Chapter I: Front Matter

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BRITAIN FOR THE BRITISH

BY

_ROBERT BLATCHFORD_ EDITOR OF THE CLARION

LONDON CLARION PRESS, 72 FLEET STREET, E. C.

CHICAGO CHARLES H. KERR & COMPANY 56 FIFTH AVENUE

Copyright, 1902, BY CHARLES H. KERR & COMPANY.

Printed in the United States.

DEDICATED TO A. M. THOMPSON

AND THE CLARION FELLOWSHIP

CONTENTS

CHAP. PAGE

THE TITLE, PURPOSE, AND METHOD OF THIS BOOK 1

FOREWORDS 6

I. THE UNEQUAL DIVISION OF WEALTH 10

II. WHAT IS WEALTH? WHERE DOES IT COME FROM? WHO CREATES IT? 26

III. HOW THE FEW GET RICH AND KEEP THE MANY POOR 33

IV. THE BRAIN-WORKER, OR INVENTOR 45

V. THE LANDLORD'S RIGHTS AND THE PEOPLE'S RIGHTS 51

VI. LUXURY AND THE GREAT USEFUL EMPLOYMENT FRAUD 63

VII. WHAT SOCIALISM IS NOT 74

VIII. WHAT SOCIALISM IS 82

IX. COMPETITION _v._ CO-OPERATION 90

X. FOREIGN TRADE AND FOREIGN FOOD 97

XI. HOW TO KEEP FOREIGN TRADE 102

XII. CAN BRITAIN FEED HERSELF? 110

XIII. THE SUCCESSFUL MAN 119

XIV. TEMPERANCE AND THRIFT 127

XV. THE SURPLUS LABOUR MISTAKE 135

XVI. IS SOCIALISM POSSIBLE, AND WILL IT PAY? 141

XVII. THE NEED FOR A LABOUR PARTY 148

XVIII. WHY THE OLD PARTIES WILL NOT DO 156

XIX. TO-DAY'S WORK 166

WHAT TO READ 174

THE TITLE OF THIS BOOK

The motto of this book is expressed in its title: BRITAIN FOR THE BRITISH.

At present Britain does not belong to the British: it belongs to a few of the British, who employ the bulk of the population as servants or as workers.

It is because Britain does not belong to the British that a few are very rich and the many are very poor.

It is because Britain does not belong to the British that we find amongst the _owning_ class a state of useless luxury and pernicious idleness, and amongst the _working_ classes a state of drudging toil, of wearing poverty and anxious care.

This state of affairs is contrary to Christianity, is contrary to justice, and contrary to reason. It is bad for the rich, it is bad for the poor; it is against the best interests of the British nation and the human race.

The remedy for this evil state of things--the _only_ remedy yet suggested--is _Socialism_. And _Socialism_ is broadly expressed in the title and motto of this book: BRITAIN FOR THE BRITISH.

THE PURPOSE OF THIS BOOK

The purpose of this book is to convert the reader to _Socialism_: to convince him that the present system--political, industrial, and social--is bad; to explain to him why it is bad, and to prove to him that Socialism is the only true remedy.

FOR WHOM THIS BOOK IS INTENDED

This book is intended for any person who does not understand, or has, so far, refused to accept the principles of _Socialism_.

But it is especially addressed, as my previous book, _Merrie England_, was addressed, to JOHN SMITH, a typical British working man, not yet converted to _Socialism_.

I hope this book will be read by every opponent of _Socialism_; and I hope it will be read by all those good folks who, though not yet _Socialists_, are anxious to help their fellow-creatures, to do some good in their own day and generation, and to leave the world a little better than they found it.

I hope that all lovers of justice and of truth will read this book, and that many of them will be thereby led to a fuller study of _Socialism_.

To the Tory and the Radical; to the Roman Catholic, the Anglican, and the Nonconformist; to the workman and the employer; to the scholar and the peer; to the labourer's wife, the housemaid, and the duchess; to the advocates of Temperance and of Co-operation; to the Trade Unionist and the non-Unionist; to the potman, the bishop, and the brewer; to the artist and the merchant; to the poet and the navvy; to the Idealist and the Materialist; to the poor clerk, the rich financier, the great scientist, and the little child, I commend the following beautiful prayer from the Litany of the Church of England:--

That it may please thee to bring into the way of truth _all_ such as
have erred, and are deceived.

