Front matter

ARCHDEACON OF ELY \ FELLOW OF TRINITY COLLEGE AND HON. FELLOW OF GONVILLE AND CAIUS COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE; CORRESPONDING MEMBER OF THE MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL SOCIETY AND FORMERLY LECTURER IN HARVARD UNIVERSITY

NEW YORK

Preface

The study of social questions differs from economic in¬ vestigation, partly on account of the greater width of the field that must be surveyed, and partly because the aims, with which the enquiries are pursued, are quite distinct. The economist is concerned with the causes of material prosperity ; for him ‘ things are in the saddle and ride mankind.’ Some of us, however, while we recognise that economic studies are necessary as a preliminary, regard them as merely a preliminary ; we are not satisfied to dwell only on the increase of the comforts and conveniences of life, but aim also at the improvement of human life itself. The object we set ourselves is to study the means by which Man may attain to welfare in all its aspects ; not only to command over material comforts, but to elevation of mind and character as well.

The economist, who is studying business conditions among progressive peoples in the present day, finds it convenient to leave many important aspects of human life — political and religious — in the background ; and there is some danger that he will only take account of them occasionally and spasmodically, or even ignore them altogether. A useful corrective to such one¬ sidedness may be found in historical studies, as the interaction, between political and religious movements on the one hand and economic conditions and progress on the other, is kept constantly before the mind ; the student of social problems must endeavour to take this wider outlook over human affairs in the present day. He

X cannot dare to leave any element of human activity — political, religious, or economic — deliberately in the back¬ ground : there must be an effort to take full account of human life in all its aspects, and to deal with each in due proportion.

This book is an attempt to set forth, from a Christian standpoint, the relative importance of all the forces which make for human welfare, or militate against it. This is a large subject, and I have had some difficulty in com¬ pressing it into the space at my disposal. On many of the points raised I have thought it sufficient to refer to the somewhat fuller treatment in books or papers of my own, and the titles of these are quoted without the author’s name. With the view of giving precision to my exposi¬ tion, I have frequently referred to writers who look at the problems from a different standpoint and see them in another light, but I have endeavoured to avoid polemics of every kind. The bibliography has been planned as a brief guide to those readers who desire to go more fully into some of the highly debateable questions raised in this brief sketch.

w. c.

Trinity College, Cambridge,

February 1910.

Part I. World-wide Influences Chapter I. Physical Conditions Pack

1. Conditions of Animal Life . 1

(a) The Principle of Population, . 1

(b) The Law of Diminishing Return, .... 3

2. The Progress of Man — . 5

(а) In Knowledge and Power of Organisation, . . 5

(б) In Character, . 7

3. Prospects of Further Advance . 9

(a) Danger of Decadence, . 9

(b) Criteria of Wise Organisation, . 10

4. Common Sense and Christianity . 13

(a) Grounds for Believing in the Discipline of the Race, 15

( b ) The Widening of the Sphere of Hope, ... 17

5. Christian Philosophy of Life — . 19

(a) As Reconciling Inconsistent Claims, . . . 19

(b) Its Effectiveness as a Practical Power, ... 20

Chapter II. Racial Differences

1. The Defects of the Lower Races .... 21

(a) Lack of Foresight, . 22

( b ) Lack of Facilities for Exchange, .... 24

2. The Inter-Racial Struggle for Existence ... 27

(a) Adaptability to New Conditions, .... 28

(b) The Maintenance of Numbers, . 29

3. The Contact of Two Races on the Same Soil . •

(a) Competition for Land,

( b ) The Demand for Labour, ....*•

4. The Persistence of Racial Distinctions • • •

(a) Amalgamation and Assimilation, . . • •

( b ) Economic Cosmopolitanism, .

5. The Christian Claim for Fair Plat on Behalf of

Native Races .

(a) The Safeguards of Ordinary Morality Insufficient, .

(b) A Specifically Christian Duty, . .

