ORGANISATION. 209 



this, the Governments of those countries assist co-operative 

 societies freely — in a legitimate wa}^ by teaching, by 

 instituting a better and closer control, and so on — without 

 claiming anything like that redoubtable part du diable, 

 the right of interference in management ; and there is 

 none of that systematic spoon-feeding and coddling assis- 

 tance which to such an extent spoils matters in Germany, 

 Austria, and France, producing what Holyoake has called 

 " members of co-operative societies, but not co-operators." 



All such German-Austrian coddling is wrong. But 

 since there evidently is a disposition in high quarters — 

 in spite of the excellent example which Lord Curzon has 

 set in India — to consider it as a practice worth following, 

 it may be well to look to the other side. Our industrial 

 co-operators have never received a single stiver of help 

 from the Government. Mr. Gladstone distinctly laid it 

 down that they must not. They might, so he contended, 

 be allowed remissions of fees and similar little encourage- 

 ments. But they must not be subsidised or receive illegiti- 

 mate protection. And to this it should be added, that 

 they should not be interfered with in the exercise of their 

 rights, but should be allowed to develop in full liberty, 

 with absolute freedom of action left to them. Our industrial 

 co-operators have enjoyed such perfectly justifiable freedom 

 and have prospered under it as no other co-operative 

 organisations have done. Looking abroad, there are no 

 better nor more prosperous co-operators than those of the 

 Schulze Delitzsch connection, who not only have never 

 received any Government aid — on the contrary, they have 

 been incessantly frowned upon for political reasons — but 

 who would scornfully refuse it if it were tendered — no 

 Government advances, no preferential arrangements of 

 an}' sort, no purchasing of their goods or other favouring 

 of business. Relying purely upon self-help, Schulze De- 

 litzsch's followers have, hke our own industrial co-operators, 

 worked their way up to most brilliant success. 



Agricultural Co-operation, no doubt, stands upon a 

 rather different footing from that which we know as indus- 

 trial. The industrial co-operator builds up his society 