That it may please thee to strengthen such as do stand; and to
comfort and help the weak-hearted; and to raise up them that fall;
and finally to beat down Satan under our feet.

That it may please thee to succour, help, and comfort _all_ that are
in danger, necessity, and tribulation.

That it may please thee to preserve _all_ that travel by land or by
water, _all_ women labouring of child, _all_ sick persons, and young
children; and to shew thy pity upon _all_ prisoners and captives.

That it may please thee to defend, and provide for, the fatherless
children, and widows, and _all_ that are desolate and oppressed.

That it may please thee to have mercy upon _all_ men.

That it may please thee to forgive our enemies, persecutors, and
slanderers, and to turn their hearts.

That it may please thee to give and preserve to our use the kindly
fruits of the earth, so as in due time we may enjoy them.

_We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord._

I have italicised the word "all" in that prayer to emphasise the fact that mercy, succour, comfort, and pardon are here asked for _all_, and not for a few.

I now ask the reader of this book, with those words of broad charity and sweet kindliness still fresh in mind, to remember the unmerited miseries, the ill-requited labour, the gnawing penury, and the loveless and unhonoured lives to which an evil system dooms millions of British men and women. I ask the reader to discover for himself how much pity we bestow upon our "prisoners and captives," how much provision we make for the "fatherless children and widows," what nature and amount of "succour, help, and comfort" we vouchsafe to "all who are in danger, necessity, and tribulation." I ask him to consider, with regard to those "kindly fruits of the earth," who produces, and who enjoys them; and I beg him next to proceed in a judicial spirit, by means of candour and right reason, to examine fairly and weigh justly the means proposed by Socialists for abolishing poverty and oppression, and for conferring prosperity, knowledge, and freedom upon _all_ men.

BRITAIN FOR THE BRITISH: that is our motto. We ask for a fair and open trial. We solicit an impartial hearing of the case for _Socialism_. Listen patiently to our statements; consider our arguments; accord to us a fair field and no favour; and may the truth prevail.

THE METHOD OF THIS BOOK

As to the method of this book, I shall begin by calling attention to some of the evils of the present industrial, social, and political system.

I shall next try to show the sources of those evils, the causes from which they arise.

I shall go on to explain what _Socialism_ is, and what _Socialism_ is not.

I shall answer the principal objections commonly urged against _Socialism_.

And I shall, in conclusion, point out the chief ways in which I think the reader of this book may help the cause of _Socialism_ if he believes that cause to be just and wise.

FOREWORDS

Years ago, before _Socialism_ had gained a footing in this country, some of us democrats used often to wonder how any working man could be a Tory.

To-day we Socialists are still more puzzled by the fact that the majority of our working men are not Socialists.

How is it that middle class and even wealthy people often accept _Socialism_ more readily than do the workers?

Perhaps it is because the men and women of the middle and upper classes are more in the habit of reading and thinking for themselves, whereas the workers take most of their opinions at second-hand from priests, parsons, journalists, employers, and members of Parliament, whose little knowledge is a dangerous thing, and whose interests lie in bolstering up class privilege by darkening counsel with a multitude of words.

I have been engaged for more than a dozen years in studying political economy and _Socialism_, and in trying, as a Socialist, pressman, and author, to explain _Socialism_ and to confute the arguments and answer the objections of non-Socialists, and I say, without any hesitation, that I have never yet come across a single argument against practical _Socialism_ that will hold water.

I do not believe that any person of fair intelligence and education, who will take the trouble to study _Socialism_ fairly and thoroughly, will be able to avoid the conclusion that _Socialism_ is just and wise.

I defy any man, of any nation, how learned, eminent, and intellectual soever, to shake the case for practical _Socialism_, or to refute the reasoning contained in this book.

And now I will address myself to Mr. John Smith, a typical British workman, not yet converted to _Socialism_.

Dear Mr. Smith, I assume that you are opposed to _Socialism_, and I assume that you would say that you are opposed to it for one or more of the following reasons:--

1. Because you think _Socialism_ is unjust.
2. Because you think _Socialism_ is unpractical.
3. Because you think that to establish _Socialism_ is not possible.

But I suspect that the real reason for your opposition to _Socialism_ is simply that you do not understand it.

