Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-12-28
Great Evils
OF the Dole
Continued From Fifth Page

and the products of slave labor, mat.
tiers more than setting men to work.
=. This ironical paradox can best be
Illustrated by quoting a passage from
the last debate on unemployment in the
ITO make the position still worse lit
y Tory critic speaking. but Oswald
MoSley, j. II. Thomas and a bunch of
other protectionistS Labor men echo
him), the chancellor OF the excheouer
the other day removed duties from in
dustrles which were gradually picking
up. The workers in these industries
appealed to the chancellor of the ex-
chequer not to do this, and the trades
union representatives interested in those
particular industries also appealed to
MIN, but he paid no heed and only
turned q deaf ear to them. He has
always said that he wants to see men
In employment with a high standing
Of living, as we all do, but when he had
the chance of doing something to bring
Gnat about he did nothing. He reminds
me OF the man in high position VINO
was approached by a friend in trouble
who told him his plight, and said: II
have been robbed by the foreigners. u
nave lost my work. My family is starv-
ing and I have nothing to give them.
want work. Can you help me?' Hav-
ing listened with much sympathy. the
great man rang the bell on his desk
and hope came to the heart Of his Wis
itor, but when the attendant came he
merely said: Show this poor fellow
out. He is simply breaking my heart
That is the kind Of sympathy that the
chancellor Of the exchequer has given
% the men who are out Of employment
and want work"
AS between direct taxpayers totaling
ali =
the mass Of dole drawers, q radical
regime does not hesitate to choose.
Free trade radicals Of the Snowden
school argue that the workers primary
interest is low cost OF living MAIN
tanned by q system of free imports.
When 1t is argued that a worker would
De better OF earning $40 week in
OF bread In a protected state than
drawing SIS . week dole and paying only
cents for bread they beg to differ.
Attacks Are Failures
The dole comes from the taxpayers.
The taxpayer, the comfortable class,
exists to be bled. II the taxpayer class
makes money by utilizing labor in good
times, it must be- mulcted ID maintain
the JobleSS portion of labor in lean
times When political minds are bent
this way the attack on the dole prob
lem peters out, since the support of an
attack on the employment problem
itself is deliberately withheld.
Eleanor Rathbone, probably the lead
ing authority in England on the whole
subject, has said that no scheme OF
unemployment insurance can distin-
Ruish those genuinely seeking work
from persons who are not anxious to
try to get work All the same no re-
sponsible person suggests that the prin-
ctple Of unemployment insurance should
be abandoned 1t is regarded as a
social, legislation.
But many critics, Miss Rathbone
among them, declare that the British
system Is hopeleSsly out of date, behind
all the systems of unemployment in
surance known to the civilized world
The Geneva men, who want interna-
tional coordination, criticize 1t bitterly,
for no other country but England could
stand such drain and keep solvent
The British system is one Of nat rate
contributions and benefits, with the
states contribution levied through in
come taxes on the higher range of in
come. Continental countries, on the
other hand, either divide their unem-
ployed into groups according to their
Industrial status, with special rate Of
benefit and Of contribution, or the rate
of contribution and Of benefit are ex-
pressed as q percentage Of their rate of
wages.
TO get the British fund back on an
insurance basis means either raising
the contributions or cutting the bene.
ats or cutting a mass Of the unenn-
ployed out OF the scheme altogether and
dealing with them by means of spe-
cial and open distress fund. But po.
iitical considerations so far have barred
kthe way to these alternative solutions.
II Is easier TO get the money from the
exchequer, which means from the tax
payer. and leave the next government,
q Tory or a national coalition one, TO
nurse that baby.
So Il viii be---iA must be-in every
Democratic statA operating such .
@BtArn.