprise. including
wholesale distribution, manufacturing, i'm
porting. etc 1t is real co. operative So
ciety All the Profits are distributed
among those who have contributed to
them. not to d handful Of directors or cap
italists
cooperative stores are being founded
in an transformations way in New York
The spirit of thrift waich at last is gain
ing some ground in this country, is cal
culated TO stimulate the movement
Had not our capitalists who preach co
operation" better give some thought to
what constitutes genuine effort of that
kind? Is it not time that they realized
that corporation 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 yard long is not anything to
brag about Rather is II a species or
xelishness. selhshness on 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-operatlon
a less gathering word should he used
The anthracite producers operate
in the capitalistic sense of the word
Well, we have just been treated to a hne
specimen of their handiwork. They an
7ounce that they must tighten the screws
uuon housenolders because II they at
tempt to so treat the corporations, the
factories, the big workshops, that con
sumo part of their product, competition
he
Think of 1t, Their unblushing plea put
in plain terms. is this:
The big people. the corporate con
suners. would resent an advance in
anthracite prices They would use
bituninous Therefore, in order that
we may not anita gonize them, we have
doubled the advance 10 the ordinary
householder because he has no way
of escape, because he is a our mercy.
No more untimely and impohte ecoLom-
&c blunder has been committed in many
dav. The twenty-five cent advance does
not end the matter so far es the con
sumner is concerted That is the addi
ton made by the closely organized mine
owners How much profit the retailer
will demand remains to be seen. a coal
man with whom | talked last evening
explained that as the retailer would have
10 employ more capital to handle giveh
number Of tons clearly he would have
TO add something to the twenty five cent.
In Justice to this authority l should add
that he strongly advocated a restriction
of the producers increase in price to ten
cents per ton instead of twenty five cents.
He characterized the action taken as an
likely to lead to trouble for everybody in
the business
Were given to prophecy, I would fore
cast an early abolition of the twenty
five cent advance. Are the anthracite
n1ineowuers large enough to reconsider
their action If not they are not likely
TO remain as great a power as they are
now. Trey will, of a certainty, have their
wings clipped They are flying too high.