The Farmer 



farmers ? Their " individualism " is largely 

 under the control of the local tradesmen to 

 whom they owe money, and in their individual 

 dealings with professional buyers and sellers 

 they often come off second best. 



Co-operation gives full play to individualism, 

 but co-ordinates it for the good of the group. 

 It is only by educating the rising generation 

 to understand the benefits to be derived from 

 mutual aid, that the general antipathy to co- 

 operation can be overcome. 



In the second place there are undoubtedly 

 many farmers who would join in the co-opera- 

 tive movement if they could; they are prevented 

 by the fact that they are so much in debt to 

 local tradesmen that they cannot support a 

 scheme towards which in many cases these 

 tradesmen are hostile. It would seem, there- 

 fore, that the first step must be to release this 

 class of men from their bondage by the creation 

 of credit banks ; and surely even Englishmen 

 would co-operate to obtain money. With a 

 large system of credit banks once in working 

 order co-operation in other branches would 

 follow. 



Thirdly and lastly, the large and successful 

 farmer fails to see how he can benefit by co- 

 operation. He says, " I buy on such a large 

 scale and settle my account so promptly that I 

 get practically wholesale prices ; I should gain 



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