CO-OPERATION IN PREHISTORIC TIMES—EARLY TEUTONIC CO-OPERATION—THE SCOTTISH CLAN SYSTEM—THE PRESENT CO-OPERATIVE SYSTEM—FENWICK AND OTHER CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES—EARLY CO-OPERATIVE BAKERIES—THE GLASGOW BAKING SOCIETIES—EARLY METHODS OF CONTROLLING PRICES—STIRLINGSHIRE AND THE HILLFOOTS—BAKING SOCIETIES IN FIFE AND THE NORTH—CO-OPERATIVE BAKING IN THE BORDERLAND—GLASGOW SOCIETY—CO-OPERATIVE BAKING IN 1866—THE FIRST FEDERATED BAKERY. The Co-operative principle is as old as human intelligence. As soon as man became possessed of the first faint glimmerings of reason he began to seek communion with his fellows, and began, also, to take concerted action with them for mutual protection. It was natural that this should be so. The world must have been a terrible place for the human race in those early days. On land, in the sea, and in the air it was peopled with monsters, against whose attacks the unaided strength and skill of a solitary human were of no avail. Only by combination could he hope to survive. Results have proven that combination—Co-operation—is the law of life; that the men, the animals, the insects even which have learned to combine, have progressed in the scale of evolution; while the solitary monsters of past ages have disappeared, and are known only from a bone found here and a partially complete skeleton there. That the human race gathered together in communities very early in its history there is abundance of evidence. In some of our cliffs there are caves which bear traces of human habitation; while scattered here and there over the world are immense mounds of shells, extending sometimes to a depth of many feet and acres in width, on what is believed to have been the seashore of prehistoric times, which show that, for a long period, these places were frequented by communities. This community living has continued all down the ages. The “commune” system in vogue amongst the Teutonic races was an imperfect system of Co-operative farming by an agricultural community, which finally ceased in Germany during the nineteenth century. It was introduced into this country by the invading Teuton races in the early centuries of the Christian era; and, with various modifications and adaptations, was still in being at the time of the Norman conquest. From that date it gradually declined, until, by the end of the sixteenth century, it had all but died out in England, but was still alive in parts of Scotland in the clan system. There the old community spirit continued to prevail until after the rebellion of 1745, when the common lands of the clans were given to the chiefs. In the lowlands, also, some trace of this principle continued to be visible amongst the farming community. CO-OPERATION AS WE KNOW IT.