PAGE

Chapter III. Civil Authority

1. The Enforcing of Right and Justice .... 46

(a) The Superhuman Element in the State, ... 47

(b) The Responsibility of Rulers, ..... 48

(i d ) Economic Aspects of Good Government, ... 50

2. The Utilitarian State . 52

(a) Lack of Public Spirit in the Management of Civil

Affairs, . 54

( b ) The Spasmodic Recognition of Supreme Right, . 55

( d ) The Divergence of the English and the American

Conceptions of Political Life, .... 57

3. Corruption and Decadence . .69

(a) The Nemesis of a Defective Sense of Duty, . . 59

(b) Statesmanship and Statescraft, .... 62

Chapter I. The Functions Of Government

1. Justice and Expediency . 66

(a) The Punishment of Crime, ..... 66

(b) Equality of Taxation, ...... 69

( d ) Christian Influence on Political Life, ... 75

CONTENTS xiii

PAGE

2. Favourable Conditions for Economic Life ... 79

(a) The Maintenance of a Well-ordered Community, . 79

( b ) Compulsion and Reward, ...... 82

3. Grounds for State Interference . 85

( a ) Limitations to the Rights of Private Property, . 85

( b ) Preventing the Relative Waste of Land, ... 86

( d ) Economic Policy, . 89

4. Criteria of Healthy Economic Life .... 91

(a) Unemployment as a Symptom of Disease, . . 91

( b ) The Defectiveness of Money Measurement, . . 93

altogether, . 95

Chapter II. The Reward Of Services

1. The Framework of Society and the Force of Com¬

petition . 99

(a) The Double Character of Social Problems, . . 99

( b ) The Social Services of Capitalists and Landowners, . 100

l d ) The Elimination of Competition, .... 106

2. The Reward of Labour . 109

(a) Class Distinctions in Personal Service, . . . 109

( b ) Ladders for Rising in the World, . . . .111

( d ) Inflated Reward, . 120

(e) Sweated Industries, . 121

3. The Profit on Capital . 123

(a) Profit and Interest, . 123

(&) Interest and Extortion, . . . . . .126

( d ) Waste and Organisation, . 129

(e) Municipal Enterprise, . 131

(/) Monopoly and the Public Interest, .... 134

4. The Return from Land . 137

(a) The Services of Landowners, . 137

(b) The Various Uses of Land, ..... 139

(d) The Increment in Progressive Countries, .

(e) State- Appropriation of Exceptional Reward, .

5. Drastic Remedies .

(a) State-Appropriation of Capital and Land,

(b) Abandonment of the Attempt to Promote Public

Good through Private Interest, . . .

( d ) Universal Brotherhood, .

PACK

149 151 153

Chapter III. Half Truths

1. Problems of Life,

(a) Empirical Knowledge,

( b ) Hasty Generalisation,

2. The Mechanism of Society,

(a) The Growth of Economic Science,

( b ) Popular Misunderstandings,

3. Particular Aims,

(a) Cheap Food, .

(b) The English Yeomanry, .

Chapter I. Christian Character

1. Self-Dedication . 176

(a) The Influence of Individuals on Society, .

( b ) Enthusiasm and Self-Sacrifice, . . . ;

2. Personal Service

(a) Positive Guidance, .

( b ) The Restraint of Passion .

( d ) Power of Restraining Passion,

184 186 188

CONTENTS xv

PAGE

3. The Responsibility of Trusteeship .... 190

(a) The Earth is the Lord’s, . 190

( b ) The Duties of Investors, . . . , . .191

(d) Recklessness about Wealth, . 194

Chapter II. Secularised Christianity

1. Avowedly Christian Socialism . 198

(a) Philanthropic Aims, . 198

2. Mundane Theocracies . 202

(a) The Reform of Scciety, . 202

( b ) Temporary Needs, . 204

(d) The Supremacy of Christian Law, .... 208

3. Non-Christian Methods of Reform .... 211

(а) Transferring Responsibility, . 211

(б) Abstinence from Things as Evil in Themselves, . 214

CHAPTER III. THE CHRISTIANITY OF CHRIST (a) Christ as a Preacher, . 218

( b ) Christ’s Habitual Practice, . 220

Part I World-wide Influences Chapter I

1. Conditions of Animal Life

In the solution of every social problem many forces are at work, and it is not easy to say at any particular time or place which are the most important. High personal en¬ thusiasms carry men away at times of national excitement ; while laws and social conventions seem to cast the men of one country into the same mould, and to stamp them as absolutely distinct from the people of other lands. At all events, we may feel that there are some forces which are operative in all times and in all parts of the globe ; what¬ ever particular cases of progress or of poverty we may be considering, it is always wise to take account of the fact that man is an animal, and that the needs and greeds of animal life are in the background, even when they are veiled from us by the usages of civilisation. We may begin by considering Man as an animal, and discussing the main conditions which affect his life, as well as that of other animals.

