The Dominion WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1929. THE LABOUR-SOCIALIST OBJECTIVE

Dominion, Volume 23, Issue 6, 2 October 1929, Page 10

The Dominion WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1929. THE LABOUR-SOCIALIST OBJECTIVE

Since its return to the Treasury benches, the British LabourSocialist Government has addressed itself mainly to the consideration of certain broad questions of international policy. Mr. Snowdens method of dealing with the Reparations Payments, and the Prime Minister’s efforts to promote a better and clearer understanding with the Government and the people of the United States as a preliminary to a larger instalment of disarmament than hitherto has been found possible, have been noted with approval by the general public. In matters of domestic policy not a great deal has been attempted beyond preparing the ground for the development of a plan for dealing with unemployment. In this particular, Mr. Thomas s recent mission to Canada as Minister in charge of the new Department of Unemployment had some useful and promising.results. On the whole, the political deportment of Labour-Socialism in office thus far has been as little alarming as might have been the performances of any other Parliamentary party in office. In fact, were it not. for the occasional utterances of indiscreet members, the average citizen might well believe that the Labour-Socialist Government had a great deal in common with the general aspirations of the community, and - that whatever differences existed were neither here nor there. At a recent meeting of the British Independent Labour Party, the Socialist Left .Wing in Parliament, Mr. Maxton gave it as his opinion that there were only about 30,000 avowed Socialists who were prepared to work for the “Socialist Commonwealth. He further admitted that “a large number of people who voted Labour at the last election were not prepared to accept the Socialist view of life.” In the face of this statement, however, the actual effect of which would naturally be to still further allay public forebodings regarding the future, we have the Labour-Socialist Minister of Transport declaring in the clearest terms, as reported in a cable message to-day, the Party’s definite objective:

“We refuse,” he says, “to water-down our final objectives. Our purpose is as ranch' as ever the conquest of our country for the people of our country, and the conquest of the world for the workers of the world. We aim at a new society. ‘The Socialist Commonwealth.’ ”

It must be admitted that whatever Mr. Morrison means by the “Socialist Commonwealth,” it is' probably something quite different from that which obsesses the' minds of the Communists. At the same time it must be something to which in principle both Liberal and Conservative political sentiment would strongly object. .The MacDonald Cabinet is a minority. Government. In such a position it would not only be foolish, but improvident, to fly in the face of settled public opinion. Its metier is to make a score along popular lines with the object of converting its minority into a substantial majority at the next election. Thus entrenched it would be in a position to develop its advance in the direction of the “Socialist Commonwealth.” In the meantime the British public is plainly disposed to accept the gifts the gods provide, with the reservation that the gods may be dethroned if their gifts become unpalatable.