in this country has been the lack of trained and able leaders.

A third significant development is the adoption by cooperatives of the
best methods of management and accounting. Until this had been done the
cooperatives had small chance of succeeding. It is probable that
cooperatives which lack some of the incentives of the ordinary
commercial business will be compelled constantly to adopt the most
efficient and advanced type of machinery. In setting this up as a
definite standard they will escape the inertia and conservatism that
ordinarily characterize large groups, a condition which at the present
time is retarding the British cooperative movement. Two years ago
accurate accounting was an unusual thing among cooperatives. At the
present time practically all the cooperatives in the State have their
books gone over periodically by trained public accountants.

A still further trend in the cooperative development is the extension of
the movement into new lines of business. To this extent the failure of
cooperative grocery stores has had a beneficial effect since it has
forced groups to undertake different kinds of cooperative business. In
New York City at the present time cooperatives are engaged in such
diverse business as that of restaurants, cafeterias, bakeries, coal
associations, pool rooms, printing establishments, meat stores and
laundries. This means that the cooperatives are not following tradition
but are thinking for themselves and are selecting that enterprise which
will serve them most effectively. In going into these businesses where
profits are greatest they are not only prospering themselves but they
are performing one of their most legitimate functions, that of
protecting the consumer from extortionate profits.