Seventeen Talks on the Banking Question: Between Uncle Sam and Mr. Farmer, Mr. Banker, Mr. Lawyer, Mr. Laboringman, Mr. Merchant, Mr. ManufacturerFowler, Charles N. (Charles Newell)
History
Seventeen Talks on the Banking Question: Between Uncle Sam and Mr. Farmer, Mr. Banker, Mr. Lawyer, Mr. Laboringman, Mr. Merchant, Mr. Manufacturer
Fowler, Charles N. (Charles Newell)
Banks and banking -- United States; Currency question -- United States
The chief offices of the Scotch Society are on Morrison Street,
Glasgow. They manufacture umbrellas, tweeds, paislies, oatmeal,
Aberdeen finnan-haddie, and other characteristic Scotch merchandise.
Its capital is about $17,000,000.
Germany and Belgium, too, are furnishing successful coöperative
associations. Mr. Orth describes them so well that I want to read what
he says.
There are about two thousand of the coöperative supply societies among
the farmers, with nearly one hundred and fifty thousand members. There
are also about three thousand coöperative dairies, with two hundred
and thirty thousand members, and one hundred and sixty coöperative
wine cellars and two hundred and fifty-five coöperative warehouses and
grain elevators.
It was natural that retail stores should be established next, on a
coöperative basis. For some reason they did not thrive until about ten
years ago. At that time a split occurred in the coöperative ranks, due
to politics, and two federations or unions of Coöperative Societies
were organized; the General Union or Liberal Union, and the Central
Union or Socialist Union. The former is remaining stationary, the
latter growing by leaps and bounds.
In every large city the coöperative retail society has a central plant.
It usually includes a warehouse and bakery. The one located at Berlin
is a good type. It is situated at Lichtenberg, a suburb. Here you see
splendid buildings, in good architectural style, fitted up in the most
modern manner; telephones to all departments, electricity, central
heating plant, a uniform clock system for keeping time, etc. The whole
plant cost $1,750,000. The great warehouse is full of groceries.
Although only a year in the buildings, they are already overtaxed and
additions are planned. This central supply house looks after the sixty
coöperative grocery stores in Berlin. It has a string of fine delivery
autos. Any one can become a member by paying fifty pfennigs (12-1/2c.)
admission, and forty marks ($10) a year. This, however, is taken out of
his dividends.
The society also owns a fine row of apartment houses, which are leased
to members at a low rental. The goods used are bought in the open
market, or are supplied by the German Coöperative Wholesale Society of
Hamburg. There is very little productive coöperation in Germany. There
are 2,311 retail societies, more than two million members, and more
than $5,000,000 in their reserve fund.
The Wholesale Society had a hard time of it until the spurt in favor of
coöperation began a decade ago. Now it thrives, doing about $12,000,000
business a year.
There are a great many local coöperative building societies, with two
hundred thousand members, and many other evidences that the spirit of
coöperation is abroad in the land. In 1908 there were 4,105,594 persons
actively interested in one form or another of German coöperation. In
1911 the number had increased to nearly five million.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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