The Dominion TUESDAY, AUGUST 27. 1918. THE ART OF LIVING TOGETHER

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 290, 27 August 1918, Page 4

The Dominion TUESDAY, AUGUST 27. 1918. THE ART OF LIVING TOGETHER

The Gar ton Mcinorandum, a summary of which has recently appeared in The Dominion, deserves the sympathetic consideration of everyone, who realises tlui need for the establishment of more friendly relationships fietween , employers a.nd employed. It is an attempt to persuado hoth sides that in the settlement of disputes it is hotter to appeal to reason than to violence. It contains many valuable suggestions and emphasises some, excellent principles. It is not in all parts equally convincing—thii, 1 !) could hardly be expected. f>imc of the positions which arc laid down as axiomatic are far, from being-undisputed or indisputable. However, many good points arc made, and well made,; and on the whole tho document may I fairly be regarded as a useful contribution to the discussion of an extremely important problem. The value of the Memorandum is increased by the fact that it is not a party manifesto, but the outcome of the discussions and investigations of 'representatives of the. employing classes, organised labour, and financial, economic, and administrative circles. It is specially interesting as showing the general trend of thought as regards the work of industrial reconstruction which will have to be, tindertaken as soon as tho war is over. Now is the time to [ think and plan and prepare the way -iso that when peace conies v«-o maybe, ready to make a fresh start on right lines. It is of the greatest importanco that the transition j fr,om. war to peace should bo made ■.as smoothly and as quickly as possible. Tho transition period will be a critical juncture in our history, and the difficulties that must be faced will provide ample scope for statesmanship. The industrial outlook is very uncertain. There are dangers ahead.' A policy of drift may easily lead to disaster. But never in tho history of the world has there been so splendid an opportunity of making a great step forward. The war has shaken us out of old ruts; it has broken down many harmful prejudices; it has quickened our desire for unity and concord; it has made us ashamed of the fratricidal strife which has embittered our social relationships and impeded industrial progress. The nation is in the mood for bif reforms, and is ready to give fav j ourablo consideration" to courageous proposals for political, social, and industrial reconstruction.'

All thoughtful people will agree with the declaration of the Garton Memorandum that "the most urgent question to-day, after the inv modiato 'conduct of the war, is how to produce industrial harmony and efficiency instead of industrial friction and inefficiency in our social syston*." No one pretends to bo satisfied with things as they are. fytrne people may think that as long as human nature is what it is a state of war must always exist between Capital and Labour. These pessimists tell us that the interests of employer and employed aro utterly irreconcilable and musb always remain so. But history and reason both reject this gloomy view of tho industrial . situation. The mind and spirit of man have achieved so much that it would be unreasonable to think that they arc doomed to failure in the attempt to discover a workable solution of tho labour problem that will be just to all concerned—just to tho employer, the worker, just to the community. It would indeed be a mad world if human endeavour were to succeed in everything except mastery of the art of living together— the ono thing necessary above, all others for the establishment of peace and good will on earth. if the problem is really insoluble then progress is a delusion. Take the moral element away from the- idea of progress, and not much worth having would be left. Progress in tho abstract may mean anything or nothing; but as Dr. Jacko, Principal of New College, Oxford, has pointed out in a recent lecture, "progress for us, constituted as wo arc. is essentially moral." As far as human beings are concerned, science, industry, and government arc not progressive unless .they contribute k> human betterment in the highest sense of tho word. It is desirable that we should recognise thathealthy industrial progress means increase in welfare as well as in v/ealth.

The authors of the Garton Memorandum give an interesting sketch of the machinery which, in tbeii' opinion, should bo set up to pre vent or settle industrial disputes and to control the conditions of labour. It is not, however, our present intention to discuss this or

other sections of tho Memorandum in detail; but in view of the prevalence of mistaken notions it is I well that attention should be drawn I to the emphatic declaration t'nat "the first necessity of the industrial situation'is greater efficiency of production, an increase of the volume | and tho quality of output." Tho recmisite standard of efficiency can only ho attained "by t-b*s active cooperation of labour, management, and capital to raise the general level of productive capacity, to maintain a high standard of workmanship, and to improve working conditions." These principles are obviously sound, but the frequency of strikes, the "go slow" policy, and the strained relations which exist in all civilised countries between Capital and Labour prove conclusively that wo arc not livin.ee up to '■I'oin. The disastrous idea that employers and employed are natural enemies is far too common, and until it is thoroughly' discredited the disgrace of the class hatred and class war will • never be removed from our national life. The reconciliation of Labour and Capital must be regarded as an essential element of the great problem of industrial reorganisation and reconstruction which will have tobe granpled with when the war is over. Mero machinery, however elaborate, will not and cannot create and maintain industrial harmony. As His Excellency the Governor-Gen-eral suggested in his speech at the Orphans' Club on Saturday night, "the purely human way" might with advantage, bo given a better trial than it has received in tho

past. The war, he said, had brought ;ill classes into such close touch thai' it should now ho easier to do this. The time is opportune for making men realise, in practice as well as in theory, that they are members one of another; that the nation is, or should be, a fellowship; that the good of one is the good of all, and

that when one suffers all suffer. Experience- fully justifies Bhjhop Spkott's assertion in his recent lecture to University students that arbitration can never fully succeed until disputants rou-lly desire k> have |.ho just thing done, and not merely strive, to scoro against the other side. 11/ is as true to-day as , when Abxstoue wrote it that "righteousness is the bond of men in States and tho administration of justice, which is tho determination of what is righteous, is the principle of order in political society." The moral justification of both the strike and the lock-out is challenged by Mr. Barnes, '>ne of the Labour .members of the War Cabinet. He says tho war has proved the truth of the old adage that blood is thicker than water, and he holds that co-opera-tion between employers and workmen is our only hope in the future. A similar note is struck in an address on "Humanising Industry" recently delivered by Mit. Roberts, the British Minister of Labour, who insists upon tho need for increased productivity, and declares that this cannot be obtained unless employers and employed come into closer relationship. There are anxious days ahead of us*, but we can face tho future without dismay. It is reasonable to hope and expect that one of the characteristics of tho world to come after tho war will Iμ tho progress of man in what has been well described as "tho art of living together with his fellows."