ORGANIZATION 77 



as preliminary steps in the formation of granges, and their 

 proselyting zeal caused considerable friction. The local granges 

 soon found their double allegiance bringing them into difficulties, 

 for the state grange would not look with favor upon the pay- 

 ment of dues by the subordinate granges to the State Farmers' 

 Association. The order of Patrons of Husbandry, moreover, 

 avowed itself to be a non-political organization, and its officers, 

 although they encouraged the members to take part in politics 

 as individuals, condemned their participation as official dele- 

 gates of granges in the partisan politics into which the State 

 Farmers' Association was rapidly drifting. Although the 

 inability of the two systems to pull together undoubtedly weak- 

 ened their effectiveness and hastened the rapid collapse of the 

 whole movement, they should, nevertheless, be looked upon 

 as merely two phases of the same general " farmers' move- 

 ment " or "Granger movement" for protective and cooperative 

 organization. 1 



During the early part of 1873, open clubs and local and county 

 cooperative associations were springing up in a number of the 

 other western states. Kansas was the first state to follow the ex- 

 ample of Illinois and organize these into a state association. On 

 March 26, 1873, a state farmers' convention was held at Topeka 

 pursuant to a call issued by the state board of agriculture. 

 About 250 delegates of clubs and granges attended this meeting 

 and organized the Farmers' Cooperative Association of the 

 State of Kansas, some of the declared objects of which were 

 cooperative buying, control of prices of agricultural products, 

 reduction and regulation of freight rates, reform of taxation, 

 and independent political action. 2 



Both mass and delegate conventions of farmers were of fre- 

 quent occurrence in a number of states during these years. 



1 Illinois State Farmers' Association, Proceedings, ii (December, 1873); Paine, 

 Granger Movement in Illinois, 12-14; Prairie Farmer, xliv. 401-403, xlv. 131, xlvi. 

 27 (December, 1873- January, 1875). 



2 Prairie Farmer, xliv. 91/139, 155, 187 (March- June, 1873); Chicago Tribune, 

 June 10, 1873, p. 2, January 12, 1874, p. 8; American Annual Cyclopedia, 1873, 

 p. 396; History of Kansas (published by Andreas), 263; Periam, The Groundswell t 

 271-279. 



