THE PRINCIPLES OF COOPERATION. 203 



now prevalent as to the real meaning of cooperation. It is 

 already a great factor in the business of the world whose 

 importance is but dimly recognized by economists, or states- 

 men. No census of this, or, I think, of any country, includes 

 in its tables the volume of cooperative business, of wiiich no 

 reliable statistics are attainable, but in California alone there 

 are over eighty cooperative irrigating companies,* besides fruit 

 marketing societies whose aggregate annual business is several 

 millions of dollars. Cooperative business is increasing yearly, 

 from natural causes. It is a natural development from exces- 

 sive competition, and must increase as competition grows 

 more severe. It is well, therefore, to understand precisely 

 what it is. 



Cooperation is the union of those of like interests for the 

 purpose of more effectively competing with those of adverse 

 interests. It is middle ground between individualism, in which 

 each man competes with all other men, and State Socialism, 

 or "Collectivism," which assumes such a union of all interests 

 as to entirely su|>press competition. It recognizes permanent 

 differences of interest between classes, and assumes that these 

 differences will be adjusted with least friction, by able repre- 

 sentatives of the different classes, meeting together in the light 

 of complete information and under a sense of responsibility. 

 Incidentally the weaker in each class are helped by the 

 stronger of the same class, as a matter of self-interest, regard- 

 less of sentiment, yet more or less moved by sentiment. 

 Socialists favor it as a stepping-stone to socialism. Cooper 

 ators regard cooperation as the final step, because it recognizes 

 as permanent, cleavages of interest which socialism ignores or 

 supposes can be united. The perfect form of cooperation is 

 exhibited in the Trust. Socialism aims to make the state the 

 industrial unit, involving the competition of one state with 

 another, and ignoring the conflict of interest between classes 

 within the state. Cooperation makes the class the unit 

 within the state, and does not necessarily regard international 



*From statistics gathered by myself, as Special Agent of the U. S. Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture, unpublished when this is written. 



