Part 16 (1/2)

The _principle_ of Democratic (or Popular) Government is the law that the will of the majority shall rule.

Do away with the ”right of combination,” and Trade Unionism is destroyed.

Do away with majority rule, and Popular Government is destroyed.

So if we can find the _principle_ of _Socialism_, if we can find the one point on which all kinds of Socialists agree, we shall be able to see what _Socialism_ really is.

Now, here in plain words is the _principle_, or root idea, on which _all_ Socialists agree--

That the country, and all the machinery of production in the country, shall belong to the whole people (the nation), and shall be used _by_ the people and _for_ the people.

That ”principle,” the root idea of Socialism, means two things--

1. That the land and all the machines, tools, and buildings used in making needful things, together with all the ca.n.a.ls, rivers, roads, railways, s.h.i.+ps, and trains used in moving, sharing (distributing) needful things, and all the shops, markets, scales, weights, and money used in selling or dividing needful things, shall be the property of (belong to) the whole people (the nation).

2. That the land, tools, machines, trains, rivers, shops, scales, money, and all the other things belonging to the people, shall be worked, managed, divided, and used by the whole people in such a way as the greater number of the whole people shall deem best.

This is the principle of collective, or national, owners.h.i.+p, and co-operative, or national, use and control.

Socialism may, you see, be summed up in one line, in four words, as really meaning

BRITAIN FOR THE BRITISH.

I will make all this as plain as the nose on your face directly. Let us now look at the _other_ side.

To-day Britain does _not_ belong to the British; it belongs to a few of the British. There are bits of it which belong to the whole people, as Wimbledon Common, Portland Gaol, the highroads; but most of it is ”private property.”

Now, as there are Liberals and Tories, Catholics and Protestants, Dockers' Unions and s.h.i.+pping Federations in England; so there are Socialists and non-Socialists.

And as there are different kinds of Socialists, so there are different kinds of non-Socialists.

As there is one point, or _principle_, on which all kinds of Socialists agree; so there is one point, or _principle_, on which all kinds of non-Socialists agree.

Amongst the non-Socialists there are Liberals and Tories, Catholics and Protestants, masters and workmen, rich and poor, lords and labourers, publicans and teetotalers; and these folks, as you know, differ in their ideas, and quarrel with and go against each other; but they are all non-Socialists, they are all against _Socialism_, and they all agree upon _one point_.

So, if we can find the one point on which all kinds of non-Socialists agree, we shall find the _principle_, or root idea, of non-Socialism.

Well, the ”principle” of non-Socialism is just the opposite of the ”principle” of _Socialism_. As the ”principle” of _Socialism_ is national owners.h.i.+p, so the ”principle” of non-Socialism is _private_ owners.h.i.+p. As the principle of _Socialism_ is _Britain for the British_, so the principle of non-Socialism is _Every Briton for Himself_.

Again, as the principle of _Socialism_ means two things, so does the principle of non-Socialism mean two things.

As the principle of _Socialism_ means national owners.h.i.+p and co-operative national management, so the principle of non-Socialism means _private owners.h.i.+p_ and _private management_.

_Socialism_ says that Britain shall be owned and managed _by_ the people _for_ the people.

Non-Socialism says Britain shall be owned and managed _by_ some persons _for_ some persons.

Under _Socialism_ you would have _all_ the people working _together_ for the good of _all_.

Under non-Socialism you have all the _persons_ working _separately_ (and mostly _against_ each other), each for the good of _himself_.