PREFACE.

This volume is given to the public without other excuse than the simple fact that it has been written. If it is read it may do some good, but in any event it cannot do injury. If it is not read the hour which knew it will pass with it, and countless hours, like waves in Time’s ocean, will roll on multitudinously, with their burdens of good and evil, and pass also.

Because the writer believed he had a thought to express, which, if heeded, would help, in some slight degree, to right human wrongs, he ventured to offer it in this form. He had discovered by experience that no radical and permanent reform can be successfully effected without the consent of what are called “the substantial business interests” of the established system.

He has also observed that the system now in operation is constantly undergoing changes, and that our predecessors in its control, of a quarter of a century ago, would scarcely recognize the system by which we live to-day. These changes have been accomplished through evolution only. Numbers count for nothing. Millions submit readily to the will of one.

Education counts for everything, and if we had been taught that to stand on our heads an hour a day was essential to salvation most of us would observe that form without question. Some, however, are superior to error and are strong enough to be and to do right. But these are scattered. They argue with their unthinking neighbors 4and are ridiculed for their pains. Such methods never did succeed and the world is as much out of gear with righteousness to-day as it was in the dark ages.

This is the trouble with political Co-operation. It cannot succeed except in a very slight measure. Why? Because industrial and commercial education are against it. Because the Industrial System is against it. Because the great, the powerful and strong are against it. Political Co-operation has no money with which to compete with the competitive system. Righteousness without money is a will-o’-the-wisp as against Mephisto, with millions in the competitive system.

Co-operation must enter the lists with means and weapons similar to its opponents, or else it will fail. Therefore the writer proposes that the profits of co-operation be matched against the profits of competition, and if co-operation can “win out” then the profit system is dead.

Let us raise the cry of Industrial Co-operation against Industrial Competition, and then go to work. When we are strong enough we will do what Industrial Competition in the form of corporations and syndicates has done. We will become political. Industrially we can grow as all industrial institutions have, and when we are grown to a magnitude which forces recognition, the world is ours and again belongs, not to a few, but to all of us.

This little volume is designed to show, in part, what an opportunity we have to plant the flag of Industrial Co-operation on American soil and defend it as it cannot be defended in any other country.

CHAPTER I. THE YEAR 1897.

During the entire existence of the great American republic no year seemed more hopeless to the masses of its people than the year 1897.

It is true that the dark hours of conflict, when separation from Great Britain was sought at the cannon’s mouth, and later, when civil strife nearly rent the nation in twain, seemed, to superficial observers, to be more fraught with danger.

But the problems of those times could be and were readily understood. Success to the arms of the patriots, in the one case, and the Unionists in the other, was a simple solution, although distressing in its pursuit and difficult of achievement.

But this year was one which was the culmination of many years of singular abundance, blessed by nature in almost every conceivable way, and yet by a strange contradiction of circumstances full of sorrow, distress, hunger and poverty.

The wealth of this, the richest country in the world, was made valueless by reason of the belief on the part of its people that it must borrow the right to use that wealth from other nations. The supplies of food, clothing and materials of all kinds were vast, and yet the inhabitants for some cause were not able to obtain them, although their needs were great. There were now a few rich and many—very many—extremely poor.

It was this strange, contradictory, confusing and incomprehensible 6condition which made men hopeless. Where to look for help, what to do, the cause, the consequence, the evil and the remedy, were all subjects of agitation and deep concern. Everybody except those few who were satisfied with any condition which did not disturb their own happiness, had views on these subjects and had conceived of some remedy. And the multiplicity of these views and the innumerable varieties of remedies proposed, seemed to aggravate the general despair and produce an increasing paralysis of action.

It was in January of that dismal year that I found myself in the great city of Chicago. I, too, had been affected by the universal depreciation of property, so that a fortune of fifty thousand dollars, which I had inherited from my parents, was now dubiously estimated to have dwindled to something like ten thousand dollars. I knew it was not my fault.

Bank stocks, railroad stocks and mining stocks, represented the bulk of my poor, deceased father’s savings and investments.

Much of this could not attract buyers at any price. Some could not be given away. The rest was convertible into gold at a few cents on the dollar.

But I was too young, being only twenty-five years of age, to become despondent over the loss of money, and I had traveled so extensively about my own country and seen its countless opportunities that I felt a certain elation in the prospect of building up a fortune of my own.

So that, although a stranger in Chicago, with no friends nearer than Massachusetts, and without the smallest idea of a plan for the future, I yet had a firm belief in God, man, my country and myself.

I did not even doubt the system which had robbed me of my fortune, and was inclined to look upon all who denounced it as hostile to the best interests of mankind.

My education was, in a large measure, responsible for this. Born in Salem, Massachusetts, one of the oldest, sleepiest and most conservative of American cities, educated 7in her schools and in one of the staid old colleges, for which New England was justly famous, how could I have imbibed anything but ancient, sleepy and conservative theories of political economy, and fine, staid and somewhat musty notions of the end and purpose of man?

