COOPERATION. 563 



of them prospered so far as to employ some of their own 

 members in manufacturing a few of the common articles 

 sold; and then there came the &quot; labour exchanges &quot;-places 

 for disposing of the surplus products of these small co 

 operative bodies, on the basis of the respective labour-values 

 of the things exchanged. ^Nearly all of them disappeared in 

 a few years; partly from lack of variety in the products 

 they offered to the wives of their members, partly because 

 they gave little or no credit, partly, as it proved, from a 

 defect in their economic policy. 



After an interval of nearly 20 years, during which politi 

 cal agitation had mainly absorbed the attentions and ener 

 gies of working-class leaders, there came a revival of the co 

 operative movement, again prompted by a communistic 

 ideal. This occurred at Kochdale, among those who called 

 themselves &quot; Equitable Pioneers.&quot; Their scheme was dis 

 tinguished from preceding schemes by an essential trait. 

 The profits of the store were divided neither among those 

 who subscribed the capital, nor among those engaged in 

 the work of distribution, but among its customers in propor 

 tion to the money-values of their purchases. &quot; The effect of 

 the Rochdale persistent application of the principle of divid 

 ing profits on purchases &quot; was first of all great prosperity of 

 the local store, and then a spreading of the system to other 

 towns, similarly followed by prosperity; so that in less than 

 50 years the body of cooperators in the kingdom had &quot; its 

 million members, thirty-six millions of annual trade, three 

 millions of yearly profits, and twelve millions of accumu 

 lated capital.&quot; 



Along with the idea of supplying consumers cheaply, 

 there had gone the idea of buying cheaply the commodities 

 supplied to them. From time to time had been made sue- 



O 



gestions for a wholesale cooperative society, from which the 

 retail stores might get what they required on advantageous 

 terms. After sundry abortive attempts, an agency of this 

 kind was established at Manchester in 1864. While fulfill- 



