The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-08-09
III

Tracing property 10 it's source. our aut hor
, would find it's origin az general RUE not
in theft, but in labor. either Of the hand or
,, OF the brain. and in the frugal'ty by which
the fruits of labor have been saved. In
the case of property which has been in
herited. we may have to 20 back genera
tions to reach this fact. but we come to the
fact at last. Wherever the labor has been
honest, good we may he sure has been done.
and the wealth of society ~ large, ~ we'll
/, as that OF the worker, has besn increased
In tho process. Some property has, OF
course, been acquired by bad means, such
IA gambling, speculation or unrighteous
monopoly. and if we could only distinguish
this from the rest, confiscaton might be
just: for there is nothing sacred in property
apart from the mode in which it has been
acquired The tares, however. cannot be
separated from the wheat; discrimination
IL impossible, all that We can do is to dis
courage as much as may he bad modes OF
acquisition, and to refuse TO pay homage
to wealth i'll acquired. Hereditary wealth,
| owned by those who have themselves not
worked for it. n rikes liz az injustice. Often
! il Is the moral ruin Of the heir, who sinks
! into a worthless sybarite, To prevent its
accumulation is the proper object OF tho
lawgiver. and, in fact, such has been the
! tendency of legislation, wherever lnherl-
| lance is not bound up with political institu"
I tions, such as the House of Lords. But 10
abolish Inheritance seems out Of the ques-
ton Request in merely a deathhed gift;
if We forbid man to bequeath his wealth.
: I., yrtn 1, ,y, hfpfirnn
than leave. Il 70 he confiscated, A great
inducelnent to saving will thus be lost, and
without saving. where would be the means
Of increased production. and how would
the economical world advanced
b. socialism our author has In view the
theory of those who for industrial liberty.
competition. private contract. free markets..
and the present ager"ies of commerce. pro-
pose in various degrees to substitute regu-
lation and remuneration Of industry by
"rhe State" But what he inquiries. ia the
State? "Peope seem TO suppose that there
IL something outside and above the men,
(; bers Of the community which answers TO
this name. State. and which has duties and
w1st.S II SEts owl. Mites, nowSSer. can
| attach only to persons: wisdom can reside
only In brains. The State, when you leave
distractions and come 70 facts, is nothing
| but the Government. which can have no
/ duties but those which the Constitution as
signs il. nor any wisdom but that which 10
! infused into 1t by the mode of appointment
, or election. What. then, il the Government
which socialism would set up. and 70 which
II would ent,lsl powers infinitely greater
, than those which any ruler has ever prac-
ticnlly welded. with duties infinitely harder
! than those which the highest political wis
dom has ever dared 10 under akc2" This 10
rhe first question winch the Socialist has TO
answer Where will he find the human
: material out OF which ne can frame sn
, earthly Providence, infallible and lncur-
. rviptible, whose award shall be unanimously
! accepted as superior 10 all existing guaran-
teea Of industrial justice? To accept an I'M
! limited and most searching despo;ism with
out knowing to whose hands 1t is TO be
in.rusted would evidently be madness.
Yet des.potic Socialist Government would
have TO he, in order to secure submission TO
is assignment Of industrial parts. and TO It's
/ award OF wages. especially II the wages are
10 he measured not by he amount or quail
itv Of the work, hut by som" higher law OF
desert or benevolencc. Despotic il must he
10 enable il TO compel Incidence to work at
all. Its power, practically, must he made
10 extend beyond the sphere Of industry 10
social. domestic and individual lif" Re-
sistance to ia decrees could not be permit
ted nor could il be deposed in case of tyr
annv or abuse. Mr.. Goodwin Smith. OF
course, would not deny that assignment Of
manual labor and payment for its perform.
ance by a paternal Government are con-
eeiruble, though not practically feasible
But how, he asks. could men be told 0f
for intellectual labor, for scientific research
for invention? Could the socialistic ruler
nick out Shakespeare, a Milton, an Ark
wright. get him to his work and pay hin
while he was about it? What security
would there he against lapse into intel
lectual barbarism2 Socialistic writer's, "a
rule, are apt 20 think OF the position and in
terests of manual labor alone; they take M
comprehensive view Of civilization. Is no
socialism manual laborer's dream? O.
the artisans whom these theories tiatter, al
whose trades minister to literature, art o.
refinement would be In danger Of finding
themselves without work Might no
science itself cease 10 advance? II scenc,
ceased to advance, what would become o
the hopes Of humanity?
! Passing 10 the special form Of socialism
to which Mr. Henry George gave the nam
OF Naturalization o! Land. our author in
oures whether il il true that poverty is tn
offspring Of private ownership in land. Ii
submits that poverty springs from man,
, sources. personal and general; from indo
, lsnce. infirmity, age. disease. intemperance
from the failure OF harvests and the decn
Of local trade; from changes in the mode
OF production and In the lines Of commerce
r which throw men out Of employment; from
| The growth Of population beyond the mean
! of subsistence Poverty han existed on
= large scale in great commercial cities whic
y the land laws could hut little affect. an
r even in cities like Venice which had no Ian
, at all Mr.. Goodwin Smith. for his part
/. maintains that the increase " poverty pre-
, supposed by Mr.. Henry George IL itself
j, fiction. Tho number OF people in all civil
8 lied countries living in plenty and comfor
n has vastly increased; Il has increased bot
. positively and relatively to the number c
y the destitute, and, though. with a vast In
= crease in ninbers there is necessarily som
e positive increase OF misfortune and povert,
L even the poorest are not 80 i'll off now a
r they were in the times OF primitive barbal
\ lam when famine stalked through unset