who are not affected by this aid.  That is, nevertheless, only the first conclusion.  A second, of still greater importance, is the following:  In competition with factory production, which is in constantly increasing scope taking the place of small artisan production, even the artisans who remain in the latter are in no way certain of being protected by the credit and raw material associations.  I will again cite Professor Huber as a witness on this point.  “Unfortunately,” says he, after speaking in praise, as I have done, of the Schulze-Delitzsch credit and raw material associations, “unfortunately, however, the assumption that the competition of production on a small scale with factory production would be made possible seems by no means sufficiently established.”  But, better than any testimony, the easily explained internal reasons of what I say will convince you.

How far can the credit associations accomplish the procuring of cheap and good raw materials?  It can place the artisan without capital in a position to compete with the artisan who has sufficient small capital for his small artisan production.  It can, therefore, at most put the artisan without capital on an equality and in the same situation with the master workman who has sufficient capital of his own for his production.  But now the fact is just here—­even the master workman with sufficient capital of his own cannot stand the competition of large capitalists and of factory production, both on account of the smaller cost of production of all kinds made possible by the factory system, and on account of the smaller rate of the profit which in wholesale production is to be reckoned on each single piece, and, finally, on account of other advantages connected with it.  Since, now, the credit and raw material associations can at most bring the small producer without capital into the same general position as the one who has sufficient capital for his small production, and since the latter cannot stand the competition of the wholesale production of the factories, this result is still more certain for the small producer who carries on his business with the help of these associations.

These associations can, therefore, with reference to the artisan, only prolong the death struggle in which artisan production is destined to succumb and give place to factory production; can only increase thereby the agony of this death struggle and hold back in vain the development of our culture—­that is the whole result which they have with reference to the artisan class, while they do not touch at all the real laboring class occupied, in constantly increasing numbers, in factory production.

There remain for consideration the consumers’ associations.  The effect of these would reach the whole working class.  They are, however, utterly incapable of accomplishing the improvement of the situation of the working class.  This can be shown by three reasons which essentially, however, form a single one.