THE FARMER IN POLITICS 135 



groups of individuals. Political parties originat- 

 ed, no doubt, in legitimate divergence of opinion 

 on questions of sufficient importance to arouse 

 strong feeling. The feeling varied in degree of 

 earnestness, the more earnest influencing the less 

 earnest until divisions were firmly established in 

 party form. 



Farmers, like others, were absorbed in these * 

 parties and theoretically had just the same 

 opportunity to wield an influence as any others, 

 , but owing to the isolated manner of their living, 

 they gave little thought to collective action. 

 Individualists in ownership, in effort, and in 

 thought, what more natural than that they should 

 give scant attention to what was going on in 

 urban industry, and only recently get the idea 

 of co-operative effort as a means of benefiting 

 their industry? John Brown and Alex. Smith, 

 living the same kind of life side by side, whose 

 economic interest was the same, and whose 

 political interest was the same, conscientiously 

 and successfully did the best they could to 

 destroy any political influence they might exer- 

 cise by cancelling each others votes on election 

 day. Aside from the "outing" they might just 

 as well have paired and remained at home, for all 

 that their effort advanced the choice of a repre- 

 sentative. 



Such loyal supporters of party are not the 



