1174 Xew York State Aoktcultt'kat. Society 



Each Vfiir, iKjwi'Vcr, the association sells more prodiu-e raised by 

 its members than the vcar before. The mere fact of being in 

 business enal)les ns to do this. 



When onr association began business as a supply association, 

 "we felt it to be necessary to demonstrate to our members that 

 we couhl make a saving- on purchases. We, therefore, bought our 

 supplies as cheaply as we could, and re-sold them to our members 

 at an advance of six per cent. In this way we made the demon- 

 stration complete. But, in this form, we soon discovered that we 

 were conducting business in a manner that was disastrous to the 

 local storekeepers, whose business we did not wish to injure. We, 

 therefore, adopted the plan which is universal, I think, in 

 European cooperation, of selling to onr members at the market 

 value, and of returning profits at the end of the year; first pay- 

 ing the current rate of interest upon the capital and making all 

 further division npon the basis of the amount of business done 

 with the association instead of npon the l)asis of stock ownership. 

 This is true cooperation; and it is vital to the success of this 

 system. 



On the other hand, at Bedford, we have not taken one other 

 stc]) which I think is also vital to cooperation in an agricultural 

 comnuniity. That is to say, we have not asked our members to 

 buy all of their supplies through the association. This is the 

 case everywhere in Europe. In a small community this would 

 be essential to success ; because otherwise the association can- 

 not kn(t\v how ninch business it is likely to do, or what expenses 

 it can meet. In Wisconsin thev do this, and I am told 

 that they have largely overcome the conflict of interest between 

 the cooperative society and the local store, by absorbing tlu^ h^'al 

 store into the cooperative society. Wherever this can be done, 

 and proper management secured, it onght td make the pathway 

 easy. In Bedford we have not wished to do this, because many of 

 the cooperators are men (»f means from the city, and tlu^ work of 

 the coo]>erative society is not vital enough to any of us to make 

 us willing to injnr(> the storekeepers with whom wc are compet- 

 ing. l''or that reason, all of us buy more or less of onr produce 

 from the local dealers, precisely as we used to do before the 

 association was formed. The business competition of the asso- 



