CHAPTER XI.. Further Extensions.

FURTHER EXTENSIONS.

MORE TEAROOMS—INCREASING BUSINESS—NEW BISCUIT FACTORY AT WORK—ANOTHER EXTENSION—MORE GROUND PURCHASED—NEW BAKERY OPENED—THE POSITION OF THE FEDERATION—NEW STABLES—ORGANISATION—MANAGER OR NO MANAGER?—RELATIONS WITH THE C.W.S.—THE BIG BOYCOTT—RELATIONS WITH MASTER BAKERS—SOME NOTEWORTHY ALTERATIONS—THE FARMING ASSOCIATION—ACCIDENTS—THE OATCAKE DEPARTMENT—ADVERTISING AND ENTERTAINING—DONATIONS—A WORKS DEPARTMENT—A FOUR YEARS’ RECORD.

So successful were the tearooms in Renfield Street proving that, at the 101st quarterly meeting of the Society, the directors sought power to increase the number of these places of business. There was a difference of opinion amongst the delegates as to the best course to pursue. Some were not in favour of any further extension of this branch of the business, and carried their opposition so far as to move an amendment that power be not granted. Others favoured the principle, but urged the committee to “hasten slowly,” and moved that power to open one only be granted. The vast majority of the delegates, however, were fired with the enthusiasm of the committee, or, at least, were prepared to trust them not to go further than was going to be for the benefit of the Society; so the powers sought, which were “to open one or two more tearooms as opportunity offered,” were granted by a large majority. The result of this permission was that rooms were taken at Glasgow Cross—they will be remembered by most Co-operators. They were leased for ten years, the rental being £100 for the first two and a half years and £115 for the remainder of the period. Steps were immediately taken to have them fitted up as first-class tea and dining rooms, and it was decided that they should be lighted by electricity. The premises were opened to the public on 25th October, when there was a large gathering of representatives from the societies in the Glasgow and Suburbs Conference area, friendly and other societies, and trade unions. Mr M‘Culloch presided, and the rooms were declared open by Mr Maxwell, president, S.C.W.S. Mr Glasse, Mr Bain, Mr Chaddock, and other gentlemen also delivered addresses.

While negotiations and preparations had been proceeding for the opening of the Cross tearooms, preparations were also being made at the bakery for the opening of a dining hall and bread shop, and shortly after the function at the Cross these also were opened.

The next venture of the Federation was in Paisley Road, where, on 25th May 1895, tearooms were opened. Following on the opening of the Paisley Road premises, no alterations took place in this section of the Society’s business until the end of 1897, when the committee, having failed to come to an arrangement with the factor for the Renfield Street premises, and being faced with the prospect of having to pay increased rent for the premises if they renewed their lease, decided to accept an offer of premises at 102 and 104 West Nile Street at £300 rental per annum. It was decided that the tearooms should be known as “The Union Rooms,” and also that electric lighting be installed. Quite a long time was spent in fitting up the new premises so as to make them thoroughly worthy of the part which it was hoped they would play in the social life of the Co-operative community of the city and district, and it was not until the 28th of June 1898 that they were formally opened. The premises comprised a tearoom and smaller rooms and offices on the ground floor, as well as two large flats above. To celebrate the opening the board had decided that a tea should be given to the regular customers of the Renfield Street premises, and of these about 100 attended at a social gathering. A jovial evening was passed in song and sentiment, and many kind things were said of Mr Watson, manager, and the new premises.

Meantime, the Society had undertaken yet another venture in the catering line. In connection with the National Halls, Main Street, Gorbals, there had been a catering department, which was giving up business, and the business and plant were purchased by the Baking Society, a tearoom and an auxiliary purvey department being established there in the spring of 1898.

INCREASING BUSINESS.

For many years the hands of the Bakery board were never out of the mortar tub, and by a slight inadvertence they fell foul, in the early summer of 1894, of the building regulations of the city. From the beginning of the year they had been in communication with the master of works of the city about some alterations which they wished to make on an old building situated on their land at Clydeside. It was necessary that some work should be carried out inside this building, and, in the course of alterations, a part of the outside wall was taken down, and was in process of rebuilding when the master of works came on the scene, stopped the work, and reported the Society to the Procurator Fiscal for a contravention of the by-laws. The result was that the Society was fined £1, 1s., but, as the work they had done was allowed to stand, they came out of the business not so badly.

