British Socialism Part 9

It is robbery."[274] "Property, after having robbed the labourer by usury, murders him slowly by starvation."[275] Practically the identical doctrines are propounded by British Socialists. Further instances of the resemblance between Socialism and Anarchism will be found in Chapter x.x.x, "Socialism and Anarchism."

Society is at present based upon individualism. In their anxiety to prove the failure of modern civilisation British Socialists deny that the world has progressed under individualism. "Not by individual selfishness, or national selfishness, has the progress of the human race been advanced."[276] And they boldly declare that all history, having been written by men of the dominant cla.s.s, is a deception. "Are we then to understand that the whole of history, so far, has been written from the point of view of the dominant cla.s.s of every age?

Most a.s.suredly so; and this applies to well-nigh the whole of the sources of past history."[277]

The foregoing should suffice to make it clear that the Socialist agitation is not based on irrefutable scientific doctrines, as Socialists pretend, but on deception. It may be said that no agitation is free from deception, that the end justifies the means, that Socialism means for the best. We have been told "Socialism is a religion of humanity. Socialism is the only hope of the race.

Socialism is the remedy--the only remedy--which Lord Salisbury could not find."[278] We must look into the practical proposals of British Socialism in order to be able to judge its character.

FOOTNOTES:

[151] _Facts for Socialists_, p. 3.

[152] Hazell, _Summary of Marx's "Capital,"_ p. 1; Macdonald, _Socialism_, p. 54.

[153] _Socialism made Plain_, p. 8.

[154] Hobart, _Social-Democracy_, p. 7.

[155] _Manifesto_, Socialist Party of Great Britain, p. 8.

[156] _What Socialism Means_: Independent Labour Party Leaflet, No. 8, p. 3.

[157] Debs, _Industrial Unionism_, p. 20.

[158] Bliss, _Encyclopedia of Social Reform_, 1368.

[159] _Ibid._ 807.

[160] _Manifesto of the Communist Party_, p. 17.

[161] Bax and Quelch, _A New Catechism of Socialism_, p. 15.

[162] Blatchford, _Merrie England_, p. 163.

[163] Quelch, _Economics of Labour_, p. 13.

[164] Davidson, _The Old Order and the New_, p. 107.

[165] Bax, _Outlooks from the New Standpoint_, p. 99.

[166] _Socialist Standard_, December 1907.

[167] Davidson, _The Old Order and the New_, p. 32.

[168] Stegman und Hugo, _Handbuch_, p. 473.

[169] _Christliche Arbeiterpflichten_, p. 15.

[170] Webb, _Industrial Democracy_, p. 548.

[171] Councillor Glyde, _A Peep behind the Scenes on a Board of Guardians_, p. 5.

[172] Marx and Engels, _Manifesto of the Communist Party_, p. 12.

[173] Marx, _Wage, Labour, and Capital_, pp. 23, 24.

[174] Marx, _Wage, Labour, and Capital_, p. 22.

[175] _English Progress towards Social-Democracy_, p. 12.

[176] Keir Hardie, _From Serfdom to Socialism_, p. 99.

[177] Marx and Engels, _Manifesto of the Communist Party_, p. 8.

[178] _Ibid._ p. 16.

[179] Hyndman, _Socialism and Slavery_, p. 12.

[180] Sidney Webb, _The Difficulties of Individualism_, p. 9.

[181] Ellis Barker, _Modern Germany_, p. 528.

[182] Quelch, _Economics of Labour_, p. 18.

[183] Davidson, _The Old Order and the New_, p. 3.

[184] Bax and Quelch, _A New Catechism_, p. 15.

[185] Sidney Webb, _The Difficulties of Individualism_, p. 19.

[186] _Clarion_, November 29, 1907.

[187] Hall, _The Old and New Unionism_, p. 5.

[188] _Socialism and the Single Tax_, p. 6.

[189] Blatchford, _Merrie England_, p. 189.

[190] Gronlund, _Co-operative Commonwealth_, p. 86.

[191] Kautsky, _The Social Revolution_, pp. 7, 8.

[192] See _ante_ p. 10.

[193] _Report on Fabian Policy_, p. 8.

[194] See Chapter x.x.xIII.

[195] Hall, _Land, Labour, and Liberty_, p. 5.