The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, December 9, 1915, Page 12

o IS a5 = flnmm“mnemu-umm T Y R X T AT RTL T T RT L LR TN s Prdesde TWELVE . i THE NONPARTISAN LEADER How They Saved The Raisin Industry Cooperation has been in so many ways an inestimable boon to the pro: ducers of California that I should find it hard to count them all. I can no more than give you here a few examples and try to suggest what would be the situation of thou- sands of California farmers without the vast help, and protection of Co- peration. Take raisins as our next specimen— raisins, the enormous crop that brings to the state every year so many mil- lion dollars. In Tulare and King coun- ties you ride all day through an end- less vineyard, in all devoted to the grapes of which raisins are made. It is not too much to say that without the very efficient coopera- tive organization that now protects the raisin growers that industry this year would have been practically, ruined and an almost inconceivable business disaster would have fallen upon, all those thriving towns in the Sanjoaquin valley that depend upon the raisin grower almost as complete- Isas the average North Dakoto town deritnds upon the wheat grower. Present Crop Profitable. The crop this year was beyond all records. If it had been marketed in the old way, that most of your wheat crop is marketed, with the growers at the mercy of the buyers, the prices se- By Charles Edward Russell cured ‘would have been so small that hardly = grower in the region would have covered his expenses and most would ‘have ended the season with a crushing loss. ' The buyers of raisins would have combined as the buyers of your wheat always combine to manipulate prices and reap for themselves all the bene- fits of the great crop. The farmer would have planted and toiled. God would have given the increase, and the broker and commission houses would have taken every cent of the profit, leaving the farmer penniless and facing his mortgage interest. Scientific Marketing System. We know absolutely that this would have happened in the raisin industry in California, because this was what did happen again and a- gain ‘when the raisin growers mar- keted their raisins in the manner that most North Dakota farmers market their wheat. But the California Raisin Associ- ation, the great central cooperative body that represents the grower and controls the market for him, pre- vented anything of that kind. By its superior, scientific :and complete marketing 'system it held the prices steady, eliminated the monstrous waste of the commission house, cut out the ecrime of speculation in a food product, and brought back to ‘A BUSY WOMAN Chicago, Dec. 7.—The busiest wom- an in the world has come to the busiest city in the world to seek rect. She is Mrs. Meta Erickson, riesident of the Amador Central railroad, which is located in Cali- fornia. It is the only railroad in the world run by a woman. _ The Amador Central is ‘only 12 | | Home office, Fargo, N. D. miles long, has five locomotives, owns 75 freight cars and runs two trains a day. The road is valued at $750,000. “I’ve been president more than two years now ‘and I believe that I need a rest,” Mrs. Erickson declared. “We have a board of directors— ceven men—and they decided that I could run the road to suit them. I am a suffragist and I believe that a woman should not shirk her duties.. Board of Board of tke producer tl}e full value -of his product. - The producer got twice as much for his raisins as ‘he used to get under the old competitive system of every-man-for-himself. Yet ‘the con- sumer paid no more. Would Lower Living Cost Suppoce this result were to be achieved in :all lines of production, what would be left of our old friend the Cost of Living Problem? The Califernia Raisin Association, like most of the other Cooperative organizations of the State, was a thing forced uppn the producers af- ter years of futile efforts to get something like a square deal and still rreserve the old competetive idea in marketing’ the raisin industry, in the meantime, being largely ruined while they fiddled with this and that in the way of remedies that woald, not work. They had “pools” that always went to pieces and growers protec- tive associations that protected nothing, until they learned wisdom and launched the present association on April 1, 1913. Three thousand, six hundred raisin growers subscribed the capital stock, which is now $1,046,400, The condi- tions of the buciness were such that a working capital was absolutely es- sential, and this is the wey it was se- cured. “I certainly have duties enough now,” she continued. *“I sing when I have time, and play the piano, and I cook—just love to cook. “And I'm taking a course in agri- culture at the Unicersity of Califor- nia. And then, too, I have children to take care of—three sons and 2 «daughter.” It was Mrs. Erickson’s late hus- band who built the railroad. He was president of it until he died. " To the Grain Growers of North Dakota: In 1911, there was formed, by farmers, a corporation, for the handling of grain on terminal . markets, known as the Equity Co-operative Exchange. and Superior, Wis. August 1st, 1912—a little more than three years ago. . the most strongly intrenched combine in our land—The Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce. By that institution we have been maligned and slandered from the public platform and in the subsidized public press; and have been persecuted in the courts. But through it all we have won. week; and prospects are that this will soon be increased to a million. We are building a terminal elevator in’ the city of St. Paul, wherein grain may be dried, clipped, and cleaned for the benefit of the farmers. stock which sells at par for $50.00. us grow, grow with us and become a part of our great purpose. Equity Co-operative Exchange General Offices, St. Paul, Minn. and Superior, Wis. J. M. ANDERSON, Pres. G. A. THIEL, Secy. and Treas. We are handling now over 500,000 bushe's of grain each Directors J. C. Leum, Mayville, N. D.; 0 H. Olson, New Rockford, N. D.; Nels Magnuson, Souris, N. D.; F. B. Wood, Deering, N. D.; J. E. Kelley, Pierre, S. D.; Louis Noltimier, Valley City, N. D. J. C. Berg, Hendrum, Minn.; Mggnus Johnson, Kimball, Minn.; J. M. Anderson, St. Paul. Officers of North Dakota State Union American Society of Equity M. P. Johnson, Donnybrook, Pres.; P. M. Casey, Lisbon, Vice-Pres.; Directors : : Anthony Waiton, Mirot; A, W. Ditmer, Velva; ~ C. A. Ewanson, Driscoll; J. E. McAdoco, Turtle Lake It began business in Minneapolis, Minn. It began in opposition to We need your co-operation. Consign your grain to us at St. Paul and Superior, Wis. The system of busines differs somewhat from the systems employed by other cooperative organizations, but this is necessary. Thke grower makes the raisins, bringing them in: large flat boxes to the local ware- house and getting a weight receipt that is good for about 60 per cent of the ultimate value of the raisins. The rest he gets when the marketing is complete. The aszociation returns dividends to its stockholders instead of dividing the final residue among the producers. Last year it paid 5 rer cent and this year it earned 11 per cent. Last year it handled $8,000,000 worth of- product and this year it will handle ‘more than $10,000,000,- worth—that is to say about 90,- 000 tons of raisins. Brilliantly Successful. The stockholders eiect twenty-five trustees, who in turn choose seven directors in whose hands rests the ac- tive management of the business. It has been so brilliantly successful that it has been enlarged to take in, wine grapes and is likely to be still further extended. Scientific business methods, the standardization of product and wise management have enormously en- hanced the market for California raisins, and the grower is getting this benefit with the rest. Even Up.—Aw, Aw,” said Snob- leigh—“it must be—aw,—very up- pleasant for you Americans to ba— aw—governed by people whom you —aw—wouldn’t ‘awsk to dinner.” “0, I don’t know,” said the Ameri- can girl; “no more so than for you to be governed by people who would not ask you to dinner.”—Ladies’ Home Journal. The Leader fights for the farmers. 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