By the middle of August 1894, the new biscuit factory had started operations, and the Society was able once more to fulfil the orders for biscuits which came pouring in. Already, however, the latest extension of the bread bakery was beginning to have its productive capacity taxed, and at the 104th quarterly meeting the directors obtained power from the quarterly meeting to proceed with a further extension of the bakery, this time at the corner of Govan Street and South York Street. First, however, they turned their attention to a further extension of the biscuit factory, where they had plans prepared for the erection of another flat, with provision for seven ovens. Already they had a biscuit traveller on the road who was doing well, and by the middle of the year arrangements were made with the Wholesale whereby they secured premises for a biscuit depot at Leith, and a van was placed on the road for the delivery of their goods in the East.

It was not until the beginning of the following year that the plans for the addition to the bakery were ready. These provided for a building with three flats of ovens, giving an additional baking capacity of fifty ovens. When the plans were agreed to by the quarterly meeting a strong recommendation was made that the work be carried out by the Society’s own workmen, and this was done.

The next step in the scheme of extensions was the purchase of the ground at the south corner of South York Street and Govan Street on which the stables and St Mungo Halls now stand. This ground, which had an extent of 9,813 square yards, cost £8,839, 9s. In pursuance of the policy of the Society to carry out the construction of the addition to the bakery themselves, a foreman builder was engaged, at a salary of £4 a week, and building plant was bought at a cost of almost £500. The new addition was not completed until October 1897; its opening being made the occasion of a demonstration, at which a company of 1,600 people were present. The cost of the new building was £29,000. The building was a bakery complete in itself, having fifty ovens, a barmroom, breadroom, and storage for 3,000 sacks of flour. The whole bakery now had a baking capacity of 150 ovens, capable of turning out over 560,000 loaves per week.

THE OPENING CEREMONY.

The formal inauguration of the new buildings was performed by Mrs M‘Culloch, wife of the president, who turned the steam on to the engine which was to drive the machinery in the department. In a short speech, Mr Bain then sketched the history of the Federation. On entering, each of the ladies present had been presented with a silver souvenir brooch bearing a representation of the building, and at the conclusion of the opening ceremony Mrs M‘Culloch was presented with a gold brooch of similar design.

A huge vehicular demonstration, in which over a hundred vehicles took part, paraded the streets of the city after the opening ceremony. Many mottoes were displayed on the decorated lorries and vans, amongst the most prominent being one which stated “Our answer to the boycott—other 54 ovens added.” The dinner took place in the East End Industrial Exhibition buildings, and Mr M‘Culloch, president of the Society, presided.

In welcoming the visitors, he referred to the inception of the Society in a little back court in Coburg Street, with a bakery capable of doing a trade of forty sacks a week, and contrasted that small beginning with the size and strength of the Federation that day; the possessor of plant capable of dealing with 3,500 sacks each week. He laid stress on the fact that the building had been done by the Society’s own workmen, and that over £11,000 had been paid in wages to the builders.

Mr Peter Glasse said the Society had proved to the world the power of the Co-operative movement. During its twenty-eight years of existence it had disbursed £143,000 in the form of dividends to customers, and during all that time it had never had a strike of its workers, because it had always paid the highest rate of wages and worked the shortest possible number of hours.

Mr William Maxwell, in the course of a stirring address on “Co-operation,” said that through the influence of the Co-operative movement the masses had learned that that inanimate thing called capital could be made into a willing and obedient servant, instead of, as formerly, a harsh taskmaster. There was a community of thought and action in the Co-operative movement which was bringing out much that was noble and sympathetic in human nature. The social gulfs which lay between the various classes in society would never be bridged over by the competitive system, because that system was the cause of these gulfs. That bridging could only be done by Co-operation. Their opponents were saying that they were lamentably deluded, but, if those opponents only knew it, they had aroused the members of the movement from that apathy and indifference in which they had hitherto lain dormant.

The point of Mr Maxwell’s address, which was punctuated with applause, was that the “boycott” movement was then at its height in Glasgow and the West, and everywhere attempts were being made to intimidate Co-operators into forsaking the stores. These attempts only resulted in giving the movement a splendid advertisement. Everywhere the opponents came out into the open they were defeated, and some well-known firms, which, until then, had been reaping large profits from their trade with Co-operation, found that the boycott was a double-edged weapon, and that the measure which they meted out to Co-operative workmen could be meted out to themselves by Co-operative societies.

THE POSITION OF THE FEDERATION.

