Labour's Wrongs and Labour's Remedy

educed taxation. Tl~e \re;iltll \vl~icli tlle worliing classwould create. i~nd tile portior~ of it wllieh tlley ivouldenjoy, wo~ild not be affcctctl by changes in government-it~vooltl still l~e determined by c:ulses, ant1 be dc~,cndent oncl;isscs, tlst no political i)oirrer wo~lld ellable tl~c pmducerof it to control.Let tl~c n,orliing cl~~sscs of the United Kingdom, then, ifthcy call, 11esit:lte to decitle bctn.ce~i two rcn~cdies-asocial ant1 n governmcr~tnl rcn~ctly-the OII~ of ~rrl~ich \,,illsave tllem L300,000,000 millions a yciir, ant1 rnablc tl~cmto protll~cc cvcrytl~i~~g they war~t 1)y tllc labor~r of six orctigl~t ho11t.s a (lay; \vlrilc tl~c otl~cr, if c:~rrietl to itsutmost extent-tllc s11l)vcrsion of the ~no~~;~rclty ant1 tllcirlstit~ltio~l of :r rep~~l)lic-ca~~ilot, from the vcry constitutiorlUS society, wve l/1e712 ever1 t\\,e~lty lnillio~~s ;L ye;Lr, irntl, will conipel them to toil on, ill utter 1lo~)elcs~ncss i111tlpoverty, until tllc race of Inan bccon~es extinct. A changeof the soci:tl system nrill be a perspective as well as a.resent atlvant:~ge. It will affect :dl future generations ofinen as a-ell as ourselves ; and all tlie benefits which ureshall tlerivc from such cllange nrill increase, instead of substractiugfrom, the enjoyments of tl~ose wl~o come after us.A system bascd upon the laws of Universal Labour antlEqual Eschangcs can alone (lo all men justice, and makesociety truly "a statc prcsentir~g an uninterru1)ted successionof advantazcs for nlt its metnbers."'' He wlro l:;h \\life and child, I~atli given l~ost:~ges toFortur~c;" and ougl~t not Fortune, lilcc~visc, to give l~imhostages? Tllc toils of the past and the 1)rescnt shouldal\vays secure to the worltirrg mati antl his f~rnrily theenjoytnel~t of tile future. I3ut the j)rcscl~t systcrn offersthe wor~r-out \rrorlioian no enjoyment-ncd no allcviatiorlof unmeritccl clistress arltl poverty, except in conr~cctionwith tlcgratliction ant1 I~ardsl~il). rinil, again, what liintl ofit \r,elcolne and n sllelter tlocs society at 1:trgc now offerto the \\rife ant1 the clliltlren of tlte cspirirrg \~.~~lii~l~nun-to those for n,lloni he has 1vo1.11 out 11is strength inl~nre~nitting toil ? Konc. Tliey na~~tlcr over tlie cart11iIS 1)00r and ~~ennplcss beggars, or, lilie criminals, they ;Irecontinct1 in 1);tuper priso~ls. The n~otlrer becomes separatedfrom tl~c cltiltlrcn, alld the cl~il(lrcn arc partetl f1.on1caclr otl~cr-tl~c cl~ortls n11icl1 I)ountl tlrcir you~~glieartstogether are snapped as~u~tlcr for ever-and tlley wantlero\rcr tile f,lce tile cart11 l~otneless and friendless, despisedcllslavetl because tlle~ are ignor:ll~t, and disregardedalld ill-trcatcil becallse tlley ;we par. 1s it to be lvontlerctlat tfl;,t tllesr Un[21vom.;lI,lc cjr~urnst;triccs sllolll(1 110 their,rorlidt]lat misery 2nd lro~tit~~tion is the ])ortion of theone and the trnnsport-slrip or the g;lIloiVS the fittc oftile ot]lcr ! Even tllc s111all a~ltl miserable pittallce \rrllicllgrincling cnl,ita] tired Labour and oi~protectedcllil(llloo(l still to cnjoy, by means of 1rll;lt n3.c termed.' poor-l;lers,~~ will sllurt/y be nitl~l~cld. Tllese miscr:~bIesu\)stitlltcs for jllsticc, incflicir~~t ;utd almost \vortllless astllcy \trill sooll exist only irr 11al11c; for it IliIs hennclitlon,letlgctl by tllosc wIlo 11l.i11Ii 111) tlle life-ll100d OFtflc \r.c)rliiug c.lil.;s, ;lll(] i1.110 ;1rc 110)1' ~~])~l.illlL'lltilt~ ;1S tOtl~e lc>1t~t11 11 llicll ~IIIIII:LII ~~11~111ri11icc of oppressio11 I ~ Igo,Itl)at ljoor-l:r~\7s" :t great ;t11(1 growil~g i~vi1, 1vltici1 ~iltlstI)y son~e IIIC;IIIS 1)e got rid of.Lool; tllc prcsclrt soci;tI S~S~CIII 011 ~vl~:~t~ver side andin n,hntcvcr liglit \\'c may, n.c bcholtl 1)11t OIIC colnl)nct massof tleforlnity ;ind tlcl~r:l;ity. If Tyr,ln~ly \\70111d revel inthe wenltl~ of one people and the blootl of anotlrer, tlicn isthis the yroper system for Tyr;ln~iy: if Pricstcr;tft \vouldenslave ant1 stultify the liumnn xnintl, ant1 manufacturesoullcrs tools for (Icspotism, tllen is this the proper systemfor I'riestcraft : if tl~e cornn~ission of crime, all(\ the practiccof rice, ant1 thc ~r~astc of labour, be the cllief ends for~vhich men unite in society, t!~cn is this n p;.oper socialsystem !It is for all men anrl all nations to c1eclarc !rllctllertyranny and priestcmft, robl~ery and ignora~lce, l~ll0lc~iIlCil~urtler ant1 intcllcctual tlel~ri~vntion, s11:ill any longer reigntriumpl~ant over trrttll ant1 justice. Tllc question will infutrlre be tleter~nincd lleitl~er I)y despotisn~ nor its twinbrotl~er.The &300,000,000 \rl~iclt tllc wor1,illg classesannually lose by this system, vast as is the amount, is theleast part of their loss ; for they are lilie~rise ~)lrlnileredof all those high cn,joyme~its 1~11icl1 alone and exclusivelymal;e existence to be brute or hunlsn.Thus, ~vllctller n.e rcgnrtl a govern~nent;ll change andthe establishment of political eql~nlity eitller as a means oras an end-as a step whereby to ol~tnin tl~e gootl we seekfor, or as constit~~ting of itself the actu:d good-bothreason and experience join iu sl~cwing 11s tlle utter worth-