(a) The human race, like all other groups of the animal

[oh.

kingdom, has the power of increasing with great rapidity ; there are indeed so many hostile forces which make for the destruction of life, that it is only because of this vigorous reproductive power that any one type of animal life can permanently survive. The destruction of young herring is enormous ; they have to contend against a multitude of enemies, and a very small change in the balance of forces may easily extinguish a species in a particular habitat. The wastage of animal life is enormous, and there is need that it should be constantly replenished. If Man had not had, like other animals, a power of rapid multiplication, it seems unlikely that he could have survived, and spread, and adapted himself to life in every part of the globe. Considering how little protection he has, and how feeble his natural means of attack and defence, it is extraordinary that he should have held his own at all against the other inhabitants of the jungle. The power of rapid reproduction, under favourable conditions, is very great ; population may double itself in five-and-twenty years ; and hence, as we see, Man has been able to hold his own against and subdue the other forms of animal life.

While this reproductive power has been essential to human survival in the conflict with beasts and reptiles, it has also involved Man in a struggle with inanimate nature. In regions where Man is content to subsist on what nature affords, and exercises his skill in hunting or fishing, it is clear that a growth in the numbers of a tribe will soon render it increasingly difficult for them to obtain sufficient susten¬ ance. Hunters who find that a rival tribe is encroaching on the available game are forced to fight, and they can only hope to retain access to a sufficient food supply by exterminating their foes. It is equally, though not so obviously, true, that when man settles down to improve the natural provision for his needs by tillage, he enters on a constant struggle with nature in a new form. Malthus made a careful collection of evidence as to the character and

THE LAW OF DIMINISHING RETURN intensity of this struggle, and formulated the one great economic law which has been reached by induction-popu¬ lation tends to increase more rapidly than the means of subsistence tend to increase. Since it was first announced, there has been much discussion as to the most accurate way of stating this principle but as a summary of facts in regard to the physical conditions of human life on the globe it remains unassailable ; it gives a fundamental explanation of much of the misery and suffering in the world. Since man, like other animals, tends to increase in number faster than the means of subsistence tend to increase, the scourge of poverty, with its accompaniment of starvation and disease, has been brought into operation again and again, as a positive check, and has ruthlessly reduced the popula¬ tion within the limits of the existing food supply. In some stages of society, the ravages of war and pestilence and famine are frequent and effective, but other causes are steadily at work to keep down the numbers in communities which are not subject to occasional devastation. Mai thus noted that the weakest lives are those which succumb most quickly, and that a high rate of infant mortality is a mark which indicates the intensity of the pressure of increasing population on the means of subsistence.

( b ) The seriousness of the conditions under which human fife is maintained becomes apparent when we remember that all food, and most of the materials for clothing and shelter, are drawn from the surface of the earth, so that there are inevitable limits to the supply of the necessaries of life. There is, of course, a limitation of area, and we can calculate the extent of the surface of the globe which it would be possible to cultivate. Cultivation, too, is carried on in accordance with what is called the law of diminishing returns from land. This, like the principle of population, is a statement of observed fact, which came to be noticed

1 ‘The Statement of the Malthusian Principle,’ in Macmillan' a Magazine, December 1883.

[CH.

in England and to be formulated in the early part of the nineteenth century. In any community where no im¬ provement in the arts of life is taking place, additional supplies of food can only be obtained at an increased rate of outlay : if double the ordinary labour is expended on the soil, it will produce more food ; but it will produce less than double of what was obtained before. Where the additional supply can only be obtained by taking worse and less favourably situated land into cultivation, there will obviously be a diminished rate of return ; and the same principle holds good where labour is applied with greater assiduity in the cultivation of land already under tillage. Hence it seems at first sight as if the struggle for existence must necessarily go on with increasing intensity ; popula¬ tion tends to increase on the one hand, while, on the other, there appears to be a greater difficulty in meeting the simplest requirements of human life.

In the beginning of last century, when the operation of these principles began to be generally recognised, there was in many quarters a sense of hopelessness in regard to social improvement, since it seemed that there were physical tendencies which must inevitably force man down to a more sordid and squalid existence. There was a wide¬ spread danger that the acceptance of these economic doctrines would paralyse all philanthropic effort, and the ‘ dismal science ’ seemed to cut away the ground for any hope of permanent amelioration. Every proposal for bettering the condition of the poor was waived aside as a mere temporary alleviation which might do harm in the long run. It was feared that the raising of wages in any industry would only give opportunity for the growth of additional numbers, and that the food which was requisite for these numbers could only be wrung from the soil with more strenuous effort. This appalling prospect is not merely suggested by temporary congestion, but is fore¬ shadowed by principles which are in operation in all parts x.] KNOWLEDGE AND ORGANISATION 5

of the world, so that there seems to be ample reason for pessimism.

