The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1914-06-03

Copenhagen, Denmark. Co-opera-
ton is not foolproof, consequently 1t
does not always succeed. I~nexperi-
ence, incompetence, and dishonesty
will wreck any private business and
they will, Of course, wreck any CO.
operative business. It is necessary
therefore, for enthusiasts to remem-
Der that there is no mystic virtue in
cooperation which enables it to tri-
umph at all times. Those Of us who
are trying to record what we have
seen of cooperative business at home
and in Europe, would not be treating
the public fairly If we left the i'm
preston that there are no failures
among cooperative enterprises.
Both at home and abroad there have
been many failures. Certainly those
interested are entitled to know as
much about its failures as about it's
%uccesse They are entitled to know
also what causes have led to co-opera-
tive failure.
Failures In America.
Many cooperative stores organized
with much promise have failed. Gen.
orally speaking gross Incompetence
has wrecked them. They are like
other mercantile establishments in
that they demand, as a condition
precedent to success, skilled manage
ment. good business methods, good &C
counting, cautious extension Of credit,
as well as some special knowledge Of
the goods dealt in. If these qualities
are absent failure is inevitable. AS
1.-THE average cooperative store in
America is organized its members are
seldom bound by any agreement to
do all their trading at the cooperative
concern. They %patronize 1t when 1t Is
to their interest 80 to do. If the goods
offered are poor, or If bad manage
ment advances the price unduly, or If
frequent minor mistakes occur, the
members abandon the venture like a
sinking ship.
AS I have said, cooperative stores
in order to succeed must have skilled
management, good business methods,
good accounting systems, and must ex-
tend credit cautiously, all in addition
to the special knowledge essential in
every such enterprise. So far as l can
discover, however, the stores which
have failed have not only lacked one
or two Of these essentials of success
but they cen often to have lacked all
Of them. More than once it has hap
pened that q cooperative store COM
pany is formed because some store
keeper has lost all his money in an
unsuccessful mercantile venture and
can secure capital for a new venture
only in this way. Sometimes an am
bilious farmer has organized a COM
pany In order that a son who has been
away to business college and feels
above farming may have a chance to
earn a living without working upon
the farm. 1t is characteristic also Of
cooperative American stores-and of
other cooperative concerns in Ameri-
ca also-that they have seldom been
willing to pay a salary sufficient to
secure men Of experience and skill as
managers.
When a cooperative store managed
by a mar who has a history Of moth.
ing but business failures behind him,
or by a youthful and inexperienced
business college graduate, or by any
other man Of the low grade implied in
the low salaries paid, comes into COM
petition with a competent, u%p-to-date,
American storekeeper of the aggres'
sive vigorous type often found in even
the smaller towns, the mere word "co-
operative" upon the sign in front OF
the store Is not going to avert failure.
It isn't fair to expect too much Of Co
operation.
Cooperative Fruit Failures.
Seldom, too, have so-called Ameri.
can cooperative companies been CO
operative in the true sense Of the
word. I have in mind n cooperative
fruit marketing society which failed
largely because it was organized on
the joint stock basis and administered
as are other homeopathic corpora.
lions. A few Of the larger s%harehold'
ers controlled 1t. The interests of the
minority were ignored. They became
jealous and suspicious and accused
those in control of dishonesty. Finally
they demanded that the officers give
a full report of all their financial
transactions and that an auditing com
mittee be appointed. The officers fool,
ishly and arbitrarily refused to con-
cede ever an audit unless they them
selves selected the committee. Then
these smaller storekeepers demanded
that the one mar vote principle be
applied so that for the future they
might protect their own interests
This also was denied them. The only
course possible seemed to be a separa'
ton and the smaller stockholders
withdrew, the larger stockholders
buying out those who did not care to
stay in the concern. While this socie'
ty did not fail from a financial stand
point. its record is Of course to be