IRELAND'S GREAT FUTURE.

Dunstan Times, Issue 3135, 18 September 1922, Page 2

IRELAND'S GREAT FUTURE.

.Mr Shaw Desmond, in an article contributed from London to the New York Herald, forecasts ' a great future for Ireland, and enters very fully into the details of a scheme lor promoting progress and prosperity of that country. He says:-

Ireland is about to launch an entirely new experiment in the organisation of society— the experiment of what is becoming known as "individualist-co-operation." Us essence lies in holding the balance I 'tween State and individual effort, o that the Irish individualist genius may have full, free play with, behind it, a minimum background of State assistance. Already "individualist-co-operative" schemes for dealing with the agriculture, as also the cattle raising, dairying, fisheries, etc.. of the future. Ireland, have been solidly planned by experts, some of them already functioning and the others waiting for the coming of settled government to spring into being. The Irishman is the world's first individualist! as he is fast, becoming the world's first co-operator. Socialism and bureaucracy he hates. II the present Irish Labor Party follows the beaten track of European Socialism it will be Hung down and out within three elections. Hence the new experiment which will yet have significance, in the rebuilding of Europe. Ireland offers even to-day almost virgin fields for the lucrative employment of American and foreign capital. She has per head', perhaps, the highest purchasing power in Europe after the. war. She lias, literally, hundreds of thousands of men waiting to be employed in these new field's. Agriculturally, neither Denmark nor Holland can compare with her from the standpoint of potentials. Her fisheries are. according to all the expert evidence, the richest in possibilities in Europe. Her- power resources, whether we take coal, peat, water power or industrial alcohol, are practically unlimited. Ireland's coal resources alone, according to the exhaustive commission recently laid down for their investigation and tabulation, being the gargantuan figure of more than two billions of tons—2.o-14.000.000 to be exact. Probably no country in the Old World, in view of its almost unworked 1 , unexploited resources, and taking into account the coming of stable government, offers such possibilities of adventure and profit as the Emerald' Isle. The Irishman believes that the failure of the Socialist experiment throughout the world demonstrates once and for all the failure of bureaucracy. On the other hand, the value of co-openv tion has been proved to the hilt (1) by the central organisation which won the great Avar, and (2) by the extraordinary success of the co-operative schemes, both on production and consumption sides, in Denmark and in Ireland herself. His maxim will be that of the old Gael—and it is the ancient Gaelic system of society, modernised which he is now bringing backnamely: "Freedom within organisation." Applying the "individualist-co-opera-tion" concept to the land, which will always bo Ireland's backbone' rather than factory industry, the first problem that will face the new Government of Ireland, whatever its final form may be, is to give land to "landless'' men. In a recent 300 mile ton.- through the congested districts of the west the writer has had it borne in upon him that this is the immediate problem which must he solved before all others. Certain main facts have already been decided by the men who lead agricultural Ireland. First, that "small holdings" as in Denmark is to he the future policy of the island; second, that as the existing Land Purchase Acts have broken down since the coming of Sinn Fein. Ireland as a nation would have to find the necessary money to enable the landless man to purchase areas at present untenanted or owned by rapacious ''ranchers," as men are called who grab large areas to hold as speculations rather than to work them, such loans to be against the property itself; third, to provide money at moderate rates of interest through the establishment of Irish State banks, upon the lines of the Danish State banks, for the housing and equipment of the new farms; and last, the immediate inauguration of agricultural educational schools to teach the most modern methods of farming, based upon the experiences of countries like America. Denmark, and Holland. The formidable outbreak in the winter of 1919, having for its object the acquisition of laud by landless men, was the first spur to national action, and at this time, despite the British occupation and the war, Sinn Fern Land Courts were held and laid the foundation of the Land Arbitration Courts, which will in future administer the whole of Ireland, except Ulster. In the period from May, 1920, to -June, 1921. these Land Courts dealt with nearly three hundred cases. representing f,.'{ I.V) acres in twenty-three counties. The storv of the holding of these courts is itself a story bristling with adventure, for they were declared 11|,.,r.,| |,.,r.,| by the English Government and held under threat of prison and worse It is the work of these Land Courts and of these Commissions of Inquiry which is going to determine the who e „! the new experiment and the whole future of economic Ireland. I mysei have been present atone ol these Land Courts held at midnight in Clare, saw cverv decision taken down by a court registrar and know that every decision made hv everv Sinn Fein court will be resnected by the future Government o Ireland. All these small hoM'mgs will be linked up en co-operative uics, behind them a minimum of State action and subsidy. Cattle breeding in Ireland to-day is chaotic, no farmer knowing anything about cattle strains? whether lor _ milk ,„• meat. It is the intention ol the Irish Government to buy a big central farm, upon which data will he prepared as to the best cows and the best bulls, etc., and from which State bulls will be served to the various farmthroughout the country. What is called "a mutual agreement between the State and a farmer" has been prepared, under which the State enters into an agreement with a selected farmer. Onethird of the farmer's stock is to lie sold off bv him and replaced by equal muuh"i's of pniv-bred stock introduced by the State, the farmer during the period of agreement controlling his two-thirds ~f the stock and the State experts' controlling its one-third. The State will not pav the farmer any rental, but the fanner's ordinary profits are assured to him by his retaining for his own use the proceeds of his two-thirds of the cattle in milk, -fattening, and young stock. In addition the farmer would receive from the Slate an amount representing the proceeds of the remaining third, calculated 1 en the average monetary proceeds of his own twothirds, so securing him against any los* under the agreement. The farmer ol course is to feed (he entire herd- both hi- own and that of the State. The cost of all necessary "permanent" improvements in feeding, stalling, etc., would he incurred by the Slate. Hiis' to be repaid by the farmer as a loan. As I'me goes on other central farms ay; to be established and the entire

operations placed under a carefully chosen committee of control, this committee gradually extending its operations in gradually widening circles throughout Ireland. In the above nothing has been said about eggs, which, next to cattle, are Ireland's chief industry. Some indication of the money in this business is given by the fact that it is believed, with proper co-operation and modern methods, the money turnover can be increased by many millions of dollars per annum.'The country is to be divided into egg collecting areas, each cooperator having his number, and ultimately the eggs will everywhere be graded according to weight, with special transport facilities for export. Mr Desmond next refers to great possibilities of the Irish fisheries, and says that proposals are now materialising for the pouring into Ireland of "the silver harvest of the sea." First of all. fishing co-operative societies already forming and to.be formed are to own'and control a central organisation which, however, cannot he created straightaway, lor as the experts who are now framing the new industry, point out with native humor: "If these things could be done at once, we would find thafe we were in Paradise and this report be unnecessary." The special domain of this central body will be the marketing of the fish, leaving to the local societies the business of production, i.e., fishing. All matters of gear will he left to the local managers, thus securing complete autonomy, these men also having the arrangements for the dispatch and credit of fish, and the debit of supplies whether of boats or provisions. They also will initiate a new system oi marking the shoals of fish as they come and go around the coast, with a chart kept up from day to day showing their movements, and to them also will be entrusted the task of reporting the local weather conditions. The whole is an ideal example of "individualist-co-ope-ration." Concluding Mr Desmond nays the new experiment of ' 'individualism-co-opera-tion" is at any rate the most hopeful experiment in 'after the war Europe.