THE WORKERS AND SOCIALISM.

Press, Volume LXIV, Issue 13161, 7 July 1908, Page 9

THE WORKERS AND SOCIALISM.

to rrnc editor ot "the press."

Sir, —Political economy is an exploded science. It Mas -livon-ted by capitalists to mislead- tho minds of the workers. You state that capital is an equal factor with land and labour in tho production of wealth when you know it is only tlio product of labour. It is wealth that -under tho law, of our present industrial system is filched from tho workers. Tho laws said to govern production and distribution aro unjust, ami aro unjustly manipulated.

When in tho primitive days.of barter and exi-iange, tho savage who by extra industry contrived to tak4 toll of his folloMs' labour—such as, for in-, stance, by building boats and liiring them to otljora—lie was apparently carrying out a fair transaction, but he initiated a scheme whereby ever since en mi ing minds hare been ablo to get .•ontrot of tho labour of Jheir felloM,. Tho present system is unstable and idiotic, and tho institution of State control of industry in its place woti-ld insure a competence to everyone and remove the dread of poverty. Properly directed, the conjunction of labour and li-it-uro could be such as to assure ab=x>luto lus-urj- to even tho meanest of the eomiii-iiiity.—Yours, etc.,

V.R.C [In his original letter our correspondent said the two essentials for the production of all wealth wore land and labour. Wo said thero Mas a third essential, capital, and Mc asked our correspondent ,-hat wealth any number of men could extract from a thousand acres of the richest land witlmut capital to buy tools, stock, seed, etc., and to keep tin. workers until they market-.! the produce of the land. It would Im> more to t.ho point if lie M-ere to reply to this question, instead of making a number of assertions which he dooa not attempt to prove.—Ed. '-Tho Press."']