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 canals, rivers, roads, railways, ships, 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, ownership, 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 Shipping 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 ownership, so the "principle" of non-Socialism is _private_ ownership. 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 ownership and co-operative national management, so the principle of non-Socialism means _private ownership_ 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_.
So we find _Socialism_ means _Co-operation_, and non-Socialism means _Competition_.
Co-operation, as here used, means operating or working together for a common end or purpose.
Competition means competing or vying with each other for personal ends or gain.
I'm afraid that is all as "dry" as bran, and as sad as a half-boiled dumpling; but I want to make it quite plain.
And now we will run over it all again in a more homely and lively way.
You know that to-day most of the land in Britain belongs to landlords, who let it to farmers or builders, and charge _rent_ for it.
Socialists (_all_ Socialists) say that _all_ the land should belong to the British people, to the nation.
You know that the railways belong to railway companies, who carry goods and passengers, and charge fares and rates, to make _profit_.
Socialists _all_ say that the railways should be bought by the people.
Some say that fares should be charged, some that the railways should be free--just as the roads, rivers, and bridges now are; but all agree that any profit made by the railways should belong to the whole nation. Just as do the profits now made by the post office and the telegraphs.
You know that cotton mills, coalmines, and breweries now belong to rich men, or to companies, who sell the coal, the calico, or the beer, for profit.
Socialists say that all mines, mills, breweries, shops, works, ships, and farms should belong to the whole people, and should be managed by persons chosen by the people, or chosen by officials elected by the people, and that all the bread, beer, calico, coal, and other goods should be either _sold_ to the people, or _given_ to the people, or sold to foreign buyers for the benefit of the British nation.
Some Socialists would _give_ the goods to the people, some would _sell_ them; but _all_ agree that any profit on such sales should belong to the whole people--just as any profit made on the sale of gas by the Manchester Corporation goes to the credit of the city.
Now you will begin to see what is meant by Socialism.
To-day the nation owns _some_ things; under Socialism the nation would own _all_ things.
To-day the nation owns the ships of the navy, the forts, arsenals, public buildings, Government factories, and some other things.
To-day the Government, _for the nation_, manages the post office and telegraphs, makes some of the clothes and food and arms for the army and navy, builds some of the warships, and oversees the Church, the prisons, and the schools.
Socialists want the nation to own _all_ the buildings, factories, lands, rivers, ships, schools, machines, and goods, and to manage _all_ their business and work, and to buy and sell and make and use _all_ goods for themselves.
To-day some cities (as Manchester and Glasgow) make gas, and supply gas and water to the citizens. Some cities (as London) let their citizens buy their gas and water from gas and water companies.
Socialists want _all_ the gas and water to be supplied to the people by their own officials, as in Glasgow and Manchester.
Under _Socialism_ all the work of the nation would be _organised_--that is to say, it would be "ordered," or "arranged," so that no one need be out of work, and so that no useless work need be done, and so that no work need be done twice where once would serve.
At present the work is _not_ organised, except in the post office and in the various works of the Corporations.
Let us take a look at the state of things in England to-day.
To-day the industries of England are not ordered nor arranged, but are left to be disordered by chance and by the ups and downs of trade.