The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1923-07-26

JOIN HANDS
IN ENGLAND
British Householder Is Thus
Distinguished From Ameri-
can Brother,
BY MILTON BRONNER
NEA Serp{ce STAFF Writer

NEA Service STAFF Writer
ONDON, July 26.-The big
thing in the life of the English
- householder that distinguishes
him from the American is the fact
ing he joins with other consumers to
try to tighten the burden of the cost
of living.
In America we are familiar with
workmen cooperating to get better
wages. hours and working conditions.
We also are familiar with EMPLOYERS
banding together to present a COM
mon front TO labor and to watch their
interests in legislatures and Congress.
But American consumers of goods
have not yet learned to band together
as the English.
The English cooperative movement
has passed the experimental stage. 1t
is huge success. 1t is a permanent
feature OF British life.
In Nearly Every City
Practically every city and big town
in England has its cooperative re-
tall society. And they flourish
nightly in proportion to the popula-
ton, with exception of London.
London is so vast. shops are so
many and the working class so scat
tered. 1t is only in the suburbs
where the workers live the coopera.
tives make themselves felt For up
to now it must be underlined that
the cooperative movement IS still
a fV,e afn
Once the retail cooperative society
has been successfully launched its
next step is to apply to the Coopera-
tive Wholesale Society for member
ship. It is essential for 1t to do this
so that 1t can buy the goods it needs
from the G.. w. S. and thus avoid
having to deal with the manufactur.
ers or wholesalers who are more or
less hostile to the cooperative move
ment
Must Buy Shares
The retail society upon becoming a
member in the c. w. S. must buy the
s25 shares Of the latter upon the
basis OF one share for every two
members 1t has on It's rolls. The
retail society can buy these on time
If 1t wants to. just as it's members
buy their shares by weekly pay
ments. The c. w. s. shares also pay
per cent dividend. And the G. w.
S. after all expenses are paid, divides
the unexpended profits by pro-rating
them to the retail societies in proper
ton to their yearly purchases.
In a retail society the direction of
%1f- - . he D.
to a committee elected by the mem
bers, each having one vote. The re-
tail societies in turn elect the direc-
tors Of the Cooperative Wholesale So
ciety. each retail society having one
vote for every 500 members or frac-
ton thereof.
Employ 10000 Persons
The retail societies Of England last
year employed over 40, 400 persons
in their shops They had share
and loan capital OF over $50 million
dollars and their sales amounted to
over 800 million dollars per annum.
1t is claimed by the cooperatives
the first thing that happens when
they start a shop in a new town is
that all the old shops Immediately
revise their prices downward, the
consumers OF the whole town thus
getting the benefit Of the new opposi-
ton.
But the cooperative shops do not
seek to draw customers by making
extensive cuts as compared with the
old-line places. They try to give a
satisfactory article for the price and
to protect the customer from the
tricks of the spectators in greai food
commodities.