As showing the power and influence to which the Federation had attained by this time, we cannot do better than quote from an article which appeared in Copartnership for June 1897. After describing the beginnings of the Society, the writer goes on:—

“But the day of small things is past; the society has grown into one of the largest as well as one of the most important in the movement. The trade last year—1896—was £220,536; but in case that sum should not convey a definite notion of the work involved it should be remembered that the U.C.B.S. carries on the largest business of its kind in the United Kingdom. At present 340 sacks of flour are baked into 65,300 loaves every day, while 25 sacks are made into pastry and hand-made biscuits, 20 sacks into machine-made biscuits, and the oatcake department requires 13 sacks daily; practically 400 sacks of flour and meal daily; a great growth from the early days when it was difficult for the committee to keep with them the baker they employed, who had no faith in the society’s future.

The biscuits and cakes are sold not only in Glasgow and all over Scotland, but are now finding their way into England, and winning favour. These goods, of course, go by rail, but it will readily be understood that the bulkiest part of the trade, bread for use in the co-operative households in and around Glasgow, requires a large staff and rolling stock; and, as a matter of fact, the delivery department employs 62 carmen, dealing with 71 vehicles and 107 horses.

A great capital is needed to carry on so large a business, and the extent of the capital is shown in the following figures:—

Capital. Societies. Workers. Outside Individuals. Shares £37,907 £2,900 Nil. Loans 79,114 580 £10,728 ———— ——— ———— £117,021 £3,480 £10,728 Total £131,229.”

The article goes on to state that the total number of employees was 829, 77 of these being employed in the building department, while 275 were members of the Bonus Investment Society. It concludes:—

“Some organisations are mere aggregations without either heart or mind. The parts mistakenly believe that they can evade as organisations duties that belong to them as individuals. But the problem before co-operators allows no such evasion. They have to set up, not only good businesses in sanitary buildings, but also a new industrial system, where labourers are recognised as human beings entitled to share in the results and direction of their own lives. Because the leaders of the United Baking Society have recognised this, and have not allowed prosperity to poison aspiration, all men will wish them well, and we may say with an inner meaning to the words that we hope in time great multitudes may eat their bread and be thankful.”

BELFAST ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Top Row—ALEXANDER PATTERSON; JOHN PALMER; DAVID T. GILCHRIST.

Bottom Row—JAMES MURPHY; WILLIAM J. M‘GUFFIN, Chairman; ROBERT RODGER, Secretary. ]

1. JAMES YOUNG, General Manager.

2. JAS. H. FORSYTH, Cashier and Accountant. ]

NEW STABLES.

The rate at which the trade of the Society was growing called for an almost continuous growth in live and rolling stock, and consequently for increased accommodation. Already the provision for stables and van-sheds which had been made when the removal to M‘Neil Street took place was much too small, and various makeshift methods had to be adopted to provide the necessary accommodation for the growing stud of horses. At the same time the committee were now getting a different idea of the possibilities of the enterprise, and were desirous, therefore, of making the bakery as compact, and with its various parts as well co-ordinated as possible. They were desirous, therefore, of removing the stables away from the bakery altogether, and it was with this object in view that the ground on the south side of Govan Street was purchased. At the quarterly meeting held in September 1896 they were granted power to proceed with the erection of stables and workshops, and this work was commenced immediately. At the same time, plans were prepared and the erection proceeded with of a temporary stable on a part of the same ground. By the end of 1898 the new stables and workshops were completed, and the December meeting of the Society was held there, so that the delegates might have an opportunity of being shown over the premises.

ORGANISATION.

Never at any time had the directors shown carelessness in their supervision of what had now become a gigantic concern, and they were continually giving thought to means of improving the organisation of the Federation and of improving the supervision by the committee. Early in the period with which this chapter deals, they made arrangements whereby the members of the committee took it in turn to visit the bakery each week. These visits were found of value by the members of the committee, as it enabled them to acquire fuller information about the working of the Society. Each member reported the result of his visit to the sub-committee, together with any suggestion he had to make.

Towards the end of 1894 the committee appointed a biscuit traveller, Mr Archibald Petrie being the man appointed.

MANAGER OR NO MANAGER.

The quarterly meeting had under consideration the question of the general management of the Society, the points discussed being the appointment of a general manager, or the development of the system of departmental managership. The discussion was inaugurated on a motion moved by Mr Malcolm of Newton Society, “that a general manager be appointed.” The result of the discussion was the adoption of a suggestion by Mr Glasse—who said he had sat in committee with a manager and without a manager, and was of the opinion that the business could be best managed without a manager. He suggested that the matter should be remitted back to the committee for consideration and report, and the other motions and amendments which had been moved were withdrawn in favour of this suggestion.

