Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-09-05


Working On . scheme to organize n
preserving and canning club.
three or four months for payment To
such we would have 10 arrange fol
some plan of advances, either out oil
any surplus in hand or bv r"rr''"d'na
members who could afford to do SO to
leave money on deposi. mitn -. $50
citation. 1t might be necessary to
charge q small rate of interest for ad-
vances, and to pay a corresponding
rate of interest to money left on de
posit by request of the governing COM
mittee.
This thing of credit to our own mem
bers might be extended to point
where 1t would be a very great bene-
At to the community. 1t would hardly
business. lending money on mortgage
or Endorsed notes, but ! can't see any
good reason why we should not make a
safe advance to help grow a crop, the
sale OF which through the association
was pledged. 1t would give us more
and better produce to market. and
there are many men struggling to
make a living from a few acres of
land to whom $50 or 500 in ready cash
at the right time would spell the diff
ference between success and failure.
A Logical Line Of Credit.
Even should it be decided that we
ought not to advance money except
where q credit had been established by
the actual delivery and sale of produce.
the association certainly ought to ex-
tend credit for seed and fertilizer to
grow tina crops It expects to sell There
would be the same moral reinforce
ment to credit here as In the case of
the circle OF housewives. A dishonest
man might get credit at the store Tor
seed and fertilizer and then fail to pay
the bill after he had sold his CROPS.
But q man who would get credit from
his nefghbors by pledging to sell his
crop through their association and
then would sell 1t else where and re-
fuse to pay his bill would certainly find
future existence in that community un.
done once In ten thousand times.
" course. both In the circles of house.
wives and In our association. there
would be involved in the question of
credit the possibility of illness and death
or other misfortunes. But that posi-
bility enters into every relation of human
life. Where failure Of payment resulted
from such cause. there would be moth
Ing to do except for those who had
originally united to assume the RESPONSE
bility to continue united in standing the
loss. 1t Is hardly within the range of
possibility, either In the circles of house
wives or IN our association. that losses
resulting from such causes would equal
the direct cash benefits derived from the
cooperative plan.
With either store of our own In
Washington or selling to housewives
circles. there would be the problem OF
surplus products to contend with Ii
would be easier Of solution. probably.
with the housewives circles plan. But
even under the most favorable condi-
tons, 1t Is going to be a hard nut to
crack.
Problem in Round Figures.
Let US take some round numbers to
serve as an illustration. We will assume
that orders on a Tuesday from house
wives circles amount to 100 dozen eggs.
100 pounds of butter, 100 quarts of straw
berries and LOO dozen ears of corn. Mem
bers Of the association bring 10 the depot
Tuesday afternoon 30 dozen eggs. 20G
pounds of butter, 20U quarts of straw
berries and 2UO dozen ears OF corn. Nat
ural.y, those in charge at the depot are
going to pick out the best eggs and but
ter and strawberries and corn to send
to the housewives, because they are Jay
ing the association its lest prices. The
surplus would have to be shipped to q
commission house to be sold on the open
market or disposed Of in some other
manner at lower price.
Now. how are the proceeds going TO
be distributed? II the butter came from
a cooperative creamery it would involve
no problem. But suppose Jones had
brought fifty quarts Of high-grade straw
berries and Smith fifty quarts Of poor
quality. while Brown brought 100 quarts
OF medium grade. Jones titty quarts. OF
course, would go to the housewives and
Smiths fifty quarts would certainly go
to the commission man. Half of Browns
mediums would be needed to ill the
house wives order, while the other half
would go with Smiths berries to the gen
eral market II the difference in quail
able, returns might be distributed ac-
cording to quality without serious dis
sension, but it would be skating on thin
ice.
To make an extreme case: Suppose
the 200 dozen cars of corn were fur
nished by fifty members. each bringing
four dozen ears. The best 100 dozen
ears would go to the housewives and
the rest to the commission man. There
never in the world could be settle
ment there according TO quality. Set
Element would have to be on the basis
of the average price. If day after day
Smith took to the depot corn he knew
to be far superior to that furnished
by Jones. how long do you suppose
Smith would be satisfied to accept the
average price?
Strong Management Needed.
80, you see, our end of the game
isn't going to be an easy one by any
means. There must be q strong man
agement and unanimous confidence in
that management sufficiently strong to
accept decisions that are often arbi-
trary. If this strength and confidence
are lacking the association isn't going
to travel very far on the road to CO.
operative prosperity. If the thing can
be made a success 1t will be a triumph
Of faith over human nature.
If any reader is disposed to complain
because this letter doesn't dea! with
our personal doinYs at Sunny Knoll let
him bear in mind that our adventure
from its inception was divided into
two parts One was the part of going
back to the soil, and the other was
the part of reducing the cost of living.
Originally 1t was, the cost of our own
living we hoped to reduce, but II it
should work out TO help reduce the
cost of your living. certainly you
ought not to complain.
Things are humming at Sunny Knoll
and these truly be busy days. But
there il no news that will not keep
until another time. +. >. M
Raised a nouht