Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-01-17
THE GRADES OF SOCIALISM.

Cardinal Manning, in reply to the charge
that he is a Socialist, very justly refers to
the difficulty of defining socialism, To the
vast majority of disputants socialism is any
other than their especial ism; while to the
more select few, who claim to be Socialists,
socialism means their peculiar method of re-
forming society. There is more difference
Ely and tina: of Most than between the
former class and those who would reform
evils by means which are opposed to the
general class of reforms assigned to the
sphere of socialism.
The Cardinal very justly criticises the
disposition to use the term of socialism as a
bugbear by which to cry down all reforms
that have tendency in that direction. "In
the first place." he says, "the society of man
is not of human but of divine creation. It
is founded upon the three great laws of au-
thority, obedience and brotherhood. The
whole of our legislation is essentially social
for the protection of poverty and labor"
The Cardinal might have strengthened
this point by saying directly, as he
intimates elsewhere, that some forms
of legislation universally accepted as just
and proper are as clearly of the socialistic
class as the measure proposed by perhaps
half the avowed Socialists. Socialism in its
brosdest sense means the interference of the
State by taxation or otherwise to confer on
the masses the advantages which would
otherwise be confined to individuals. The
poor laws are distinct recognition of the
principle of socialism. Free schools sup
ported by public taxation can only be justi-
fed by the socialist theory; and the exercise
of eminent domain to tax away private
property for the establishment of public
highways on which the poorest man shall
have rights equally with the richest, is
largely of that sort
Having made this just distinction, the
Cardinal proceeds to attack the sort of
socialism which identifies social evils with
society itself. ana would kill the patient in
order to cure the disease. He takes the
class of Socialists who, to cure the evil of
great fortunes, would destroy the natural
right of private property. But he favors
the legislation necessary to cure existing
evils, (which is conservative of the
life and health of society,"" and says
that ANYONE calling such legislation
socialistic does not know what socialism
means" But In this, the Cardinals logic,
or perhaps the summary of it that has
reached these shores, seems to go little
lame. The most extreme Socialists would
be as ready as he to claim the desire to con-
serve whatever is necessary to the life and
health of society, and as to the concluding
assertion it is robbed of its force by his open
ing statement of the impossibility of deter
mining what socialism really does mean.
The discussion of socialism in its broadest
sense is only to be carried on intelligently
by recognizing that it includes great deal
OF what is absolutely necessary in legisla-
tion. When we attempt to narrow the de-
fnition we must make an arbitrary division,
in order to distinguish between the socialism
of Ely and James, the socialism of Bellamy
and Hale, the socialism of Guntor and
Morgan, the socialism of Most and Kra-
potkin. In the broad sense the issue of
socialism and its opposing idea may be
stated to be the tendency to increase govern
mental control and the disposition to limit
it. Thus in regard to railroads the socialist
idea will be to extend the Government con-
troll of these highways even to the extent of
our ownership, while the theory of individ-
ualism is to protect individual rights and
equality in the use OF the railroads to the
greatest possible degree. But both recog-
nize that the interference of the State is
necessary, and to that extent both recognize
the basis of the social theory.
1t is hardly necessary to say that THE
DISPATCH is opposed to the extension of
the theories of socialism much beyond the
limit already accepted by legislation. But
there is one fact which may be of value to
both sides. That is that the corporate legis.
lation, from which arise the greater share of
the abuses that stimulate socialism, were
themselves based upon the socialistic theory.
The legislation to permit the combination of
capital in corporate enterprises, the grant of
the right of eminent domain to enable rail-
ways to be built, and the extension of Gov
ernment aid to railways, as to other depart
ments of enterprise. are essentially social
istic. In the main it was q class of socialism
which it was necessary to adopt; but it was
not sufficiently guarded against abuses 1t
may help to a clear understanding of the
case to recognize the fact that the inequali-
ties of the present day arise from the partial
and necessary adoption of socialistic methods
in legislation, and the liability of all such
methods to the grossest abuses.