The reasons you generally give for opposing _Socialism_ are reasons suggested to you by pressmen or politicians who know very little about it, or are interested in its rejection.

I am strongly inclined to believe that the _Socialism_ to which you are opposed is not _Socialism_ at all, but only a bogey erected by the enemies of _Socialism_ to scare you away from the genuine _Socialism_, which it would be so much to your advantage to discover.

Now you would not take your opinions of Trade Unionism from non-Unionists, and why, then, should you take your opinions of _Socialism_ from non-Socialists?

If you will be good enough to read this book you will find out what _Socialism_ really is, and what it is not. If after reading this book you remain opposed to _Socialism_, I must leave it for some Socialist more able than I to convert you.

When it pleases those who call themselves your "betters" to flatter you, Mr. Smith (which happens oftener at election times than during strikes or lock-outs), you hear that you are a "shrewd, hard-headed, practical man." I hope that is true, whether your "betters" believe it or not.

I am a practical man myself, and shall offer you in this book nothing but hard fact and cold reason.

I assume, Mr. Smith, that you, as a hard-headed, practical man, would rather be well off than badly off, and that with regard to your own earnings you would rather be paid twenty shillings in the pound than five shillings or even nineteen shillings and elevenpence in the pound.

And I assume that as a family man you would rather live in a comfortable and healthy house than in an uncomfortable and unhealthy house; that you would be glad if you could buy beef, bread, gas, coal, water, tea, sugar, clothes, boots, and furniture for less money than you now pay for them; and that you would think it a good thing, and not a bad thing, if your wife had less work and more leisure, fewer worries and more nice dresses, and if your children had more sports, and better health, and better education.

And I assume that you would like to pay lower rents, even if some rich landlord had to keep fewer race-horses.

And I assume that as a humane man you would prefer that other men and women and their children should not suffer if their sufferings could be prevented.

If, then, I assure you that you are paying too much and are being paid too little, and that many other Britons, especially weak women and young children, are enduring much preventible misery; and if I assert, further, that I know of a means whereby you might secure more ease and comfort, and they might secure more justice, you will, surely, as a kind and sensible man, consent to listen to the arguments and statements I propose to place before you.

Suppose a stranger came to tell you where you could get a better house at a lower rent, and suppose your present landlord assured you that the man who offered the information was a fool or a rogue, would you take the landlord's word without investigation? Would it not be more practical and hard-headed to hear first what the bringer of such good news had to tell?

Well, the Socialist brings you better news than that of a lower rent. Will you not hear him? Will you turn your back on him for no better reason than because he is denounced as a fraud by the rich men whose wealth depends upon the continuation of the present system?

Your "betters" tell you that you always display a wise distrust of new ideas. But to reject an idea because it is new is not a proof of shrewdness and good sense; it is a sign of bigotry and ignorance. Trade Unionism was new not so long ago, and was denounced, and is still denounced, by the very same persons who now denounce _Socialism_. If you find a newspaper or an employer to be wrong when he denounces Trade Unionism, which you do understand, why should you assume that the same authority is right in denouncing _Socialism_, which you do not understand? You know that in attacking Trade Unionism the employer and the pressman are speaking in their own interest and against yours; why, then, should you be ready to believe that in counselling you against _Socialism_ the same men are speaking in your interest and not in their own?

I ask you, as a practical man, to forget both the Socialist and the non-Socialist, and to consider the case for and against _Socialism_ on its merits. As I said in _Merrie England_--

Forget that you are a joiner or a spinner, a Catholic or a
Freethinker, a Liberal or a Tory, a moderate drinker or a
teetotaler, and consider the problem as a _man_.

If you had to do a problem in arithmetic, or if you were cast adrift
in an open boat at sea, you would not set to work as a Wesleyan, or
a Liberal Unionist; but you would tackle the sum by the rules of
arithmetic, and would row the boat by the strength of your own
manhood, and keep a lookout for passing ships under _any_ flag. I
ask you, then, Mr. Smith, to hear what I have to say, and to decide
by your own judgment whether I am right or wrong.

I was once opposed to _Socialism_ myself; but it was before I understood it.

When you understand it you will, I feel sure, agree with me that it is perfectly logical, and just, and practical; and you will, I hope, yourself become a _Socialist_, and will help to abolish poverty and wrong by securing BRITAIN FOR THE BRITISH.