New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-09-22
THE CARDIFF CONGRESS.
NATURALIZATION OF LAND AND INDUS
TRIEs-THE BRITISH wAGE-EARNER
NOT A SOCIALIST.

NOT SOCIALIST.
Cardiff, September g.
The Trades-Union Congress has been memoir
able not only from the exciting struggle between
rival factions. Of which an account was given IN
a previous letter, but also from the practical
demonstration which has been offered that the
mass Of English workers are not Socialists ana
followers Of Henry George. His books have been
widely read In Great Britain AMI have exerted
great influence. Superficial evidence has seemed
10 indicate that a large proportion OF the Eng
Iish working classes had been converted 10 MS
doctrine Of land naturalization as the panacea
Tor poverty and social unrest. All inferenees
based upon the activity OF the Independent
Labor party and the success OF agithtors IN
controlling the action Of the Trades-union Con-
crosses at Belfast and Norwich have been ais
credited The great assembly. which has regis
tered at Cardiff the will OF the rea! workers IN
every handcran. has revealed the essential con-
,eryatlsm OF English labor. The recoil from
Socialism ard the naturalization Of land and IN
dustrv bave been unmlstakabe. although the
collectivist resolution Of Norwich has not been
formally repealed and some Of the utterances or
the Congress have been equivocal
year ago Keir Hardle and tie Independent
Labor party could d. whatever they Liked al
trades-u union congress. A member OF the LABOR
Electoral Association moved a resolution afnrH-
ing that In the opinion OF the Congress IL was
essential 10 the maintenance Of British Indus
tries 10 natonalize the land mines. minerals
and royalty rents. and that the parliamentary
Committee should be Instructed TO promote ana
support legislation with that object In view
That was a long step in the direction or SOCIAL
ism OF the Henry George type But II ala not
20 far enough TO suit the dreamers and agita'ors
of the Congress- An amendment was AT once
,ro,osed Transforming the resolution into an Tn
qualified declaration in favor OF the nauonahzi-
ton OF land and the whole OF the means of pro-
ductio, distribution and exchange. The DISCUS
sion was very brief The New Cnonists had
carried a similar resolution at the Belfast Con-
gress and with misrepresentation Of the small
unions and councils 1t manifestly within
their power to repeat the experiment There was
>eeblo opposition 10 the amended resolution
There were PIG votes for the amendment and 81
against It: and the substantv, motion was car
lied with only few dissenting voices
kerr HARDIE INTERPRETERS THE VOTE
Keir Hardie lost time in interpreting the
significance Of the adoption OF this drastic reso-
tuition by the representative body OF brlush
workmen In THE Nineteenth Century ne
had an article In which he declared that the sole
concern Of the Independent Labor party was tine
reorganization Of our industrial system on the
basis of an Industrial commonwealth, In when
the whole of the wealth produced by labor snail
belong to the workers and In which 1t VIII not
be possible to have overabundance on the one
hand and death-deallng poverty on the other
That was an accurate summary or the pohcy
which had been proclaimed by the Trades-Unioh
Congress The naturalization Of land and all
the means Of production. distribution and ex-
priv
common property.
That was Louis Blanc's idea when he contend
ed that the State should be the only capitalist
and should open stores and workshops and hnd
work for the unemployed. 1t was also identical
with the fundamental propositions OF Lassalle,
Marx and the Social Democrats of Germany that
the community possesses the right to abolish all
private property and that 1.-The liberation OF labor
requires the conversion Of the means OF labor into
the common property Of society and the regula-
ton OF the aggregate labor by the community,
with utilization for the common benefit and
equitable distribution Of the product OF labor
Henry George had been writing his books. ana
Kerr Harde had been organizing the Independent
Labor party but when the new gospel OF social
and Industrial reform was formulated into the
creed Of the English trades unions 1t was an old
gospel on the lines OF French and German
Socialism.
So long as the new Unionsts and their So
cialist allies confined themselves to the general
proposition that everybody would be better
of II there were no private property ana
there were a common stock Of capital for all
industries they had difficulty in command
ing the attention OF their audiences. But when
they sought to explain how the social millen-
mum, when everybody was 10 have share
in everything was to be brought about. the
working people began TO think for themselves.
and keen controversialsts. like Sir William
Ieng to whom l am indebted for the figures
quoted below, helped to educate them
WHAT "NATIONALIZATION" MEANS
Land naturalization. for example, In the
United Kingdom implied the acquisition by the
State Of property amounting to N.3OOooooOo on
the basis OF taxes for owners and occupiers. For
mines minerals and royalty rents there would
be sC00)0000 added, and for annual rentals
OF houses over 500 0OO 000 For incomes now tax
able from all sources there would be 1850 100000
10 be natlonalized. Then when all the landlords.
mne-owners, house proprietors railway share
holders professional classes, fund-holders and
annutants had been disposed OF, the manu-
features. trade, shipping. commerce and gen
eral business OF the country would have to be
nationazed also, and then conducted on com
mon-stock principles. One line OF manufacture
the textile industries-empoyed over 100000
operatives kept In motion 63,OOO,OO0 spindles
frames and looms and exported $500, 900 OF
surplus products year. What tremendous
undertaking II would be to nationalze that
single industry and TO conduct 1t as state en-
terprise for the common good. Yet 1t was only
one OF hundreds Of business interests entering
into the thousands Of qualifications Of produce
tStr iipfin nd
reflection was required in order to convince an
intelligent workman that whatever might be
the abstract merits Of naturalization 1t would
be utterly impracticable to carry 1t out owing
10 the magnitude of the interests involved. SO
easy Is Il 10 dream Of industrial UtCpias and