PILGRIMAGE THATD FAILED

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVI, Issue 23275, 18 February 1939, Page 4 (Supplement)

PILGRIMAGE THATD FAILED

A Cheerful Socialist

By H. R. RODWELL IN "Pilgrim To The Left," Mr. S. G. Hobson reminds one of Francis Place. Like Place, Mr. Hobson holds firmly to a vision of a new social order, which he is convinced can be attained, and toward ■which he has worked steadily all '-r his life undeterred by failure. Like Place, too, he has preferred to shun the political arena and though working somewhat in the background, his influence upon socialist thought has been great. In spito of the failure of Guild Socialism, Mr. Hobson's ideals are as / clear and undimmed as ever—after fifty years = of work and often disappointment, he is able to write this book with a freshness and whimsical humour that make it a delight to read. The book gives the history of the socialist movement during the past fifty jrears, and as such fills a gap in socialist history. It is written with an intimate inside knowledge, for Mr. Hobson joined the Fabian Society in 1891, and was from 1900 to 1910 on its executive. Under Keir Hardie he shared in the early growth of the Independent Labour Party, and remained in touch with the Party as it later developed under Ramsay MacDonald and Snowden. He was in touch with tho Social Democratic Federation of Hyndman and Bax, and worked with Shaw, tho Webbs, and H. G. "Wells. Of all these ha gives brilliant sketches, y

Guild Socialism Th© clash between political Labour and Fabian' Socialism saw the end for _SIr, Hobson*s political associations. The former was for him too purely a working class movement and, with its stress on class consciousness, lost the true socialist ideal. Ho then began - the work with which his name is most closely associated —the development of Guild Socialism, a method which he expounded in his book of that name published in 1914. After the War, the Building Guild came into existence, fivirig concrete expression to his plan, n the present book is given for the first time, the inside history of its work and collapse. In addition to the main topic of the book, Mr. Hobson has given us many interesting reminiscences. We see him as a journalist, a merchant mariner, a banana planter in British Honduras, as traveller in Morocco, Asia Minor, Finland; serving in the Ministcries ot Munitions and Labour during and after tho War. " Inglorious End "

Wo hear, too, of the supply of illicit arms to pre-War Russian revolutionaries and of the « inglorious end " of Mr. Hobson's " wild and whirling career as a hardware merchant and. lard exporter." Here is the inglorious end: — ' " I was hardly back in London when, •uninvited, entered a detective from Scotland Yard. Lovely weather, wasn't it? He thought it would rain. He wanted rain; his garden was a frizzle. That garden was the apple of his wire s • eye. No; unfortunately. they had no children. And, by the way, Lord Lansdowne's compliments, but he had received a rather' napty letter .from the Russian Consul-General. Yes; about rou. What on earth about? Oh, something about illicit trading in Russia." "Bats! I insisted upon the cheery mortal smoking a cigar. Yes* there might bo a general election pretty soon. I was a candidate, wasn't I? Yes; Lord Lansdowne didn't wantany. bother. ; Queer blokes, the Russians. What he said was, leave 'em alone. 'Anyhow, he had, no use for them. And ray detective, with a warm and knowing handshake, took himself oil."

" PUgrim to The Left," by S. G. Hobson. {(Edward Arnold). '