The committee took up consideration of the question within a month, and came to the conclusion that the business of the Society could be best managed by being divided into six departments, with a departmental manager over each, who would be in direct touch with the committee. These departments were: (1) The counting-house; with Mr James H. Forsyth as head—this department to include all the commercial transactions of the Society. (2) The productive department, including the production of all bread, smallbread, biscuits, and oatcakes; to be under the charge of Mr Robert Fraser, who was also to have control of the enginemen and oilers. (3) The distributive department, which was to include the dispatching of the bread and the packing and dispatching of the biscuits and oatcakes; to be under the management of Mr William Miller. (4) The delivery was to be under the control of Mr Milne, stable foreman, who was to have control of all the horses, vanmen, and nightwatchman. (5) The building and repairs department, including the tradesmen and their assistants; to be controlled by Mr Davidson. (6) The purvey department and tearooms, under the management of Mr Robert Watson.

The committee recommended, further, that they should meet fortnightly, but that the monthly meeting remain as at present, the bi-monthly meeting to be devoted to the interviewing of all the heads of departments, each of whom was to present a written report. Another recommendation was that the term for which members of committee were elected should be extended, as they were of opinion that the frequent changes amongst the membership of the Board prevented members from acquiring a proper knowledge of the business, and had in this way interfered with the successful management of the Society. They believed that, if the delegates would accept this suggestion for the alteration of the rule governing elections, it would do much to consolidate the management of the business in the hands of the committee. At the following general meeting of the Society the principle of the report was accepted, and it was decided to hold a special meeting at the close of the next general meeting for the purpose of considering the alteration of rule proposed. At this special meeting the delegates, however, refused to make the alteration, and the tenure of office of members of committee remained at one year.

In 1894 the Society attained to the dignity of a registered telegraphic address, “Federation” being the name adopted. They also had the telephone installed, as well as private lines communicating with their teashops. At the end of the year they became members of Kinning Park, St George, and Glasgow Eastern societies for the purposes of trade, and later, of other societies as well. They also undertook a census of their employees for the purpose of finding out who amongst them were Co-operators and who were not. The census showed that the Society had 431 employees, of whom 236 were unmarried. Of the remainder 152, or 78 per cent., were associated with Co-operative societies, and 43, or 22 per cent., were not.

THE SOCIETY AND THE C.W.S.

Naturally the directors were anxious to push their biscuit trade as rapidly as they could, and having fixed up a trading agency with the S.C.W.S. and with the Co-operative Institute, London, they endeavoured to do the same with the C.W.S. This society had a biscuit factory of their own, however, and were, not unnaturally, reluctant to introduce what were really the goods of a competing concern, therefore they refused to accept the agency. The next step taken by the Society was that of appointing a traveller for the purpose of pushing biscuits and oatcakes in England. Against this step, however, a very vigorous protest was made by Mr James Young, who considered that there should be no further pushing of the Society’s goods into English societies against the wishes of the English Wholesale Society’s committee. Following on this decision, it was agreed that the Society’s productions should be exhibited at the Crystal Palace Exhibition. This activity in England brought a letter from the C.W.S. committee, who pointed out that the action of the Baking Society would lead to competition and overlapping. Later, that committee also passed a resolution in which they stated that they were ready and willing to supply all the societies in England with biscuits if they would only be allowed to do so, and sent a copy of the resolution to the Baking Society’s committee.

THE BIG BOYCOTT.

Reference has already been made to the boycott of Co-operators which was inaugurated all over Scotland and continued throughout 1896 and 1897. The traders had made their organisation very complete, with the result that every manufacturing firm on which they were in a position to bring pressure was compelled to discharge all employees who remained members of Co-operative societies, or whose parents continued members, or else to suffer very considerable loss of trade. In no department of labour was it easier to bring effective pressure to bear than on the baking trade, and the result was that all the big baking firms in the city were compelled to post up notices informing their employees that they must cease to trade at Co-operative stores or leave their employment. Similar notices were posted up in every workshop and factory where the Traders’ Association was in a position to apply any pressure, often against the will of the employers, who recognised that those of their workers who were Co-operators were usually the best and steadiest men, but who were compelled to choose between perpetrating a manifest injustice and seeing their businesses ruined. No tactics were too mean or despicable to be resorted to by the traders’ organisation. They had their spies everywhere, and a favourite method of operations was that of watching the shops of the Co-operative societies and tracking the customers home, then ascertaining where the husbands were employed, and writing to their employers to demand their dismissal. This espionage system was very perfect in its way, and considerable hardship was caused to individual Co-operators by it; while the boycott had a lasting effect in another direction, for it was the direct cause of the large proportion of householders, in the places throughout Scotland where the boycott raged most fiercely, which became represented amongst the shareholders of the societies by the wives of the householders instead of by the householders themselves.

