LITERATURE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 17104, 8 September 1917, Page 2

LITERATURE.

THE NEW STATE SOCIALISM.*

A "POLICY OF POWER." By Constant Reader. "Tho great war has put all parties in the molting pot, and. l.jr the time, the whole people form one national pnrty. When the war is over, and the period of reconstruction begins, old antagonisms will bo softened, and we shall bo more, ready to learn from out own faults and from tho virtues of our former opponents. In the hope of stimulating this conscious co-opera-tion between all men of goodwill, the author sends forth this contribution to the problem, from the point of view of a Constructive Toryism." The author is Mr William Cecil \ Dampier Whetham, of Trinity College. Cambridge, well and favourably known by his treatise on ''The Family and the Nation " and other scientific and eoriological works; and tho book in which he now makes a contribution to the constructive policy of the time is entitled " Tho War and the Nation." Mr Whetham admits that personal bias necessarily enters into every and any consideration of political and economic questions, and. at the outset, Jig makes full and frank confession of his own standpoint: While on grounds of reason the present writer had a healthy mistrust of all political parties <is they existed before the war, he is fain to confess that his prejudices, both inherited and acquired, make him a Tory. But if Toryism is to be a power 'or good in the modern world it must become once again something more positive than mere Conservatism, and more sound and more inspiring than the policy of the latter-day Unionist. The true Tory is one who regards the State, with its ancient institutions-, as a living complete organism, over developing to meet the growing needs of a changing time, and working in harmony for the good of all—not as isolated individuals, but as members of one another. While careful to define his personal position as a constructive Tory, Mr Whetham is equally careful to point out the menace of tho " f also social ideal" instilled lay the German State into the German people, which hae " permeated their very souls with the poison-gas of the theory of a State supreme even over right and wrong."' He gets to the heart of the political and economic problems under consideration when he adds: The fact that this awful power has been used for a bad end, and that it has enabled a few evil men to plunge the world into agony, can never prevent our realising the supreme truth that such control is possible, and may be a danger. Let us then reckon with this tremendous power and take every safeguard that it should not be used in. Britain, for un--1 worthy ends.

As a panacea for the political and economic chaos which the war has precipitated in Great Britain, Mr W'hetham propounds a new brand of State which in some respects at least represents a blend of the democratic Toryism of the earlier Disraeli with the Imperialistic dreams of the later Beaconsfield. The kevnote of Mr Whetham's scheme of construction is to be found in the following sentences: —"By its essence Socialism is the left wing of Toryism, and bears to it the same relation as Radicalism bears to Liberalism. It was an unnatural state of afEairs which fixed Socialism with Radicalism as two left winge for the Liberal Party—a structural peculiarity which accounted for some of the ungainly gyrations of that amusing bird." For the rediscovery of what he deems the " true historical spirit of Toryism," Mr Whetham goes back to the sixteenth century, and eees in the admittedly imperfect methods of the Tudor and Stuart Governments an endeavour to realise, as a conscious objective, " the racial, . military, moral, and intellectual well-being of the State, and not only its economic wealth." The subsequent ebb and flow of the recurring political and economic tides ,ar'e thus interestingly summarised: During the 18th and 19th centuries, while modern political parties were crystallising out from their seventeenth century prototypes, the faults and exaggerations of each intensified by reaction the defects and deficiencies of the others. The Tory failed to realise that to make a State healthy and strong the intelligent, conscious consent and co-operation of the greatest possible number of its citizens must be secured. The Liberal, seeing a partial truth, laid too much stress on freedom and consent as expressed in the ballot box, overlooked the need of conscious co-operation, and failed to provide the necessary organisation. Thus ho lost sight of the social ideal, which could not express itself articulately in terms of nineteenth century trade competition— tho natural language of the classes from which the strength of Liberalism was derived. The Radicals, exasperated by tho shortcomings of Tory, Whig, and Liberal alike, saw no way of effective reform save through a preliminary destruction, a policy of despair, imperilling tho use fi>r national purposes of those men of commanding personality and directing power who eventually ?.rd themselves at the hr»ad of a nation's thought and action. The efffct of such a policy could ur.iy be to drive into seclusion or political opposition men and women whose intelligent consent and 00-operation are of the greatest value to Ihe State. The Socialist, returning toward. , : the feudal ideal of restricting the liberty of the individual in tho interests of the common welfare, tended to complete one ring of the political spiral and approach once more the Tory conception of the- State. But, in reaction from the existing hardships of an unorganised individualistic economic system, the Socialist under-estimated tho ethical value of freely developing personality, and forgot the economic power of

