The Celina Democrat. (Celina, O. [Ohio]) 1895-1921, 1914-03-27


in cooperation. 1t is not a cure-all
for economic ills. Cooperative con-
Germs succeed because they employ
good business methods. In fact CO.
operative marketing is good business
and good sense and intelligence ap-
piled to farm marketing. This is the
biggest and most important lesson to
be learned in Ireland. AS Rev. Fa'
ther Finley, great believer in CO.
operation, says in an article IN the
Constructive Quarterly, That 1t has
been productive Of much material
good to those who employed its meth
ods with intelligence and energy, Is
beyond question; that It has been
barren of useful results where those
qualities were wanting is equally un-
deniable."
Cooperative marketing succeeds in
ireland because It stands for three
things: G) Good business methods
and intelligent management; t2) a
uniformly high quality of product;
CD justice, equality and loyalty
among members. without these char
acteristics cooperation fails in Ire
land and fails everywhere. These are
the lessons that Ireland has to teach
America. No group which does not in
sist upon running its cooperative con
Germ along these lines can succeed.
To tolerate poor business methods, lax
fly as TO quality, or disloyalty and in
justice to each other is to fail.
These are some things Americans
will not be required to experiment
upon, because the Irish have already
tried them out.
Simply Good Business.
Irish cooperation makes money for
farmer and city consumer alike. 1t
has succeeded in bringing the producer
and consumer nearer together The
farm products 60 directly to the city
consumer. The product arrives in
good shape. It brings only a reason
able price. The result is that city
man and farmer profit by the more
economical method Of distribution.
But cooperative marketing after all
is simply good, common sense and eff
cient business. There is nothing mys-
terious about 1t. AS we have said,
there is in it no magic. The good
cooperative marketing concerns over
here succeed because they are well
organized, we'll managed, intelligently
governed, carefully supervised; be-
cause they are simply efficient busi-
AsBa#fong ~ yrybfnh Inn r
1000 men with common occupation
and a common interest get together
for a united harmonious effort in
which every man does his full share.
Must BE Purely Democratic.
Over here 1t is always zone man
has for America is that no man and
no small group of men can be permit
ted to control any cooperative organ
ization. The principal Of one man one
vote must prevail. The man who has
invested $1,000 must have no more
voting power than the man who has
invested only $5 Men, not prop
erty vote" is another expression
used here. Under this system no man
can use the cooperative society for his
own selfish ends. The poorest farmers
attend the meetings, and If they show
ability, go upon committees and be-
come officers. The organization is
most essentially democratic.
Here in Ireland. as in America, the
yoor men who have joined co-opera-
ave concerns in which richer men
save the controlling vote, have re-
rretted it. Always the motives of
those in control are questioned and
Giscord and discomfort have ensued
&c is one man one vote or failure
Sometimes the rlaher man objects, IF
] put in more money I ought to have
more to say how it is managed" Eut
there is nothing in this contention
Human experienGe teaches us that
there is no danger that the man of
property will he disfranchised lie
never was. In political fields where
the rich man has no more voting pow
er than the poor man, the rich man
has too much influence, rather than
not enough In cooperative societies
the rich man has as little to com
plain OF as in politics The man who
Is wise and successful in his own
business has proved the leader in the
affairs Of the association by his wis
dom and the prestige Of his success.
Property has not been unduly dis
franchised in cooperative societies,
The struggle is always rather to keep
ITS power within reasonable limits
All Profits to the Producer
The purpose back Of cooperative
organization differs from that back
OF commercial enterprise 1t seeks
not to make dividends for the man
who invests mis- money, but to pro-
vide that the producer shall receive
she largest possible percentage of the
price paid by the consumer. Ireland