While it lasted the boycott was not without its humorous incidents. If the traders had their system of espionage, so also had the Co-operative Defence Association, and there was not a meeting of the Traders’ Association held, however great the precautions which might be taken to ensure absolute secrecy, of which a practically verbatim report of the proceedings was not in the hands of the secretary of the Co-operative Defence Committee next morning. One of the laughable incidents concerned one such meeting, a full report of which was published by the Co-operators. This was followed by a visit from an irate traders’ official, who demanded to know the source from which the report had come. It is hardly necessary to state that he went away without the information asked for, and to this day it is probable that the source of the information is known to less than half a dozen people, not one of whom had anything to do with the traders’ organisation.

But if the boycott was the cause of hardship to individuals here and there, it brought grist in a very real sense to the Co-operative mill in other directions. Already, in this chapter, it has been pointed out that it was a two-edged weapon, and while Co-operative societies did not cease to trade with private manufacturers who did not adopt the boycott, they were kept well informed of those manufacturers who did. It was found that while some manufacturers had no wish to employ Co-operative labour they were keenly desirous of retaining Co-operative custom, and it came as an unpleasant surprise to some of them to find that Co-operative societies objected to the dismissal of employees because of their Co-operative connection, and that they refused to trade with manufacturers who adopted such tactics. It is said that one Glasgow firm lost Co-operative trade at this time worth £20,000 a year and never regained it.

In two directions the boycott benefited Co-operative production, therefore. It turned the attention of those at the head of the movement to the need of being as far as possible independent of private manufacturers for supplies, and thus it did much to stimulate Co-operative manufactures and to hasten entry into new spheres of work. On the other hand, the operation of the boycott, where manufacturers refused to supply goods which were already being produced Co-operatively, increased the demand for the Co-operative manufactures; while the process of retaliation mentioned above also stimulated this demand. In both of those directions, the Baking Society was a gainer. One or two societies in the neighbourhood of Glasgow, which hitherto had always stood aloof from the Federation and had done very little trade with it, now approached it for supplies; while a rapidly growing city society, whose members had consistently refused to give the Federation the whole of their bread trade, were now prepared to do so. Notwithstanding the fact that the capacity of the bakery was fully taxed, an endeavour was made by the committee to supply the wants of those societies who had brought home to them in this manner the value of federation in the day of adversity. A big trade in biscuits had also been done hitherto with Co-operative societies by the biscuit manufacturers of Glasgow, but the boycott put an end to that trade, and in this direction also the Bakery gained very considerably. It may be asserted with confidence, therefore, that not only did the traders’ organisation fail to achieve the object they had in view—the destruction of the Co-operative movement in Scotland, and especially in Glasgow and the West—but their campaign had exactly the opposite effect, and ended by leaving the Co-operative movement stronger in membership, stronger in trade and capital, and with a membership more closely knit together than it would have been but for the agitation and the boycott.

The members of the Federation were not slow to recognise the vital nature of the issues at stake, and placed a credit of £1,000 in the hands of the directors to use as they might deem advisable for the defence of the Co-operative movement. At the Perth Congress, which was held when the boycott campaign was at its height, the delegates had decided in favour of Co-operative representation in Parliament; and later, when the Co-operative Union sent out a circular, with the object of ascertaining what support a Parliamentary campaign was likely to secure amongst the societies, the delegates to the Baking Society’s meeting, by a large majority, decided in favour of a Parliamentary campaign; mainly owing to the eloquence of the chairman, Messrs Glasse and MacNab, Wholesale, Mr Gerrard, and Messrs Low and Stewart of Kinning Park. Undoubtedly, the boycott had its influence on the decision. The chairman was particularly strong in his remarks at the meeting, and, in referring to the debate on the subject which had taken place at Congress, suggested that if their English friends had had a taste of the boycott they would put aside any party prejudices. With the defeat of the traders, however, and the apathy of the Co-operators on the other side of the Border, the agitation died down, and, except as a subject of academic debate at Congress, nothing further was heard of it for some years.

RELATIONS WITH MASTER BAKERS.

