201 



such suggestions as are made by the producers in addition to its 

 own knowledge and experience, it in turn loses its connection 

 with the association. A management must possess tact, con- 

 structive ability, foresightedness, fearlessness in the conduct of 

 the business and a clear conception of the real underlying pur- 

 pose of the organization, if it is to succeed. The integrity of the 

 management must be beyond reproach ; it must be free from en- 

 tangling business alliances; it must be free from the participa- 

 tion in any secret profits arisng directly or indirectly from hand- 

 ling the business of the organization ; in short, the dealings of 

 the management with the organization must be an open book, 

 free from questionable business practices of every kind. The in- 

 fluence of the management, next to the loyalty of the members, 

 exceeds all other influences and the success of a cooperative asso- 

 ciation depends on its working out in mutual confidence an efli- 

 cient business system that is able to meet successfully all condi- 

 tions as they arise. 



A COOPERATIVE ORGAXIZATIOX SHOULD BE FOUNDED OX A 

 SPECIAL CROP. 



A cooperative organization should be founded on a special crop 

 and the locality in which it handles the product should be com- 

 paratively restricted. Special industries involve common prob- 

 lems to be solved by the producers, similar difficulties to over- 

 come, similar trade practices and similar trade connections. The 

 members of an crganizaton that is formed to handle fruit, vege- 

 tables, poultry and general farm crops have no common ground 

 on which to stand, and these general associations have not been 

 successful up to the present time because the membership cannot 

 be held together. The citrus fruit growers of California are all in- 

 terested in increasing consumption, in extending markets, in re- 

 ducing the cost of distribution and marketing, in securing reason- 

 able transportation costs, and in the same public policy questions 

 that afl:ect the industry. They have therefore deveroped a vitality 

 in their organizations that have been attained in no other agricul- 

 tural industry in America. An organizaton founded on different 

 crops, on the other hand, has a series of totally different prob- 

 lems to meet at one time, different business connections to form 

 and different classes rather than one class of opponent to meet. 



A COOPERATRE ORGAXIZ.VTIOX MUST DEVELOP THE IXDIVIDU/vLITV 

 OF EACH LOCALITY. 



To be successful a cooperative association must sustain and 

 develop the individuality and initiative of the different localities 

 in which it operates. The unit of the organization must there- 

 fore be a locality in which the soils, the climate and other condi- 

 tions produce a similar grade of product. If the products vary 