It is true that my extensive travels had broadened me somewhat mentally. They had taught me the value of individual men and had rather obliterated sectional pride, which I was willing to confess was the besetting sin of the average New Englander; they had made me acquainted with manners and customs and had produced in me a capability of adjusting myself to delicate situations.

But this sort of breadth, while excellent and serviceable, did not render me tolerant of ideas which were at variance with those commonly accepted. My distinguishing characteristic, on which I prided myself not a little, was an almost encyclopedic knowledge of the history and resources of my own country. I mention this particularly now, because I had occasion, later on, to turn my knowledge to a very useful purpose.

I was inclined to remain in Chicago. There was no reason for it which I had defined to myself, and I really believe that, of all the dismal places I had ever seen, Chicago was the most dismal at that time. I did not have any occupation, attraction or hope to keep me in this maelstrom of the human ocean.

I did not like it. I had no friends in it. I did not seem to find companions. Indeed, I was happy in being alone, and enjoyed a certain discontent, which was productive of thoughtfulness, and which set me to expressing my thoughts on paper.

Governed by an instinctive prudence, which is characteristic of the New England mind, I had selected a room in a respectable private house, where there were also two other roomers, and took my meals at a neighboring restaurant.

CHAPTER II. JOHN THOMPSON—CO-OPERATION

One day after I had been settled in Chicago for, perhaps, two or three weeks, the sun shone so brightly and the weather was so mild that I was tempted to stroll out, on so exceptional an occasion for Chicago, into the suburbs of the great city. As I wandered along aimlessly, watching the gay sleighing parties, I saw one of the young men who roomed in the same house coming toward me from the opposite direction.

I had become so far acquainted with him as to have learned that his name was Thompson, and had overheard some of his conversation with companions who called at his room. What I had heard and seen did not impress me favorably. He seemed to entertain and express views of an economic nature which were not in accord with my New England notions, and I was disposed to avoid him. My first impulse, in fact, was to cross this street and continue my way alone. Before I could do this, however, Thompson hailed me with a cheerful, courteous and familiar “How do you do?” So cordial, good-natured and attractive seemed his manner, devoid of all affectation or obtrusiveness, that I stopped, returned his salutation and suddenly became conscious of a desire to have company in my walk. So I asked him which way he was bound, and on his replying that he was simply taking a stroll we both turned into a side street, and continuing the walk together entered into conversation.

Thompson was really a remarkable looking man. I marveled, as I walked along with him, that I had not noticed this in the two weeks that we had roomed in the same house, but probably it was because we saw each other only once in awhile in the hallway as we passed. I now observed 9that he was a man fully six feet tall, erect and powerfully built, with a thoughtful, clean-shaven face, strong features and great earnest, commanding eyes. Indeed it seemed to me that I never had seen such eyes before. One felt that they belonged to a master and that this man was a natural leader of his kind. But I then thought, and afterward learned, that he was not only a leader but a thinker. Such a man could, if his heart was enlisted in any cause, sacrifice not merely life, but, if need be, reputation for the good cause in which he believed.

“I have thought, Mr. Braden,” said he, as we sauntered along together, “that you might be interested in a little project some of us have to improve the condition of the masses of our people. Have you ever studied the question of co-operation?”

“No, sir,” said I. “I have never studied the question of co-operation. I presume you mean, sir, co-operation among laborers. But while I have not studied it I must admit that I have little sympathy with the theory. It is not practicable and all attempts which I have observed have failed.”

“Pardon me, Mr. Braden,” returned my companion. “I feel that you have not observed the noble and very successful co-operative enterprises which flourish throughout Europe and to some extent in the United States at this time. The truth is, co-operation has proven to be and is strikingly practicable. In the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland $60,000,000.00 and more constitutes the accumulated capital of co-operative societies and on the continent of Europe the capital involved is much greater.”

It is not my purpose to detail our discussion of this subject. Suffice it to say that nearly the whole day was spent in each other’s society. Although by no means convinced at the close of the day that Thompson was correct in his views, I found myself deeply interested. I resolved to study the subject and study it fairly.

The project which my new acquaintance outlined was one which I at once pronounced visionary. It was, he said, the design of certain gentlemen, some of whom lived in 10Chicago, to organize what they called the Co-operative Commonwealth. These gentlemen had decided to induce laboring men and other persons who might be willing to associate themselves in the work to form co-operative societies and to colonize them in some one state, so that, in process of time, they would outvote the devotees of the old system. When this desired result was achieved, they made no doubt that the Co-operative Commonwealth would be established and present to the entire world an example of prosperity which would rouse an unquenchable spirit of emulation. I could not forbear to sneer at the plan when it was explained, but when I saw how serious Thompson was, and looking into his face felt the impression of his strong character, I was inclined to think about it and began, involuntarily, to picture to myself an ideal of the Co-operative Commonwealth.

That day Thompson and I were together much of the time and went to the public library, at his suggestion, to prove some of his statements, the correctness of which I had disputed. I was obliged to admit, when we parted, that he had made no mistake, and this satisfied me that he was an authority on social and economic questions.