In the middle of 1896, the Master Bakers’ Association held a meeting to consider the price of bread. Out of 48 firms represented, 44 voted against making any reduction in price at the moment, while four were in favour of a reduction. After the meeting those four firms met and agreed to reduce the price. They got other three firms to join with them; with the result that on the morning of 15th June an advertisement appeared in the Glasgow papers which stated that these seven bakers had reduced the price of their bread. The committee of the Baking Society met that evening, and they decided that while the price of flour did not warrant the reduction, yet, in order that the Federation might maintain its position it was their unanimous finding that the price should be reduced by one halfpenny on the four-pound loaf. At the same meeting it was agreed that, as the sale of “common” bread was very small, the Federation should cease baking it altogether, and produce only the one quality of bread in future—“fine.” This decision was adhered to for six months, at the end of which period it was agreed to begin the baking of “common” bread again. At a later period this connection with the Master Bakers’ Association was called in question at a quarterly meeting, and gave rise to a lengthy discussion. Mr Glasse of the Wholesale board was the chief critic, and moved that the Federation be not represented at these meetings in future. Several of the delegates, in supporting this motion, pointed out that some of the master bakers present at these meetings of the association were men who had signed an agreement to do their best to put down Co-operation, and one delegate described the association as a syndicate, the members of which wished for big profits and cared for no one but themselves. It was pointed out by the chairman that this was not a properly-constituted association, but an informal gathering of people engaged in the same business. The Federation had been invited to send a representative, and had got some useful information there, but were not committed in any way. Finally, on being put to the vote, the motion of Mr Glasse was defeated in favour of an amendment that the committee act as they had been doing. The question was one which cropped up periodically at meetings of the Federation, but always with the same result of leaving the Federation unfettered to do the best they could in the interest of the concern they were appointed to manage.

SOME NOTEWORTHY ALTERATIONS.

For several years the rates of interest which had been paid for loans had been 4½ per cent. for money deposited on twelve months’ notice of withdrawal and 4 per cent. on money at call, but the rate of interest in the money market had shown a decided downward tendency for some time, and towards the end of 1896 the directors recommended that the rates to be paid by the Federation should be reduced to 3½ per cent. and 3 per cent., a recommendation which was adopted by the general meeting. At the same meeting a reform which certain members of the committee and certain delegates had advocated for some years—the raising of the value of the share from 10/ to 15/—was at last agreed to. This had the effect of adding 50 per cent. to the capital of the Society. At the same time the influx of new societies into the Federation and of new members into the societies continued at a rapid rate, so that from this source also the capital of the Society was being increased so rapidly that it was practically keeping pace with the big capital expenditure necessitated by the rapid growth of the Society’s business.

In June 1897 Mr Robert Fraser, who had been foreman baker for a number of years, left the service of the Federation to take up another situation, and the committee took advantage of the fact to make some important rearrangements in the management of the bakery. This was done by dividing the productive work into three sections: bread, biscuits, and pastry. Mr Murdoch Richard, who had been assistant to Mr Fraser for several years, was given full charge of the bread department; Mr John Gilmour was made manager of the machine-made biscuit and oatcake sections; and Mr William Seivewright was placed in charge of the pastry and hand-made biscuit section.

In September of the same year Mr Allan Gray, who had been one of the auditors of the Society for the long period of seventeen years, retired owing to pressure of other business, and was awarded the hearty thanks of the delegates for the long and faithful service he had given. Mr William H. Jack, of St George Society, was elected his successor. At the general meeting held on 4th December 1897, it was decided that the Federation join the International Co-operative Alliance. Earlier in the same year they had taken up 500 shares in the Scottish Co-operative Laundry Association Ltd., and, owing to their large purvey and tearoom department, were likely to be one of the largest customers of that concern. Indeed, so great was their laundry bill that at one time the directors gave serious consideration to the question of starting a laundry department of their own, for the girls in the packing and oatcake flats were supplied with overalls which required laundering every week. The Federation also adopted the policy of providing the girls who served in the tearooms with dresses. In the spring of 1898 the Society became members of the Scottish Co-operator Federation. Owing to the large proportion of employees, particularly in the stable department, who were going off ill, a medical man was engaged to call at the factory regularly and supervise the health of the employees. This year the Society started the manufacture of plum puddings, and were making strenuous efforts to develop the pie trade. An expert piemaker was engaged, the societies were circularised, and a small van and a fast pony were purchased so as to ensure quick delivery. At the quarterly meeting held in March 1898, the chairman stated that, owing to the number of societies which were starting bakeries of their own and were withdrawing their loan capital from the Federation for this purpose, the committee had decided not to proceed further with the stores which they had proposed to erect in the new premises. The work had been stopped meantime, but it could be proceeded with at any time desired. He also asked for permission to reopen the private loan fund again, the interest to be paid being 3½ per cent. at twelve months’ notice and 3 per cent. at call, and this permission was granted. He explained that they were not altogether in want of money, but desired to have a little more liquid capital than they had in hand at the moment. After one or two questions had been asked, the permission desired was granted.

