PALMER, ALASKA
Dorothy M#. Boll, Editor
Published every Thursday at Palnor, Alaska, for the I.Iatanuska Volley Farriers'
C -operating Association for the.purpose of giving nows of the Associations Ernie,
Prlblcns and Acccr.iplishnont 6,
SUBSCRIPTION BY LAIL $1.75BOX $1.00SINGLE COPY 10# ■
CO-OP DANGERS
Uho is responsible for your co-oporativo? Tho takos the risks? -tho losses?—or
the gains? Can any organization prosper if members jump in in fair leather and out
in bad? Ehen Ur, Jones' draws a largo Cividond chock—say 10$ and he has had good
prices for his produce during the year, things look fine; but suppose another, year
he gets 2pi Should he imodintoly withdraw from the- organization or try to ihprovo'
the situation from theiinsido? Ho can’t dc much from the outside, 'That is cortaln.
History has alwsrys taught us that things do not always run smoothly. The sea cannot
always be coin and pleasant sailing. Storms hit ar.d it trites an efficient crow to
keep the ship from sinking— end so it is with your co-op. If your organization is
strongly built and well manned—it cab weather the storm. It is not so much what goes
on’on'the outside of the ship •, • but what goes on on the insido that counts. *
Mr. E. Vandiver, Editor Manager, of tho Mid-South Cotton grower, Memphis, 'Tennessee,
says:
"All of tho water in tho seven'seas doesn’t sink a boat—it is tho water that gets on
the inside that sends her down,-Sometimes member's unthinkingly permit valves to
open that lot water insido with the throat of sinking the organization.”
Ml*. Vandiver lists those denger valves as:
1. Cro d it-it is" an easy step from credit to one to credit to all,‘since all members
are treated aliko. Careless credit lets water in a boat in a hurry.
2, Price Cutting --paying dividends at the time business is transacted and "bucking
the market." * .
3. Poor Records—"economizing" by passing up an audit, accepting general statements
instead of requiring accurate accounting.
4, Control by an insido clique— Telling members as little as possible about their
business,‘"railroading" elections, extending favors to members, members becoming in
different. '
5. Took Capital Structuro —Berbers unwilling to buy stock, insisting on emptying
the treasury to pay dividends, refusing to leave retains in the business to build
capital,
6, Poor*management — every joint and crack in the boat oocns to look when manager.tat
is veal:. Only courageous directors and alert members can remove this danger. M
Even though members realize that home of these valves are leaking, it may take time
get things in order. This is the time when fair weather friends desert the ship/ but
loyal members who believe in the future of their organization will remain on board and
help the vessel safely through the storm. Members should remember that a Cooperative
is a little different than private business which assumes all the risks; In a Cooper
ative the members control the business and own the capital. Therefore, if tho bus
iness operations have not been successful, tho members bear tho loss. It is tho
members in a Co-operative who take the risk and not the Association as something apart.
A Co-opcrntivo itself con neit|ier make a profit nor toko a D.oss, but tho members can
gain or loso through their co-op’s dperations. If a Co-oporqtivo has allowod one or
all the valves to leak at'some timo, then it will suffer tosses and only the mending
of the valves can save it.
And finally in ending wo might point out that the co-op is yours the sorno as your'farm
is yours—except; that you own it jointly with your neighbors. In the "Tfeshcoogg”, a
publication pub out by tho Washington Cooperative Runner3 Association we find this—
"i“r Cr.-.g io your own just as your farm is your own. It is owned by you and your
ret jhbers, and .-poxatod only to serve you. Anything which can be dono to koop it
stac.a ;—gcod t Lies and bad—nctu.aj.ly neons you arc helping yourself and your neighbors
to gr x.tci sijecocs. You arc also helping to build your community and your state, as
•through your co-cp you arc able to keep more of the returns rccoivoJ for your products
right here at homo. You have a real staica in your co-op—it’s your business—
ana will riso on fell depending on how you use it.”
rTho thorns which I have reaped arc of the tree I planted. They have torn mo and I
Bleed; I should Lave known what fruit would spring from such a seed.”. Byron