THE CATJPORNTA FRUIT EXfllANQE. 501 



on the part of the societies represented, of a small, but 

 in the aggregate a sufficient, sum for the support of the state 

 Exchange, to be charged as an item of expense against the 

 fruit handled the next year, by the local societies, this being 

 the plan as originally marked out, wheu the societies should 

 be established. The representatives present, upon a call of 

 the roll, each rose and promised that he would report to his 

 society favoring the endorsement of the action of the con- 

 vention and advising the pledge of the required financial 

 support. 



As the result of the meeting it is not known what reports 

 were made to the local societies; in many cases there were 

 none; but, at any rate, very few pledges of the promised sup- 

 port were ever received, and those usually from the smallest 

 societies. When the board of directors convened, the tem- 

 porary manager, whose resignation had been before the 

 directors for some time, pressed its acceptance, but continued 

 to perform the duties for some time. This is mentioned in 

 order to add as a further illustration of an unfortunate weak- 

 ness of cooperation, that delegates from certain societies 

 declared that they would not come in if he did not resign. It 

 was a repetition of the experience of the California Fruit 

 Union, when one faction would not stay in if a certain man 

 was manager. The faction in this case was very small, but it 

 was deemed best to yield to it, although the interest of the 

 service required that the manager should complete his work, 

 and turn over the Exchange in working order to his suc- 

 cessor, which he was willing to do; although anxious to be 

 relieved, he wished to leave a completed work. The objec- 

 tions to the manager appeared to arise from his continual 

 statements that no eff"ective business organization on a large 

 scale, whether competitive or cooperative, could be run with- 

 out considerable expenditure, for which an adequate income 

 must be assured; this was considered "visionary" by a few 

 good men, some of whom doubtless felt sure that the manager 

 desired a good income for the Exchange in order that he 

 might become permanent manager, and obtain a "fat salary" 



