Evening star., 1934-10-23
To the Editor of The Star:

To the Editor OF The Star:
James Truslow Adams recently
made an analogy between the giant
dinosaurs that roamed this continent
millions of years ago and the huge
industrial combines, and more par
ticularly the holding corporations,
that have sprung up during recent
years. The dinosaurs enormous
weight and physical strength ap-
peared to be a negative factor. Too
colossal to be efficient and manage
able, once mired in the swamps, they
were unable to extract themselves
because of their sheer bulk and
passed from the scene. The belief is
expressed that the huge combines
and mergers are more frequently
finding themselves in the position OF
being unable to grapple with the fac
tors that are closing in on them
public opinion and resentment against
their monopolistic trends, fabulous
profits, watered stock and control OF
purely local businesses held by a
handful of men in some distant city.
The two hundred and twenty five
million-dollar combination that con-
trolls the milk supply of the District
and in many other large cities ap-
pears to be doomed to follow the fate
of the dinosaur. Its size was never
a great asset and has become less so
during the past eighteen months. Its
millions and political strength will
be of no avail to control or stem the
tide that is moving slowly to force it
to disband.
1t is said that few men are capable
of managing these mammoth enter
prises. From the reports Of the Fed
eral Trade Commission in its in
vestigation of "milk-holding corpo-
rations" the layman can come to no
other conclusion than that they are
manned by mere money getters and
traders, bent more on earnings than
on rendering public service, more on
obtaining power and wealth than
upon adhering to the philosophy OF
live and let live and contentment
with a reasonable share OF the con-
sumer's dollar.
To rectify the unsatisfactory milk
situation in Washington it has been
proposed to form C0nSumer-pro
ducer cooperative association where
by ways and means will be provided
for the consumer to deal directly
with the producer of milk, profit as
we know it to be eliminated from the
distribution end of the business; a
venture where only two parties are
concerned, the buyer of milk for con-
sumption and the farmer who pro-
duceS the milk. 1t is claimed saving
of twenty to thirty per cent will be
recorded in behalf of the consumer by
direct dealing.
Louis Brandeis, justice OF the Su-
preme Court, is strong advocate OF
cooperative buying and marketing,
believing that the philosopy behind
collective action on the part of con-
sumers is practical and the only
democratic method to employ to
break the trusts" that have sue
ceeded in creating monopolistic busi-
nesses and forcing the unorganized
consumer to pay unreasonable prices.
State colleges across the country
devote considerable time in teaching
the science of cooperative buying
and marketing. Yet flrst-hand &C
quaintance with the philosophy OF
consumer cooperative action by the
people of the United States Is COM
paratively unknown. In England the
idea got under way during a period
similar to the one in which we are
now passing and has succeeded be-
yond the fondest expectations of the
original founders. To say that they
were driven to it by the greed exer-
cised by big business and monopolies
would, I believe, be putting 1t cor
rectly. One thing is certain-it was
not o fade" They took the movement
with great seriousness and the prime
movers have to this day been con.