The Meeker herald., 1919-03-15
ECONOMIC EVILS
MUST Be CURED
Catholic Council Points Out D.
fects n Present System and
Advocates Cooperative
Reforms.

Advocates Cooperative
Reforms.
Gcorfng the evils Of monopoly ~ Q
small minority Of privileged capitalists
and advocating cooperative stOres. CO
partnership and SUFFICIENT incomes for
the great majority Of vsge-earnerx ~
remedies for postwar economic condI-
tons In this country. the AdninIstfs-
tive COMMITTEES Of four bishops repre-
senting the hierarchy Of the Catholic
Church In America IN coodur''ng the
National Catholic War Council have
issued the following as = part Of an Of
hciai pronouncement 20 economic and
social reconstruction.
Reduction In csse u Living
During the war the cost Of living
haa risen NJ least seventy-nve per cent.
above the level Of 1918. Some check
has been placed upon the upward tread
BY government fixing Of prices In the
case Of bread and coal and few other
commodities. Even II We believe II d.
sirabie we cannot ask that the govern
ment continue this action after the n.
ticiea Of peace have been signed, for
neither public opinion nor Congress -
ready for such revolutionary policy.
II the extortionats practices Of mOnop-
oily were prevented BY adequate laws
and adequate law enforcement prices
would automatically be kept At ~ low
. level ~ that to which they might b
brought by direct govsspxent determi
nation. Just what laws In addition 70
those already on the statute books arr
necessary to abolish monopolistic Il.
tortion II q question Of detail that
need not be considered here. In pass
ing. II may he noted that government
competition with monopolies that can
not be effectively restrained BY the o..
binary antitrust laws deserves more
serious consideration than II has yet
received.
cs-sperstlvs ossrsa.
More Important and more effective
than any government regulation o:
prices would he the establishment Of
cooperative stores. The enormous toll
taken from Industry By the varioss
classes Of mIddlemen - now fully real
lied The astonishing difference b.
tween the price received BY the pro
Queer and that paid by the consumer
has become . scandal to our Industrial
system. The obvious and direct means
Of reducing this discrepancy snd sbo,-
lsh -0AAt~-u L. ~
operation Of retail and Wholesale mes-
camille concerns under the owpership
and management of the eonsumers.
This II no Utopian scheme II has
been successfully carYsed out h Eng
land and Scotland through the Roch-
dale system. Very few serious efforts
Of this kind hsvs been made In this
country because our people have NOT
felt the need Of these cooperative en-
terprises ~ keenIy A. the European
working classes and because we have
b~en too Impatient and too Individual.
istic To make the necessary sacrifices
and to he content with moderate bene-
his and gradual progress. Neverthe-
less our superior energy. Initiative and
commercial capacity will enable -
once we vet about the task earnestly
even IN surpssa what has been done b
England and Scotland.
Train - Habits q esvIW0L
I'm addition to reducing the cost ol
living. the cooperative stores would
train our working people and coe-
sumerS generally In habits Ut savinG. In
earcful expenditure. In business meth
OILS and In the capacity for co-0pera.
lion. When the working classes have
learned 10 make the sacrifices asd 10
exercise the patience required by the
ownernhip and operation Of co-opesa-
tive stores they will he equipped to un.
derfake q great variety Of tasks and
projects which beneht the community
Immediately and all its constituent
members ultimately. They will then
realize the folly Of excessive seIfsh-
ness and sens~lcss individualiam. Until
. they have acquired this knowledge.
training and capacity. desirable extea-
sIOns Of governmental action 10 indus
try Will not he attended by q normal
amount of success. No machinery Of
government can operate automatically,
and no Official and bureaucratic admin.
istrstion Of such machinery can ever
he = substitute for Intelligent Interest
and cooperation By the individuals e
the community.
Ultimate Rsferma
"DcspIse the practical and imms-
diate character Of the present state.