Year: 1870

The St. Crispins of Massachusetts have for
mally announced through the action of their
Grand Lodge that they will no longer resort
to strikes, but will hereafter rely upon coop
Grafton as means of resisting the tyranny of
capital and promoting their own interests.
1t is not improbable that this action may
have for its proximate cause the wise counsel
which Thomas Hughes gave the workingmen
during his stay here, especially in his farewell
speech at Cooper Institute. "Tom Brown"
was formerly SO identified with the more radi-
cal schemes for the emancipation of labor
that he was almost regarded as revolution
ary communist. But he and his English col
leagues have from their own experience
reached the conclusion that the more violent
means of resisting the encroachments of cap
ital, such as strikes and the espionage, exclu-
siveness and oppression of trades unions, are
not SO eficacious as the more moderate but
more practicable combinations of working
people for carrying on their business in entire
independence of their former employers
How successful many cooperative associa-
SA0AAS nav bCVOuC Ill EIlSlduu, WuCiC CuCJ diC
no longer novelty, all the world knows. The
fact that they can be made remunerative is
we'll established, and their sphere of useful
ness is every day enlargng and embracing
greater numbers of trades and employments.


In this country cooperation is yet in its in
fancy, though there are few assoc iations in
successful operation. In this State we believe
that there is at the present time but a single
association of this kind organized for manu-
featuring purposes. L This one is on very
small scale. A few shomakers at GetchelPs
Corner, Vassalboro, who have no connection
with the Crispins, began last spring to work
on the cooperative plan. This little company
which has often been mentioned in these COL
umns, becomes extremely important from the
fact of its taking the initiative here in a move
ment that has in it such immense possibilities
At last accounts its prospects were good, its
aim being to gain such reputation by the
excellence of Its work as to save the necessity
of seeking market. Twenty years ago "un-
ion stores" were established in various parts
of Maine, but only few scattered companies
continue in business, if indeed they have not
become wholly extinct. In these stores the
cooperative principle was only partly recog-
nized. The shareholders were not exclusively
laboring men, and only feeble effort was
made to insure their success But we hope
that new and vigorous impulse has now
been sivenlto the movement.


When once co operation has obtained firm
foothold it is impossible to tell where it will
end or what social, industrial. and political
changes it, will gradually bring about. 1t is
perhaps not extravagant to hope that by this
means may be accomplished all that is best in
the agrarian, socialist and communist theo.
ries that have in almost all ages Of the world
had earnest supporters. Fourier and st. ST.
mon and other speculative philosophers nev,
er saw their ideal society established and
none will ever be built on the exact model
furnished by them. But if co operation ex-
tends, as it may naturally do, till it embraces
all kinds of manufacture and, in fact, all man
ual labor excep. direct personal attendance
upon others, the time may come when the
present atrocious monopoly of capital by in
dividuals will be impossible-whent there shall
be no longer human being needs to appre-
hend the terrors of cold, starvation and all
the fearful consequences, moral and physical,
OF absolute desttution. So much, at least,
ought in some way to be accomplished, if the
idea of a community of good remains always
an idle dream.