Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1913-03-21

l
passed series of laws to facilitate
cooperative organization of the
farmers business. 1t has further in
structed the State University at Madi-
son, which has done splendid work in
the promotion of better farming" to
supplement that work with the teach
ing of better business" There has
recently been added to the economic
faculty new professorship which is
to specialize in cooperation and mar
keting. / was there few weeks
ago and found the governor, many
prominent members of his govern
ment and legislature and the author
tiles of the university discussing a
question of vital Importance about
scheme. On that question | must
here say a few words.
Among the heads of inquiry which
have been read out to us, one, relat-
ing to the respective functions of
government and voluntary initiative
in promoting a better organization
of the farmers business raises a
very important question. In Ireland
we found it necessary to invent
new type of social service associa-
ton to deal with this matter The
Irish Agricultural Organization So
ciety, as it is called, is a philan-
thropic association with the sole
function of advising farmers,
| through a corps of trained organic
ers, how to form themselves into
cooperative societies. | have al
ready alluded to the distinction be-
tween the joint stock organization
and the cooperative organization.
| The former everyone understands
the latter is not only not understood
in this country, but is at the present
time so alien to all the business ira
| ditiOns and habits of thought of
English speaking peoples that it
needs a regular campaign of educa-
| ton to induce farmers to adopt it.
When farmers have once tried the
| system, provided they are properly
instructed in it's somewhat compll-
Gated and unfamiliar details, they
never give it up, and, after GER
tain number of agricultural COM
munities have acted comparatively,
they will need no further assistance
of this character. Indeed, in Ire
land the societies formed by the CEN
trail organizing body affiliate with
the parent society and they gradual
| ly get control of it's work. There
are grave objections to employing
the general taxpayers money in this
work unless in exceptionally poor
communities. In England and in
| Scotland the Irish example has been
| followed and agricultural organiza-
tion societies upon the Irish model
| have been formed. l am hopeful
the urgent need for an American
Agricultural Organization society, or
some analogous philanthropic idea,
will be recognized by one of your
great benevolent trusts. But the
movement is essentially a self-help
movement, that is, movement for
evoking the spirit of self-help and
making it effective through organi-
zatfon. If this work has to be taken
up by governments, quite apart from
the political trouble which may arise,
the spirit of self-help is likely to be
weakened. Experience shows that
once people get their hands into the
taxpayers pocket it is very difficult
to get them out again.
Those who agree with the general
tenor of my remarks in regard to
| the neglect of the rural side of our
civilization will, l am sure, feel that
the time has come when, out of the
abundant resources of American al
truism, there should be established
a rural social service which would
| be in some measure a counterpart
for the bountifully endowed social
| service which has effected marvel
GUS improvements in the moral and
physical condition of the city popu-
lations. / can not conceive a more
practical object for philanthropic eff
fort at this moment than the estab-
lishment and endowment of trust
whose duty shall be to take the in
itiative in bringing about the reor-
ganization of the farmers business,
which l have attempted to show is
calculated to counterfeit one of the
worst tendencies of the present day,
commonly called the rural exodus.
l believe that the particular work we
are discussing could in a period of
not more than single decade, reach
a point where the farming communi-
/ ftnc 81 N.Ir