Workmen's advocate. (New Haven, Conn.) 1883-1891, 1888-02-18
THE DEBATERS CORNER
"ZENO" SURPRISED.

The letter from Mr.. Peter Gibbons,
representing Mr.. Tucker as an anarchist,
surprises me very much. Mr. Tucker is
State Socialist. His paper, Liberty,
contains a list of books that explains its
principles, among which is seen Mutual
Banking" by w, B. Greene. Being is
sued by Mr.. Tucker, this book may be
regarded as his utterance. Mutual
Banking currency is to be secured as
follows: "Ships and houses that are in
sured, in short, anything that may be
sold under the hammer, may be made
basis for the issue of Mutual Money"
"The hammer" implies a sheriff, an
officer of the State. A mans house may
be sold from under him if he cannot re-
deem his mutual notes in any other
manner. In the absence of law author
ling foreclosure. the owner may defend
his house with Gatling gun after he
fails in business.
Insurance is hard to collect now.
Would company always pay losses if
no State enforced payment? A Quota
ton from Proudhon further illustrates
the Mutual Bank:
"The Bank of France, become Bank of
Exchange, is an institution of public in
terest. 1t is placed under the guardian
ship of the State and is directed by dele
gates from all the branches of industry"
Delegates are always elected by major
ity vote, hence the true anarchist would
never submit. 1t will be seen that Mr..
Tucker is not an anarchist, unless we
conclude that anarchists condemn the
tot in -
tice.
1t is surprising that Mr. Tucker SAYS our
common doctrine logically carried out
would lead to State religion, State NOR
ais, and State marriages. He should
have turned to page XIV of work he
translated from Proudhon another good
State Socialist where we read:
Where. then, lies the solution of the
social problem? Influenced by the
Heg elian ideas, Proudhon began to look
for it in superior synthesis which should
reconcile the thesis and antthesis. He
saw that the antinomical terms do not
cancel each other; that they are the pro-
creative cause of motion, life, progress;
that the problem is to discover, not their
fusion which would he DEATH but their
equilbrium-an equilibrium forever I'M
stable, varying with the development of
society"
The State Socialist believes that indi
vidual interests and social interests, are
antnomical terms, and that Socialism is
their equilibrium, or adjustment. Any
tendency to extend the sphere OF collec-
tive action need not cause fear that it
will go too far, and infringe upon the in
dividual sphere: that would cause agita-
ton and reform just as at present, when
the individual usurps social functions
Once Mr.. Tucker was a growing youth
vet he had no fear of sometime being
twenty feet tall: nor does he think the
practice of wearing glasses logically
leads to the necessity for the habitual use
of telescopes; nor that the custom of
having moderate fire in room. during
this cold snap, logically leads to heating
it like an oven. The equilibrium of heat
and cold alone make life possible; and
it is the same with all other forces.
In the preface to the. work referred to
("What is Property We find the phrase:
Property. the stronghold of liberty,
while Proudhon begins his memoir with
the declaration: property is Robbery"
The explanation, which Mr.. Tucker fails
to give, is that Proudhon throughout
implies by property what we under.
stand by property in land" he justifies
possession" and condemns only monop-
oily, or the power to exploit labor. He
also recognizes that society is an entity,
while Mr.. Tucker sees only the individ-
| ual
Being reminded of it, Mr. 7. should
now declare himself State Socialist.
ZENo.