2. The Progress of Man

It is well to face the issue quite clearly, and to bear in mind these underlying physical conditions of human existence on the globe ; but we need not give way to despair when we remember that, though Man is an animal, he is not merely an animal, since he is rational ; he is not merely the plaything of blind forces, but he has powers of intelligence and will, which enable him to modify these forces, and thus to suspend the operation of the principles which seem to forebode inevitable evil. From this point of view we can see the problems in another light.

(a) The law of diminishing returns from land holds good for any state of society which is stationary so far as the arts of life are concerned : there is no region where progress in the arts is steady and continuous, and there are some countries where the same practices and methods have been maintained for centuries. The art of tillage was prosecuted with great success in Egypt under the Pharaohs, and long ages ago in India ; but for many centuries past there had been little if any change, until it came about under the influence of British occupation. In England there was little improvement from the twelfth to the sixteenth century. Taking the world as a whole, and excluding the last century and a half of rapid change, we may say that a stationary condition in the agricultural arts has been the normal state of affairs, and that therefore the law of diminishing returns has been in almost constant and very general operation. Still, improvement in the art has taken place from time to time ; and whenever such improvement is introduced, the operation of the law of diminishing returns is suspended. The very meaning of improved methods is that an increased result can be obtained

[CH.

with less outlay than before. An improved system of cultivation means, that by the application of increased skill better results are secured. In the Tudor times the practice of alternating pasture and arable husbandry was a great improvement on the old customary management ; while the rotation of crops was introduced with similar advantages in the eighteenth century. Increased knowledge of methods of organising labour is equally important. From a very early time Man discovered the advantages of co¬ operation in agriculture ; it is the employment, not of an individual, but of a family or a village working together. The maintenance of a similar agricultural system, which all take their part in carrying out, is the foundation of the village community ; a definite system was perpetuated through the Middle Ages on manorial estates, and in the common field cultivation. Unless such a system can be itself changed for the better, from time to time, it may prove an obstacle to further progress. Every improve¬ ment in the management of an estate or the organisation of husbandry has facilitated the securing of better results with less outlay. Increased knowledge may also show how to make a permanent improvement which will save annual outlay, as the system of subsoil draining has done. Owing to the increase of skill, a far larger return per acre is obtained from the English soil than was possible in the thirteenth century ; while great districts, which could not then be cultivated at all, are now yielding valuable crops. The drudgery in hours of labour per acre must be very much smaller than it was in the thirteenth century, while the return far exceeds anything that the mediaeval agri¬ culturist dreamed of. He was content with four or five times the seed,1 and sometimes had to put up with three ; while the farmer to-day expects a return of twelve to fifteen times the corn he has sowed. It is obvious that the

1 Maitland, Domesday Book and Beyond, p. 438; J. E.. T. Kogers, Agri¬ culture and Prices, i. p. 51.

CHARACTER progress of human skill has shown itself capable of sus¬ pending the law of diminishing returns.

Improved knowledge of the conditions of tillage is not the only form of skill which is effective in suspending the pressure of population in the means of subsistence. Im¬ proved manufacturing skill, and increased facilities for procuring the comforts of life and instruments and means of cultivation, have a similar effect. The development of industry and of commerce gives a stimulus to the increase of cultivation, while this in turn affords an opportunity for industrial development. All kinds of material progress react upon each other.

An enormous heritage of skill and knowledge has been amassed and is being steadily increased ; so that Man is infinitely better equipped to-day than he was in the time of the Pharaohs, for carrying on the effort to master Nature, and render her his servant. In a highly organised society, where the inhabitants act as a disciplined army, the struggle for subsistence can be carried on under the most advantageous conditions.

(b) Man has the power of learning, better and better, how to deal with the world in which he lives ; it is also possible for him to learn to master himself and to restrain his own animal passions. The tendency for population to increase faster than the means of subsistence increase is not an uncontrollable physical impulse that works re¬ morselessly. A preventive check is introduced by any one who exercises self-restraint and defers marriage till he is able to maintain a family, so that the increase of numbers need not bring about an increased pressure. The im¬ portant thing is that the increase of subsistence shall come first, and that the increase of population shall follow. In any community where diligence in working is general, and men do not attempt to set up house till they have the ability and opportunity of earning a living, the pressure of population is not felt as an evil. Those who ignore the

[CH.

possibility of cultivating self-control have made Malthusian doctrine an excuse for advocating practices which are in¬ consistent with private virtue as well as with public well¬ being. Malthus himself held that the preventive check of deferred marriage — which is not only consistent with morality, but is the dictate of ordinary prudence — would, if generally adopted, bring about a gradual progress of society in numbers without any fear of a diminution in comfort. Just as the progress of man in knowledge sus¬ pends the operation of the law of diminishing returns, so the diffusion of better personal morality would suffice to prevent the tendency to increase and multiply from being an evil.