THE FARMING ASSOCIATION.

When the Scottish Co-operative Farming Association was formed the Baking Society took a keen interest in it, and for such products as were of use to it was always a good customer. At a later date in the history of the association an overdraft of £200 was granted. Unfortunately, from causes which were fairly obvious, the Association, after some years of fair success, fell on evil days, and during the period with which this chapter deals the committee approached the Baking Society to take one of the farms rented by the Association. The board of the Baking Society viewed the idea with favour, believing that a farm would be a useful auxiliary to their distributive department, while it would be to the advantage of the movement if the Farming Association could be preserved from collapse; and when the question was brought before the general meeting of the Society the majority of the delegates were also in favour of the scheme, and gave full power to the committee to proceed. Thus armed with full powers the members of the committee were wise enough to take expert advice before committing themselves definitely, and delegated two practical farmers to examine the farm and report. The reports presented by these gentlemen were unanimous, and were to the effect that the farm was very badly drained and in poor condition; the rent was too high, and it could not be made to pay either as a cropping or as a dairy farm. As a result of this report, and in view of the fact that inside two months the Farming Association went into liquidation, it was decided to have nothing more to do with the proposal.

The Society had still some further trouble to face in connection with the Association however. A large quantity of hay had been bought and paid for, to be delivered as required, but when the liquidators came to examine the stock on the farm they claimed this hay as part of the assets of the Association, and a considerable amount of negotiation took place before the matter was settled. The final result was that, by the failure of the Association, the Federation lost £346, 14s. 7d.

ACCIDENTS.

Probably it was owing to the much greater number of vehicles now owned by the Federation, and the much larger number of persons employed, that the accidents recorded in the period with which we are dealing exceeded in number all those which have been recorded hitherto. Fortunately, many of them were not of a serious nature, but during the four years three fatal accidents took place. In one case a man was knocked down by a van belonging to the Society and killed, but the police report was to the effect that no blame attached to the driver of the van. Out of sympathy with the widow thus suddenly deprived of her breadwinner, however, the committee gave her a grant of £40. In another case a bricklayer lost his life, again without blame attaching to the Society, and in this case a grant of £20 was made to the widow; while the third case was that of a plumber employed by the Society, who died as the result of an accident at the bakery. In this case also a grant of £30 was made.

THE OATCAKE DEPARTMENT.

During the period under review an extraordinary development of the business of the oatcake department took place, and an aggregate addition of thirty-eight hot-plates for the use of this department alone was installed between March 1894 and July 1897. The committee did their best to push the trade, sending circulars and samples of the cakes to societies in the North of England, with results which were beneficial to the trade of the department. Later, a traveller was employed on salary and commission to push the Federation’s goods amongst English societies. Another branch of the Society’s trade which was making rapid strides every year was that of New Year cakes. In 1896 18,870 five-pound cakes sold at the cake show, and in the following year the number rose to 25,000.

ADVERTISING AND ENTERTAINING.

The directors early recognised the value of a social meeting as a means of advertising the Society and its goods, and in December 1894 a large number of the ladies of the movement were invited to inspect the premises of the Society and were afterwards entertained to tea. From that time it became a practice of the Federation to entertain branches of the women’s guild, conference associations, etc., while they were generous in grants of bread to persons who were suffering from the effects of unemployment, whether caused by dullness in trade or strikes. During the winters of 1892–3 and 1893–4 large quantities of bread were distributed to those in want from the former cause, while during the continuance of the miners’ strike and the engineers’ strike further quantities were distributed and, in addition, a grant of £100 was made to the strike fund of the engineers. In 1895 an incident took place which at one time seemed likely to lead to friction between the two big Scottish federations. The Wholesale Society brought before its members a proposal to start a biscuit factory in Leith, with the result that the committee of the Baking Society sent out a circular to all the societies in the larger federation, protesting against the proposal as one which would set up competition between the two federations, and pointing out that it was in a position to meet all the needs of the societies in biscuits. Fortunately, the proposal went no further, and thus what would have been a bone of contention between the societies disappeared.

