H. G. WELLS’S PLAN

Evening Star, Issue 21092, 3 May 1932, Page 9

H. G. WELLS’S PLAN

“ CALL IN THE EXPERTS "

H. G. Wells came again to Now York cheerful about the future of England and pessimistic about world economies. He saw civilisation in a condition or “ probable collapse,” with, the fall being greater than those of Greece and Rome because our civilisation is more crazy.H© could sot no time limit for the ending, hinting only that it mierht well bo soon. As to what will happen then, well —“ I’ll write you a book about that.” The latest appearance or Mr Wells —he had not been in this country for a number of years—was genial (says the ‘New York Times’,). On board the Aquitania ho joked with the photographers, and compared himselt to Charlie Chaplin, and then observed the proprieties of the port by remarking on the skyline for the benefit of the newsreel. In his talk afterwards he spiced his remarks with blapd and whimsical observations. He has written a companion piece to the ‘ Outline of History,’ but when he leaves here it is to do a novel.

The course of his terse comments ran from his personal lack of admiration for Premier MacDonald to the end of the world. He touched briefly on such diverse things as the need for community building and the potential advantages of,birth control. He declined to say anything about the gold standard or Bernard Shaw’s reflections on Russia. He said he could not spare the hour it would take to go into the former, and he did not wish, to interfere with the processes of Mr Shaw s soul.” j ~ . , His thoughts oh world economics and the future of civilisation were brought forward by his beirtg asked an opinion of President Hoover’s “six-point plan. He said:— . .

“ If you will forgive me an opinion, I do not think that even the United States can manage its financial and economic affairs alone. _ • , “ There are three mam factors m the world l depression to-day. The first is nationalism in finance. The second is the currency break-down, due to no readjustment after the World War. There was an increase in population after a period of great waste; a need for more money and there was less. There was a restriction that has strangled economic development. The third is something that has happened now for the first time in history—production had run beyond any possibility of consumption. ECONOMISTS NEEDED. Mr Wells was asked what the remedy might be. “ One remedy would he to rail back upon economic science before it is too late, and beat the thing as a world problem,” he said. “ Put the economic leaders in charge, not the politicians, and they will be able to do it. If you have a world health problem you naturally consult with doctors and biologists. Politicians are necessary intermediaries, not to work out a problem, but to hand it over to the experts on that particular thing—as in health and mining. They know what steps can best be taken.” He declined to name any of the economic leaders he would put in charge. He said he knew several, but their names might not be so deadly recognised in this country, and the whole thing might cause ill-feeling of one sort or another. Ho then remarked that the “ primary thing just now is to recognise cosmopolitanism.” ‘‘lf we do not work together,” he asserted, ‘‘the whole world will ‘bust.’ ” “ I’ll chuck one thing in you haven’t asked me,” he added, “ as it happens to bo an obsession of mine. That is that collective enterprise in the rebuilding of cities is the only way to fill up the gap between over-production and limited consumption. New forms of employment must bo found, and the obvious thing is to consider the immense architectural possibilities. We must accept the responsibility of rehousing all of mankind, rebuilding cities, and reclaiming the roads and countrysides. Community work is necessary. Mr Wells said the world must also have “ control of currency or we are lost.” Ho advocates a single vvorld currency as a part of his cosmopollitanism or internationalism. Ho took issue with the liberal use of the word “depression” to fit these times. “ I don’t have faith in the talk of .‘cycles,’” he explained, ‘‘They hay©

never boon regular "things. And, _ besides, this is more than a. depression; it is something that never happened before, There will be no recovery unless new methods of correcting it can be reached.” . He was allied about the potential downfall of modern civilisation, “ An absolute collapse of /it is possible,” he said. “ This one may. fall as rapidly as any civilisation can. But the cause is not exactly comparable to Rome, because the Romans wore near to the ground, and there was no great mechanical system to crash down upon them. This is such a crazy edifice we have that it will fall hard.” “What will happen then? ” He smiled, and replied; “I’ll write you a book about that.” IN GERMANY. Mr Wells said he had heard from friends in Germany who “ Were anxious ’ ’ about the situation there. He said he did aot know “ what the odds are,” but there seems a possibility “of tlie Bolshevik frontier coming to the Rhine.” But the Hitlerites “ may upset the cart.” He thought there was some danger of “ warfare breaking ou t ’’—not like the World War, because “ history never repeats,” but some local fighting. There was a suggestion that the present Japan-China disagreement might be that, and he admitted the possibility. To a question of “ whether the world could afford ” a war, he remarked that “ they never think of that until afterwards.” Early in the interview, which took Elace in -a quiet corner of a deck after e had finished tea, Mr Wells’s opinion of his Premier was invited. Ho said; “I have no great admiration for Mr MacDonald; he is a very self-conscious and theatrical poison.” To a question as to whether the Premier “has suffere! in ’your esteem ” because of recent nanoeuvres, he said; “ No, I knew all abut him before.” Nothing “ very dreadful ” will happen to England, the author thought, as it is “ a very stable nation and never in its history have there been great political panics as elsewhere.”MR SHAW’S SOUL. He said of Mr Shav—who went to Russia for a ten-day visit and returned to praise it: “ 1 don’t feel that 1 should interfere with the processes of Mr Shaw’s soul. He is my senior, and I respect him very much.” As to whether ho thdnght the Soviet is getting along all right, he observed: “I am surprised thef are doing as well as they are. The;' will be able to produce something thit will look like success. J J Mr Wells’s contact wth the photographers showed him a gqiial, thick-set, ruddy man in a brown buliness suit. He posed readily, but when lie decided he had had enough there was no more. A newsreel cameraman a sled him how long it had been since his last visit to Now York. Ho gave tin date 1922, and then went on to say he wanted “ to see what changes there lave been in the New York skyline.” There was a twinkle in his eye; he was at least one up. He was asked whether le was expected to return to ‘ Your letier,’ the novel.

“Do you really think, I am a novelist?” he asked, and, in mock gratitude rushed forward to grasp the reporter’s hand. “ When I’n finished in New York I’m going bacl to write a novel,” he said. He has come here “to st on the roofs and indexes” of his few book. Ho is “ interested in the two',thousand million people in the world,: and interested in what they do and pw they do it.”- . ! .