BRITISH POLITICS AND SOCIALISM.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 700, 28 December 1909, Page 2

BRITISH POLITICS AND SOCIALISM.

• Sir,—Deferring to' your 'leading*article, in your issue ,of December 22, commenting on the varied issues involved,',!' may' I, as an Englishman, vonrnio to''! suggest that tho English elcetov-at the, present time is scarcely in rifeed of tho pity you feel for iiim? It is quito true thatv the babel of separate interests involved, Will puzzle a good many-thousands, but there aro probably millions .of, other : vbtors wjth sufficient discrimination to vote in favour of the; Budget and clianca tho conscquences. As to your conclusion that Seven dials will plunge on tha hero of Limehous®, but; Hodge ..will bo as ready to, vote for the'advantage of his fcquire" , —such a j prophecy rests on. the: assumption that the agricultural labourer • is, as ignorant asrhisjfathors were before his ; time—an assumption scarcely justified by 1 actual fact, Apirt from ■ the general l iiiarcaso ofv?duc'ation,. in' which' the, fariri labourer i has- certainly shared, and by :*ivhich . his. sense of. vassalago has : Keen , considerably lie is year j,y ; year becoming a fast decreasing quantity , —in-other words, during the last twenty ■' years it has been discovered (per Board of ; j Agriculture's report, of, I think. 1005) that 30 per cent, of the farm labourers have . deserted tho country for the towns; owing to .the small wages and. the'general hopelessness .of • their, lot. Nor is. there f any 1 particular, likelihood of their returnt ing to .the land as hired labourers, as , the fanners themselves aro often quite ; unable to pay < higher.; wages than those r - hithorto, paid—for reasons too obvious to mention. Certainly a 'proportion of them have been replaced on the.latid oh email holdings worked by . themselves, in somo instances as freeholders, in othors. as - tenants; and those of : them who have. thus improved their position through the ■ voluntary efforts of big land owners, such ' as.the Earl.of Carrington, may certainly ! be expscted to 6how political support to 1 . thoso who havo improved : their daily lot. On the 1 other ' hand, many others (probably most) tS. the-remaining; landown- ', ors ' are ' bitterly opposed to the small holding idea.altogether,.and rather than submit to a minute subdivision of-their •• estates entailing additional' housing accommodation, in the train of, which, may ' follow-: damage to scenery and tho mi- ' gralion •of game, they continue to.drag " along in tho same old: stylo thoy always ® -have done. ' '\'r" ) In an English book dated 1903, from . which my- facts are stated,' I;learn that ;Lbrd Carrington, in a speech at the Ftr-' i, 'meris'-.Club in 1906, stated, that at Spald-.i • . irig alone ;he had 650 acres let *to -202 1 tenants,, at a rental '.-of- JJ1325 per an-' " num, and • that unpaid rents', then" r amounted to only JEO Gs., whilst the de-1 i, posits, in. the Penny Bank totalled £230. c . It. also looks as though Lords Carrington found it aipayable proposition, since £2 • an acre is undoubtedly a high rerit-*es-- '> pecially when contrasted with the 125.: ® or 15s. an aero!: paid by surrounding ' farms. Possibly the trend of 1 tho times 3 will find' the majority following - Earl . Carrhigton's example* but until- they do 1 the woes of the , landlords will scarcely if bo a'matter of any grave concern to i poor old Hodge. - '.'.4 ; ■ As, to: your. reference to. the pai'ty 'that .promises a now ■ Utopia;, wbibh will'make • Ml men, equal and happy, if this is . meant to describe the Socialism, ofto-" day, probably'many-of Tour' readers will - u agree with me that a,.definition of 6uch jt a palpibly old-fashioned nature .as this '1 is scarcely what one might. Lavo expected from: so-ably, written ,a journal, as. The Dominion. It reminds the writer of anil other.' amusing': instance a - whilo 1 ago > whewin, a certain journal gTavelv dei. scanted on the' failure of practical Socialism, .the object lesson being tho failis ure of a!■'private','undertaking. By -.the ' l way, ;I thought there was such a'.thing as a State-owned railway, and; a jiost' '! office; as. well, som'twhere. down in Wel'J. rm sure.; of-, it. : 'But :i before'stating: the fact,in .print, rtySelf, >r, ;no d<?ubt be able tf- >to' ascertain 4he ; truth - and act -.aocord- , ingly. for .troubling,, you, J and wishing. The Dominion circle the i. ; heartiest ' Christina's greetings,—l ..am, I. , :' THE MAN IN THE STREET.