individual initiative,

Mr Whetham seeks to combat what ho regards as "one of the fallacies of the 19th century"—viz., that the downfall of the feudal system was of benefit to the people of Europe., He sees, instead, in the gradual decline and decay of the feudal structure of society tho growth of a system of Freetrado and "laissez-faire." ■ Contrasting the 16th and 19th centuries, he quotes an authority as saying:— Put shortly, the difference is this. In tho sixteenth century the Government considered the nation as a whole, and aimed at making it strong, even if this was done at the expense of the individual; while now-a : days we are content that there should be plenty, and the, individual is allowed to go his own way, even if; by doiri" so, he may weaken the power of the realm. The attraction of Freetrade and "laissezfaire" consisted in the fact that they made not only for the wealth of individuals but also for the immediate aggregate wealth of the nation. But Mr .Whetham says: — "Though it cannot bo strong without wealth, a rich nation is not necessarily strong, either in military preparation or civil organisation, or iu tho equitable distribution of the product of industry; an increase of wealth, if badly used and badly distributed, may bo accompanied by a decrease in power, 'lhe free activities of men, to which laissez-faire gives full play, are not ail, as the theory seems to assume, of the same algebraic sign. When competition becomes too kocn, much energy is wasted in destructive action. When each man follows his own .interests, those of some men may conflict with the general welfare. , ' Under the shadow of the faise assumption that national wealth necessarily meanr, national Vf'clfare, extreme individualism had full play, and created an atmosphere well nigh exclusively utilitarian. The " policy of power" represented by feudalism passed away or only lingered in the form of protective import duties, long after the constructive essence of the policy they typified had been forgotten, Mr Whetham pleads for a return to the "policy of power" purged of the injustices and inequalities by which it was marked under the Tudor and iStuart regimes and modified by modern individualistic conceptions. In short, Mr VVhethajn, in practical f:ishion, elaborates the theme, cleverly outlined, many years back by Oscar Wilde in that brilliant brochure "The Soul of Man Under Socialism." Mr Whetham applies his theory of construction to two of tho most pressing problems which face tho British Empire as tho direct consequence of the war. First and foremost comes the race problem. " How can we replace the terrible loss of <rood and sound lives?" .Second only in importance is tho allied problem—namely, the difficulty of replacing tho huge loss of wealth," the difficulty of "paying for tho war." In endeavouring to lind the solution of these problems Mr Whetham indulges in (ho hops that "if we have learnt our lesson aright we shall never return to the unorganised social structure we knpw before thr war." He also ventores on the warn-

ing that. " Protection, in itself, is not organisation," and " it is do service to the country to enable an ineflicient nianula' , - turer to wax rich on the plunder of the consumer unci the exploitation of his workmen." -Mr Wheihimi's scheme supposes a t.'OMibinatiou of the Protective and I'"rw Trade theories. Jn his social structure, he sees all essential or " key" industries, protected where necessary by <luty or bounty and curried on by State control. IJn lays it down as an axiom -that in the new order "private profit must not batten on a monopoly or part monopoly created by thii State (it the expense of the community at large." All food, transport, and public facilities such as posts and telegraphs would come Tinder the head of essential industries. At the same, time Mr. Whetham believes that many branches of industry w,ill "best be left to individual enterprise and initiative." with this corrective, that _it should be within the power of the municipality or the State to take over the control at any time of any such industry if the transfer be for the general or national welfare. There might be in such cases, absolute State ownership and control, or State control without ownership, or merely State partnership, but throughout the idea of the feudal "policy of power" would be preserved and kept paramount. In all these schemes the experience gained during the war would bo utilised as a guide in times of peace. The organisation and control of industry represents but one side of the problem. The other side is forcibly presented in the following- paragraph:

In war time we have all come to see that the one unpardonable fault if to diminish the national output by doing less than our best— by living on the income of stocks and shares, that is, by taxing the labour -whether of hand or brain of others, without doing the equivalent in unpaid work for the nation in return—by laying fewer bricks than is easily possible in a day—by employing more servants than are needed to maintain our own efficiency for other work— by buying unneeded luxuries and thus forcing" into their production energies which would be better employed—these are forms of selfishness we have all lenrnt to reprobate during the war. But such lessons ore applicable to a strenuous peace little less than a war, though it has' needed Armaeeddon to drive them into the consciousness of most peoplo of the leisured, no less than of the labourclasses. In the elaboration of his theme, Mr Whetham pens some brilliant passages, and gets in some real home thrusts which may well bo taken to heart, no less by those in authority in this dominion, than by the people at large. As illustrative of Mr Whetham's aphoristic style, a few extracts will serve: —

An increased national output is a necessity. It can only bo secured by the goodwill and hard work of all. . Where our social, political, and industrial machine is inefficient, it must be mended or the parts replaced. Heavy taxes must bo raised, and raised in such a way as not to cripple or even hamper industry. The only tax which can safely be imposed at a high level is a tax on realised income or property. Why should a solicitor be able to earn £1000 a year, while a skilled woodman earns, perhaps, 30s a week? Tho Navy docs not work for gain, ye.t it holds the sea for England. The Army does not think of profit, yet it dies in France that we may live in security. Cannot the miserable spirit of commercialism be exorcised, and even the man of business learn to labour in peace as in war, for the good of his country, or the love of his work, and not for the magnitude, of his profits or the magnificence of his wife's diamonds? As a means to an end, efficiency is the principal theme of this book But as an end in itself the gospel of efficiency is a false and devastating doctrine. . . . Do not lot us turn , ou<r free England into a bad copy of enslaved Prussia. We may learn from our enemies, but let us learn to avoid their faults a3 well as copy their Virtues. It is only possible, in outline, to stive a faint idea of the'thoughtful thesis «mbndiec. in " The War and the Nation." Mr Whotham takes in turn subjects fuoli as the Land, the Organisation of Industry, Coal and the Railways, the Race Problem, and Finance and Taxation, and discusses in detail iho way in which his scheme of constructive Toryism would act and re-act unon them. Every page of the book is illuminative and thought-compelling, even when omen to criticism. TV ideals which throughout his treatise Mr Whetham keeps in view are thus summarised:— Lot the individual bo given every possiblo chance to show his innate powers of mind or body, and bo tramsd and developed to the best of his abilities in tho home and tho school, and if he bo worthy, tho university. Lot us see that thfv sound and healthy family, tho natural household group, has its stability assured, its interests protected, and its growth encouraged. Lot us strive that tho- farm, the workshop, tho factory, or tho offioo be efficiently organised, and produce their maximum effort consistently with fh'.> welfare of the individual and the family. Let the nation, ruled by all for a!' through tho agency of its best, gain a clearer collective consciousness and a slowly increasing , collective notion, ,and, guided by a revived and Durifird policy of power, conserve and develop it? resources in the interest of the whole people. Lot the Empire, crystallising out of the separate, nations, be a surf* ahiolr] of defence for the ideals embodied therein and grow, an ever strengthening power for righteousness in the world at large.