Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1912-05-02
SOCIALISM
IS FAILURE
Declares Milwaukee Attorney
After a Visit to Social
istic New Zealand
ORGANIZED INEFFICIENCY
System Has Been Tried Out
In That Country, and
Found Wanting

O~e~~ w s~AA SeAeA =
MILWAUKEE, Mis-, April 2S.. AT
ter four months visit to New Zea-
land for the purpose of studying So
cialism as it is practiced in that coun-
try and for the purpose OF comparing
conditions over there with socialstic
conditions in Milwaukee, B. X. Mil
Ter, prominent Milwaukee attorney
has returned home and given his OBJ
servations.
1t will be remembered that one of
the claims of the local socialists for
their failure to carry out their plat
form and put into effect their social
istic ideas was that the "capitalistic
conditions existing here had made it
impossible to accomplish their aims
in so short time. 1t was held that
without the ownership of public util-
tiles and of government control of
railroads, telegraph and telephone
lines, nothing could be accomplished
here until they had time to change
conditions. Mr. Miller found that in
New Zealand the government controls
railroads. telegraph and telephone
lines, all public utilities, banks and
does life and fire insurance busi-
ness, but that in spite of these things
the socialistic experiments had prov
en- a complete failure. and that the
country itself was hopelessly bank.
rupt.
GhastIy Failures.
The following is Mr.. Miller's obser-
vation as :nade by him on his return
to this city:
"Socialistic experiments are a
CHASTITY failure. AS result the coun-
try is hopelessly bankrupt. Give them
reasonable credit for the property
they own railroads, telegraph lines,
etc. and the net debt still is so large
that l do not see how any sane mau
can believe the dominion can ever
pay it.
"But bankruptcy is not the worst of
it" said Mr.. Miller. "If country be
improvident it can, like an individ-
ual, go into bankruptcy and comprom-
Use with it's creditors. Socialism,
however, has devital!zed the people
and sapped their initiative Nowhere
else in the world have / seen Anglo
SaXons so casual and inefficient
Bankruptcy and compromise will
not avail
"In one town laborers We're digging
ditch, one of the simplest and SAT-
est forms of labor l know of. The
pay was 10 shillings (say $2.45) for
day of eight hours. If the place
were damp they got an additional
shilling (say "a cents. So far as
could judge, the laborers were doing
about half the work which would be
required in America, England or Can
ada. Similar conditions prevailed all
ONcT luo COuuJTy.
Bankruptcy and moral deteriora-
tion are the results of the socialistic
experiments of New Zealond.
Several years ago l became inter-
ested in the progress of these exper
iments. Afr two years of close study
l was half convinced that they had
proved successful. Then l visited the
country. The conclusions then
reached have not been changed by
my present visit.
1.-THE country has been socialized
about as much as it can be. The gov
ernment owns the railroads, telegraph
and telephone lines. 1t issues life
and fire insurance policies. 1t runs
banks. Yet it is hopelessly in debt
Why? Because the government has
been inefficient and extravagant. It's
life insurance, for one thing, has
maintained itself. But it has tried so
many other experiments that it has
had to borrow vast sums to. make up
deficits and now about 25 per cent. of
it's income is used in paying the in
terest on these loans. About one per-
son in five is a government employe.
"The socialists have long pointed
with pride to New Zealand and in.
sisted that in that country they had
obtained industrial peace: that strikes
and lockouts were forbidden by Law