This man was, at the time when our meeting and conversation occurred, about thirty-five years of age. He was an Englishman by birth, but came to this country when only three years of age with his parents, and settled in Red Bluff, California, where his mother died shortly after. When about fifteen he removed with his father to a mining town in Nevada, where the father speedily acquired a fortune in mercantile pursuits and in some fortunate speculations in mining stocks. The son was impatient of restraint as a boy, ran away from home, and visited nearly all the mining camps in the west, followed every excitement, became a skillful miner and acquired an immense fund of useful and curious information.

When about thirty he drifted to Chicago and worked at a variety of occupations, being a master of many, but never rose above the station of a journeyman. This was due to 11the fact that he worked only that he might obtain money to procure books, principally on questions of political economy, and had no aspiration to follow any life but that of a student. One day when he had been in the city for some years he saw his father, now an old man, in the crowd on State street. He had lost all trace of him many years before, and once in his wanderings he had gone to the Nevada mining town where he last saw him, and had found the town deserted except by two old men, who could give him no information as to where his father had gone. They simply knew that when he went away he was accounted one of the wealthiest men in the camp. Now, meeting him on the street of the great city, he observed that he seemed to have about him every indication of wealth and position. He spoke to him, calling him father, and was recognized by the old gentleman, but with some difficulty. Events following

were sufficiently interesting.

Thompson was taken to his father’s palatial residence on the Wisconsin lake shore, not far from Chicago, and for a while lived in great luxury. But this was ill suited to his character and entirely at variance with the habits he had formed during his rough western life. He became restless, and made numerous trips to the city, where he spent his time in the libraries and among his books. His father, who was in truth very wealthy, usually went south in the winter and was in Florida at that time. On the day when I met the son he designed to take the evening train for his father’s southern home, intending to go from there to Arizona, where the old gentleman has some mining interests, but expecting to return to Chicago in March.

When he parted with me that afternoon he urged me to pursue certain economic lines of inquiry, advising me what books to read, and requesting me to give him my views on co-operation when he should next meet me. This I promised to do, and when we went our several ways I found myself looking at the world with new eyes, but with a feeling that I was getting on rather too familiar terms with a number of political heresies.

CHAPTER III.

After the introduction of the subject to my notice, in the manner described in the foregoing pages, I spent nearly all of my time for at least a month in the study of such books as had been suggested to me, treating upon the condition of labor in what is ordinarily called the Christian world. I was engaged in this occupation when Thompson returned from his trip to the South and West. To say that I had become convinced that Thompson’s plan of co-operation and the establishment of a Co-operative Commonwealth was practicable would not be true, but in all my researches I had kept his plan in mind and confessed that I was anxious to see it put into practice.

I was not convinced by any means that it would succeed, but I wanted to observe its workings and believed that it could do no evil. Therefore when I again met Thompson about the middle of March, I made haste to assure him that I was prepared to approve his theories and desirous of taking some part in the experiment which I hoped would be tried. Upon learning this, Thompson informed me that he was already a member of the Co-operative Commonwealth, that a meeting of some of the most influential projectors would be held that evening, and that he would like to have me present. I readily accepted the invitation and at the appointed time and place met him that evening, and together we went to the meeting.

I was quite surprised upon entering the little hall where his friends had assembled to find myself in the midst of well-dressed, refined, intellectual and apparently practical men. Thompson introduced me to a number of these as a friend who was interested in the Co-operative Commonwealth and 13who would, as he thought, contribute to its success.

Although I felt that this recommendation of me was premature, yet I made no objection to it, because I preferred to accept the cordial reception which his introduction seemed to procure for me. We spent about half an hour in conversation on subjects involving the co-operative idea. I had little to say, personally, but rather confined myself to asking questions until the meeting was called to order. But from what was told me in answer to my questions I was deeply impressed by the apparent sincerity and general benevolence which pervaded the assemblage.

I confess that I rather expected to find a somewhat motley crowd of men, with wild staring eyes, shaggy, unkempt heads and beards, indulging with furious gestures and loud voices in bitter and irrational denunciation of the government and public institutions of my country.

Instead of that these men were as sleek, as mild, as quiet and gentlemanly as an equal number of bank presidents might be. Perhaps more so. At any rate, I have seen bank presidents and directors congregate together in less orderly conventions and have heard from them far more expressions of contempt for our government and its laws than these men uttered. The truth was that the gentlemen whom I now had the honor to meet were more fervently patriotic than any similar assemblage I had ever seen. Men who come together in the name of a church, a party, a bank, a business enterprise or even a particular charity, are not prone to hold country above all other objects. But these men, gathering in the name of humanity, held their country to be, by reason of its location, character, condition and opportunities, the most suitable field for whatever was and is best in the human race.

When the meeting opened Thompson, who was evidently held in great esteem, assumed the position of presiding officer. He began with a brief statement of its purposes.