LIBERALISM VERSUS SOCIALISM.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 248, 19 October 1937, Page 6

LIBERALISM VERSUS SOCIALISM.

If Liberalism had one-quarter of the merit claimed for'it by Mr. Woodruffe it would never have faded so completely out of the political life of Britain and this country as it has done. Politically our surviving Liberals appear to be still living in the middle of last century. The rugged individualism and complete freedom for which Mr. Woodruffe yearns have long since gone the way of the hansom cab and the crinoline skirt. The old Liberal party's free trade policy merely meant an open market where competition could run riot and where the country which cut wages to the bone vraa given an unfair advantage over the country which aimed to provide a reasonable standard of living for its inhabitants. It meant freedom for the few and bondage for the multitude. No reasonable person wants to see a return to child labour and the other monstrosities of unbridled industrialisation and unfettered competition. Every Socialist accepts State control in these matters, as a football team accepts control by a referee to see that the rules of the game are rigidly observed by both parties. The control of hours, wages and working conditions are all part of a general policy which aims at raising the standard of living of the .masses of the people. R.C.S.