The Society also took advantage of every opportunity to bring the goods manufactured under the notice not only of Co-operators but of the general public. Beginning with the Congress exhibition in 1890, it continued to exhibit on every available opportunity. The Co-operative festivals which began to be organised provided suitable opportunities and, in order that the goods might be displayed as effectively as possible, a new showcase was procured from the Wholesale Society’s cabinetmaking department, at a cost of £200. In 1895 it was decided to issue a “Year Book” instead of the usual calendar. This “Year Book,” which was compiled by Mr Lochrie, of the Scottish Co-operator, contained 231 pages, including advertisements and a street map of Glasgow, in which was shown the premises of the Wholesale Society and the Baking Society, as well as the tearooms of the latter Society. The principal feature of the book was a concise little history of the Baking Society to the date of its issue. In the following year Mr James Campsie, M.A., was commissioned to write a co-operative book for children, with the title “Glimpses of Co-operative Land,” of which over 20,000 copies were issued. At the opening of the extension of the bakery in 1897, in addition to the souvenir brooches which were issued to the lady delegates, similar brooches were presented to the lady employees of the Society, a kindly and thoughtful act which doubtless had its effect in cementing the good relationship existing between them and the directors. Amongst other visitors who were shown over the premises of the Society from time to time special mention is made in the minutes of a visit which was paid by the senior pupils from four Glasgow schools, accompanied by their teachers, who were escorted through the various departments and afterwards entertained to tea.

DONATIONS.

In the early days of the Society the directors were very careful of the money of which they were the trustees, although, even then, after the first few quarters had passed, donations, amounting at first only to £5 a quarter, but gradually increasing in amount as the Society increased in wealth, were given to various public philanthropic institutions, of which the infirmaries were the principal recipients. Now these donations had increased to £175 a year, while, in addition, during the period under review £50 had been granted to the Co-operative Festival Fund; three donations, amounting in the aggregate to £550, had been given to the building fund of the Co-operative Convalescent Homes Association; £50 was given to the Perth Congress Reception Fund; £100 to the Engineers’ Strike Fund; £25 to the Cowdenbeath Society Fund; £100 in commemoration of Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee to the Royal Infirmary; two sums of £15 and £25 to the Municipal Election Fund of the Defence Committee; and £100 to the Indian Famine Fund; while £500 were guaranteed to the 1901 Glasgow Industrial Exhibition.

A WORKS DEPARTMENT.

With the beginning of the period the Federation’s works department may be said to have been fairly launched. The first extension of the biscuit factory had been carried out under the Society’s own auspices, and the foreman who had charge of that work was retained in the employment of the Society for repair work when the biscuit factory was finished. Then a blacksmith’s shop, which was a part of the buildings purchased by the Society in South York Street, was taken over by the Society, and a blacksmith was engaged; to be followed shortly afterwards by a plumber and a painter. The first job of any size to be tackled by the Society’s own building department, however, was the extension at the corner of Govan Street and South York Street. This job set the building department on its feet, for the total cost when finished was £29,000. From that time practically all the building work of the Society has been done by its own building department. At about the same time as the building department commenced a van building section also began work, and the first van was turned out complete in the middle of April 1896. So great was the demand for new vans, however, that for a time it could hardly be met. To some extent the boycott accounted for this, for the terrorism exercised by the traders’ organisation extended to the van building firms as well as to others, and eventually all the work of this department was done either by the Federation’s own department or by that of the Wholesale Society.

A FOUR YEARS’ RECORD.

Before closing this chapter it may be well if we take a look at what had been accomplished during the four years with which it deals. At the close of the twenty-fifth year the Society was baking 1,254 sacks per week, while the turnover for the 117th quarter was 32,987 sacks, or 2,537 sacks per week; so that, in four years and a quarter, the trade had more than doubled. The output of the biscuit factory had been doubled; the output of the oatcake department had been increased manyfold, and notwithstanding the fact that several societies which were taking all their bread from the Federation at the beginning of the period had started baking for themselves before its end, the output in the bread baking department had come within a few sacks per week of doubling. An addition to the bakery had been erected at a cost of £29,000; new stables and workshops were in course of erection and nearing completion; the purveying department and tearooms had been greatly extended; a branch had been opened in Leith, for which extended accommodation had already to be secured, and a footing for the productions of the Society had been found South of the Border. The Federation had stood the test of the most virulent attacks which all the malice of enemies could devise, and, like the whole movement, had emerged stronger than before; while last, but by no means least, an educational fund had been started and an educational committee established. These four years show a record of growth and expansion which was phenomenal, and completely dwarfed all that had been done before. It lay with the period which followed to show that, rapid though it was, there was nothing which was mushroomlike in this growth.