Marlborough Times. FRIDAY, AUGUST 27, 1880.

Marlborough Daily Times, Volume II, Issue 150, 27 August 1880, Page 2

Marlborough Times. FRIDAY, AUGUST 27, 1880.

The subject of the relations of capita 1 and labor is one which lias frequently been descanted upon by political economists whose theories for the most part appear to have been of but little practical utility, and at the present time, when it is one of the most pressing social questions of the day out little extra light seems to be thrown upon it. The capitalist finds the return for his investments affected by the price of labor in foreign countries, by international relations, by war or peace and the consequent fluctuations of the money market; while often, the price of labor is raised or lowered by combinations among the employers themselves, irrespective of the limiting laws of supply and demand on the one hand, or by Trades’ Unions and strikes on the other. The small producer often finds his efforts crippled by the competition of the large capitalist and the extra cost of sending small parcels to market, as well as by the many hands through which his productions must go before they reach the consumer. The ablest writers on Political Economy do not pretend to give any cure for the vexed relations existing between capital and labor. ■ 'Legal interference is admittedly useless, arbitration has failed, strikes and lock-outs have been tried in vain, and the philosophical politician has to study a social question that seems very difficult to solve. The result of the existing state of things, as lie sees it, especially in the old countries of the world, is a seething mass of poverty, ignorance, and immorality on the one hand, and immense wealth and pride on the other. The statesman or philosopher who could solve the problem, of how to secure to labor its fair share of the profits which it assists to make, and who would show at the same time how the considerate ! employer can be protected from the folly and prejudices propagated by Trades’ Unions, would deserve well of the many millions of employers and employed. One glimmer of light has been thrown on this social difficulty by Parisian artizans and American farmers by the co-operation of labor, or in other words, the control of capital by the laborer himself. Several industries, and notably upholstery, are carried on in Paris and other large towns in France by the co-operation of the artizans : each giving his labor and investing his capital, if lie has any, in the enterprise. The last Paris | Exhibition proved the excellence of ! the work of the co-operative factories, : So far as farm produce is concerned it will be readily seen how much waste of time exists where butter, cheese,

and bacon are made at each farm, and how unequal the skill employed must be. Americans first tried the experiment of co-operation in this direction and large factories are now carrying on operations all over the agricultural districts of the United States. In some of these undertakings the profits are shared mutually, and in others the products are sold directly to the factory. Any person acquainted with farm life will readily see what great gain can be made in this way, not only in money but in time. The saving of labor also is immense. But although we have these examples before us, they do not at all point out any full and satisfactory solution of the problem, hosv to create a partnership between labor and capital generally. It will be seen, however, that the co-operative principle solves one phase of the problem ; it brings the producer and consumer into more or less direct contact and encourages individual effort and intelligence. Y ;,\ have been led to give prominence t< f this subject by learning a few days ago from a Canterbury telegram, that the

; fanners of Timaru are about forming ! a Co-operative Society with a capital | of .£25,000. Such an undertaking j has within it the elements of success. Bacon, for instance, will be cured in j an uniform manner by skilled hands, ; and the work being done on a large i scale and with a division of labor, can be brought to a marketable state at a ; minimum of cost. As soon, moreover, as its quality becomes fixed and known, the retail dealer can order direct and,-&ave - all commissions and intermediate profits. The same, arguments apply to butter and cheese. All i the improved appliances can be procured, and labor and time economised; thus what is often a drug on the far- [ mer’.s hands.or most wastefuliy used j for the feeding of pigs, can be turned j to profitable account. What makes

(his a matter of especial importance at the present time Loth to the labor and capital employed on the land, is the conviction that grain growing will soon be so profitable as it has been, and that it is also a class of farming in which the least amount of labor is employed. It is also objectionable from a national point of view, in tending to exhaust the soil. What the farmers of Tiinaru are about to do is almost analogous to what the Loan and Mercantile Association is doing on a larger scale. All tin; produce will be taken and put on the market at the proper time, but with this difference, that the farmers intend to* divide among themselves the profits arising from their own labor and capital. Perhaps in part no of the colonies is the necessity for such inutuabaction more apparent than in the Wairau; nor from the compactness of the district is there one in which a site for a central factory could be more easily found. Were such an industry established, many times the present number of cattle and pigs could be reared. At present, from the desultory supply, the local and even the Wellington markets can easily be over-stocked ; but with an intelligent directory and some capital, advantage could be taken of the Australian, and even perhaps, of the English markets- Like nearly all new inventions that of refrigeration seems to have been discovered at a very opportune time. The making of jams and the preservation of fruit are also industries for which this district is peculiarly well adapted. The co-oper-ative principle, if applied here in an intelligent manner, could hardly fail to be advantageous to our farmers and he conducive to the general welfare of the community, and we shall be glad to see our settlers following the example set by their brethren at Tirnaru.