The Co-opolitan: A Story of the Co-operative Commonwealth of Idaho

by Zebina Forbush

This method of collecting taxes and paying state expenses proved fully equal to the emergency. The Co-opolitan Association lost nothing by it. All schedule prices were fixed, as I have already stated, at a figure which was slightly lower than the cash market price for non-perishable and staple products and still lower for produce generally considered perishable.

But the producer also found his advantage to consist in the facility with which it enabled him to meet his public dues at all times promptly, thus avoiding penalties, interest and expenses. The system had not been long in operation before a question arose, concerning these orders, with the Federal authorities, who, at first, pronounced the Co-opolitan Association a kind of a banking institution, and the state orders upon it devices in the nature of state-bank issues. The effort was then made to compel the Co-opolitan Association to pay the ten per cent tax imposed by the Federal law on such issues.

The question was never brought into the courts, because the most eminent and expert lawyers in the Union agreed that such orders could no more be regarded as money than the checks of business men upon their bank deposits, the promissory notes of debtors, the tickets of transportation companies and the time checks of mining and other large corporations controlling labor.

Another question arose of a more serious character upon the right of the state to emit “Bills of Credit.” This the Federal constitution prohibited. A test case was made upon one of the state orders and taken to the United States Supreme Court. The decision of that tribunal was rendered by a divided court, a majority being of opinion that they could not be regarded as coming within the prohibition of the constitution referred to. These orders, the court held, were not designed to circulate as money, because they were directed to a private association of individuals designated as the Co-opolitan Association, and simply directed such association to deliver goods to the bearer. It was not a promise on the part of the state to pay money, nor to deliver goods. It was to be honored on demand, and when received by the Association in question was forthwith canceled. Evidence was offered by the parties seeking to void the orders that as a matter of fact they did circulate as money. This was held to be immaterial, for the reason that the fact, if shown, would not tend to prove that such was the intention of the state. The truth was that very few of the state orders so circulated. They were usually presented to the Co-opolitan store at any county seat without intermediate transfer, and a labor-credit check or industrial orders were issued instead.

It is true that such industrial orders so circulated and were treated as money by the people of Idaho, but the practice was not encouraged by Co-operators, because it was an incident of individualism and not of co-operation. Their circulation could not be prevented so long as the co-operative plan embraced the purchase of all property owned or produced by individualists in the state, and payment on goods or property as represented by these orders. In 1904 more than one-half of the people of the state were members of the Co-opolitan Association, and great numbers of those who were not members were daily becoming so. It was believed that in time our industrial orders would cease to circulate and perhaps be entirely superseded by the labor-credit check. It should be borne in mind that the labor-credit check, not being transferable, never passed out of the hands of its owner.

The policy of Idaho and the Co-opolitan Association was to prevent, as far as possible, the circulation of money in the state. It was treated as if it were a kind of poison which produced among men most dreadful diseases, and at the same time was an instrument of moral, financial and social ruin. We were fully convinced, when Co-opolis was founded, that if co-operation was to succeed some system must be applied which would exclude money from use among Co-operators. But it was recognized that outside of Idaho money was and must continue to remain king, as long as the industrial competitive and individualist system governed their affairs. For this reason the Co-opolitan Legislative Council accepted money, but sought in every possible way to prevent its circulation.

All money obtained by the sale of surplus products, manufactures or property of any kind in other states, or which might come into the co-operative stores, was immediately turned over to the Legislative Council and by it deposited in a strong safe in the basement of the Council Hall. Here it was guarded as if it were a deadly peril to the public weal.

The safe in which it rested was opened by a combination known only to the President, and it stood in an iron chamber whose great lock was turned by a key held by one of the Council. This was enclosed in another iron chamber which was opened only by a different key held by another member of the Council. There were twenty-six chambers of different sizes, the smaller enclosed within the larger, and twenty-six locks opened by as many different keys, each councilor holding one and no more. It took twenty-six councilors and twenty-six keys to reach the safe, and no money could be taken from it except in the presence of at least one-half of the members of the Legislative Council. But it was a rule of the Association that if any person living in the state desired money with which to travel outside of the state he should make his affidavit to that effect setting forth the amount he desired, and upon his application for such an amount, if the Council were satisfied that it was made in good faith and that the money would not be expended in the state, the application was granted. Articles which the Department of Commerce were compelled to import from other states or countries were also paid for from the accumulation in the safe.

After disposing of the question of how taxes and public expenses could be discharged the first Great Council took up the question of what property should be taxable. Among the private individualist enterprises in Idaho mining and grazing predominated. Both the mine owners and cattle men, whose herds were permitted to wander at will on the ranges, were expert “tax dodgers.” How to reach them and compel them to pay their just and fair proportion of the expense of running the state and maintaining the schools was an important question. It was decided that all taxes should be levied on land values. In other words, what is sometimes called the Single-Tax system was adopted.

Wherever cattle men occupied a range together the total number of cattle upon it was determined, owners’ names were obtained and the value of the range per acre was estimated upon the basis of its use for grazing purposes. Each owner was then made liable for the tax on the total acreage of the range occupied, and the proportion each was bound to pay was no question for the state, but was a question for the cattle men to determine for and among themselves. Cattle men now found it impossible to escape their taxes as formerly, each being zealous to require his neighbor to pay his part, and it must be confessed that they showed a strong disposition to leave the state, so that the ranges abandoned by them were left for the use of our herds.