dispute, but that they should be willing and ready to act whenever requested. Mr. Mather further assured those whom he met, that should they resolve to constitute such Committee, he would guarantee that a fund should be provided to meet all requisite expenses, such as clerical work, printing, postages, and other items; and also the necessary travelling expenses to places in the event of a dispute. The contributors to this fund would be quite outside of the employers, or of workmen's unions or associations. These suggestions were discussed at some length, all present agreeing that they were well worthy of careful consideration, and that the proposal, placing as it did. such confidence in the representatives of labour, did credit to the large employer of labour who made it. The Labour Members subsequently met to discuss the matter amongst themselves. After a very careful consideration of the suggestion, in all its bearings, they came to the conclusion that there were many and delicate difficulties in the way of its adoption; that possibly their action might be misunderstood, and that their right thus to constitute themselves into a committee might be questioned. Under these circumstances they thought it best not to proceed further in the matter. The establishment of such Consultative Committee, therefore, remains in abeyance, in so far as those consulted are concerned; but they all appreciated the motives and intentions of the proposer, and thanked Mr. Mather for his suggestions. The incident is mentioned as showing the desire to avoid, where practicable, those conflicts which too often occur in connection with the industries of the country.

CHAPTER XII.

LABOUR AND CAPITAL IN ALLIANCE.

I. CO-OPERATION. II. INDUSTRIAL PARTNERSHIPS, OR PROFIT-SHARING.

1.-CO-OPERATION-DISTRIBUTIVE AND PRODUCTIVE.

§ 1. OF late years a great number of persons have turned their attention to co-operation, and many have arrived at the conclusion that this is the real panacea for all the ills of industrial warfare, inasmuch as it will provide a means whereby the working classes will be able to work out their own redemption. A vast amount of good has been already accomplished by cooperation, and much more will doubtless be effected. Nevertheless it must be self-evident that the whole of the commercial and trading classes will not easily be shouldered out of the way by any such combination, however rapid its strides may be, or powerful, by reason of its extent or its wealth. Moreover, there is another obstacle to its universal adoption, namely, that the working classes in the mass are not, and will not, for generations yet to come, be prepared to work out the problem, and apply the principle. Professor Fawcett once said: "Cooperation cannot succeed without calling forth many of the highest qualities of man's intellectual and moral nature." These can only be developed gradually, and therefore co-operation has been and will be of slow growth, notwithstanding the great progress made during the past thirty-five years. Hitherto it has chiefly been confined to distribution, where it has achieved enormous success; but the advocates of the movement strongly

deprecate its being so confined, and urge the adoption of the principle of associative labour in production as well as in distribution.

§ 2. Mr. Holyoake, in his "History of Co-operation," says: Co-operation, in the social sense of the word, is a new power of industry, constituted by the equitable combination of the worker, capitalist, and consumer, and a new means of commercial morality, by which honesty is rendered reproductive." This is the poetical description of it; the sounder commercial view is stated as follows: "It is the concert of many for compassing advantages impossible to be reached by one, in order that the gain made may be fairly shared by all concerned in its attainment." In this truer sense, co-operation is as yet in its infancy; there are thousands of ways in which it might be applied with advantage, but it requires faith, trustfulness, honest labour, and the capacity to wait with patience for the results. In a great number of instances where co-operation has been successfully tried the higher aims have been abandoned, and these cooperative societies have changed into mere trading companies, with little of their original features left, and absolutely nothing of a tangible character to distinguish them from other jointstock companies, except the name. The attempts to establish co-operative production by associative labour, on the principle of a division of profits amongst those who find the capital and those who work, may be considered under three heads:

§ 3. (a) Co-operation, as applied to distribution, is the purchase of goods wholesale, or in bulk, by the employment of the subscribed capital of the members; these goods are then sold in small quantities to suit the purchaser; in other words, they are retailed over the counter at such prices as will yield a profit on the capital invested, and at the same time give a good and pure article to the members, at the cheapest rate consistent with the safety of the concern, often very much cheaper than the rates charged at the ordinary retail establishments. This was the principle upon which the earlier pioneers in the movement acted, and which was for a long time adopted by most of the co-operative stores. The plan of selling cheaper was after a time nearly abandoned, the prices charged being fixed at the

same, or nearly similar rates to those in other establishments, a portion of the profits realised being carried to the account of the purchaser to the end of the quarter, when a dividend was declared on capital, and a bonus was given to purchasers in proportion to their purchases at the store. The great inducement in this case was the excellence of the goods offered for sale, especially as the prices charged did not exceed those demanded at other shops for inferior articles. The bonus declared was often a considerable sum, considering the smallness of the orders from week to week by each individual customer. But this motive did not act so powerfully at first as was expected, for many preferred a reduction on each article, rather than wait for a bonus three months hence. In process of time the element of capital began to preponderate, and the race for profits affected most of those societies precisely in the same. way, and nearly as much, as it had previously operated upon traders whom the co-operative societies were intended to supplant. The chief thing often heard at a co-operative meeting or store is the "divy" the committee are able to announce on the quarter's sales and purchases.

§ 4. This is all very well so far as it goes; it reflects great credit on the management, and is at the same time very beneficial to the members. But in what does it differ from an ordinary trading firm, except that a greater number are participators in the results? Of course this in itself is a most important matter, for if the profits are divided amongst a thousand instead of ten, the nine hundred and ninety will be all the richer in proportion to the amount which falls to their share, although the favoured ten will be less rich by having a thousandth part each instead of a tenth. This is the one great value of cooperation in the estimation of the sociologist, for society is benefited according to the greater number who share in its progress and advantages.

§ 5. The chief merits of co-operative stores over retail traders are: (1) They supply better articles than those supplied by retail shops at prices which, if not actually much lower, are certainly not dearer than those charged by the usual retail establishments. (2) After appropriating certain interest to

capital, the surplus profits are divided amongst the members and purchasers, in proportion to the amount laid out by them at the store during each quarter. (3) They assist in training the whole of their members in the practice of economy, and in developing a knowledge of trading which they could not otherwise obtain. (4) So long as they dealt with ordinary retail establishments they would experience the disadvantages arising from high prices for inferior articles, but they would not understand the difficulties of the retail dealer; in the store they learn that even shopkeeping has its drawbacks and responsibilities. (5) To the foregoing might be added another advantage, namely, that the percentage allowed to capital is frequently limited to a definite amount; but this practice is not universal.

§ 6. The wealth and trading capacity of some of the co-operative stores show that the men who conduct them are second to none in the commercial and mercantile world. Their success deserves the greatest commendation, and has contributed to a higher appreciation of the whole working class, to whom they belong. Still these distributive stores have not done much, except indirectly, in the matter of labour contests. They have removed no difficulties, and have afforded little aid towards any kind of solution of the labour problem. They have, however, developed a new power, have exemplified self-reliance, and added very much to the prosperity of those who have joined such societies. The success of the earlier attempts of working men to improve their condition, by co-operation, has produced a host of imitators, even amongst those who used to sneer and laugh at them. There are now huge establishments, under the designation of co-operative societies, for the special benefit of large sections of the middle classes. Not one word of disparagement need be said with regard to these; if they confer advantages on those who founded them, they have doubtless served their purpose, but in this respect they are essentially commercial undertakings.

§ 7. The progress of co-operation during the last thirty years. has been marvellous in continuity and in extent. In June, 1862, a list published by the Co-operative News showed that the total sales amounted to £2,333,523. At that time there were