154 THE FARMER AND THE NEW DAY 



All the European experiences in a dozen countries 

 for nearly half a century of successful business coopera- 

 tion are a demonstration of the same fundamental prac- 

 tices. That is the rock on which the early efforts at 

 business cooperation in America foundered, and unfor- 

 tunately many enthusiastic and right-minded friends of 

 the farmer and even farmers themselves, still have the 

 vision of a great comprehensive scheme of business 

 cooperation by which thousands of farmers, acting as 

 a unit, can by the very pressure of numbers and power, 

 make successful bargains. Every such effort breaks 

 down of its own weight unless it is founded upon a mul- 

 titude of little pillars, each pillar a solid block consist- 

 ing of a well managed local unit. 



Some Well-known Illustrations. We ought to learn 

 our lesson from the varied experiences of many institu- 

 tions. Probably there is not a leader of the Grange or 

 Farmers' Union leader in America who does not admit 

 that the local is the strength of the organization. All 

 overhead machinery in the form of county or state or 

 national organizations is an attempt to conserve and 

 strengthen local effort. All cooperative power springs 

 from the local organization and flows back to it. The 

 same is true of the country church, of the country school. 

 The strength of these institutions is to be found in the 

 local church or in the local school. We may have a 

 great church organization or a great rural school sys- 

 tem, but it is a rope of sand, in either case, except it be 

 composed of successful local efforts. We need the 

 federation or union of locals for the sake of large poli- 

 cies and unity of endeavor, but the actual work is al- 

 ways done by the local. 



Community Industries. This idea may be also ap- 

 plied to local industries. There are many farming 