Indeed, so far from regarding a large population as a thing in itself to be dreaded, we should recognise that it is one of the marks of a prosperous community. So long as the population are actively employed and well nourished, every addition to the numbers is an accession of strength. If a population is sparse and scattered, there may be difficulty in organising adequate defences. During the seventeenth century in London, this matter presented itself as a practical question : the Civil Wars had unsettled society, harvests had been bad and food dear, a terrible plague had swept over the town and numbers had lost their lives. The nation, and especially the City, seemed to be defenceless for want of men, and continental quarrels were threatening. As a matter of fact, London was shortly afterwards exposed to the risk of bombardment by the Dutch. More men were wanted that industry might revive and flourish, and a deep anxiety was felt that the numbers should increase rapidly, and that populousness should be maintained. No nation can maintain its independence, still less can it exercise a decided and increasing influence in the world, unless it has a growing population ; and in districts where the population is large, industry can be effectively organised, and the average standard of comfort may be very high. A large population in a growing

DANGER OF DECADENCE community is a source of strength ; on the other hand, there may be a redundant population in a country where the total numbers are not large and the density is not great. When there is a high degree of self-mastery, a redundant population need not come into existence ; and where rapid progress is going on, there is reason to hope that if it does come into existence, it will before long be absorbed in useful occupations.

3. Prospects of Further Advance

When we recognise that Man is not merely an animal, but a rational animal, we may cease to regard the doctrine of Malthus with dismay, as if it told of irresistible forces under which the human race is being inevitably crushed. It is clear that Man, by the exercise of will and reason, which result in the raising of character and the growth of improved organisation, is able to suspend the operation of these physical tendencies, and to keep them from being mischievous. In this way we may see that the best pro¬ spect for keeping the evils at bay and for raising human life to a higher level, lies, not so much in the amelioration of material conditions, as in the raising of character and the improvement of organisation. This was the point on which Dr. Chalmers insisted in the agitation he led in 1817 for ‘ the extinction of pauperism ’ ; 1 we must still look in this direction for the secret of permanent prosperity.

(a) Ample evidence may be adduced which will serve to confirm this view ; but, on the other hand, it is clear that the amelioration of material conditions does not in itself afford any prospect of permanent relief. If a greatly increased area of land were brought into cultivation, so that more food was available for a community, an oppor¬ tunity would be available for all the inhabitants to live on a higher plane of comfort ; but if the inhabitants generally,

1 Works, xxi. p. 247.

[CH.

or even a small portion of them, had no effective desire to adopt a new and better standard of comfort, the opportunity would be thrown away ; in a few years there would only be a much larger number living at the old level. This appears to account for the fact which Mill pointed out 1 as so terribly disappointing, that the enormously increased power over nature, which has come with the age of inven¬ tion, has to such a large extent resulted merely in the increase of numbers who are living on the limit of sub¬ sistence, and only obtain a bare minimum of the requisites for human life. On the other hand, it seems to be true that if degeneration of character and dislocation or destruction of organisation diminish the productive power of a com¬ munity, the pressure on means of subsistence will come into active operation even when population is not increasing. Redundancy may arise in connection with a decline of civilisation — this seems to have been one of the features of the decay of the Roman province of Britain. In the struggle with Nature a well-disciplined army may steadily advance, but if it becomes disorganised there can only be a harassing and ineffective guerilla warfare. The terrible retrogression of Western and Southern Europe in conse¬ quence of the barbarian invasions is an abiding illustration of the misery which may be brought about when a higlily organised industrial and commercial society is disinteg¬ rated.

(6) These considerations may give us a clue in regard to another far-reaching question, for they help us to note the forms of organisation which have most inherent vitality and are least exposed to shocks from without and decay within. The societies in which the best type of personal character is formed and maintained may be expected to have the most permanent success ; the secret of the strength of any community does not lie merely in productive or military power.

1 J. S. Mill, Political Economy (ed. Ashley), Book IV. vi. 2, p. 751.

CRITERIA OF WISE ORGANISATION

In all social organisation, for agricultural or industrial purposes, there must necessarily be some directing power, and there must also be subordination. Even in the most primitive forms of organised society there can be no com¬ plete independence. The doctrine of Locke as to a state of nature in which each man enjoyed complete liberty as a right 1 is a mere figment of the imagination, though it served as a basis for the doctrines of the French Revolution and the Constitution of the United States. In all organised society there must be subordination ; and the work of directing energies has been carried out by means of compul¬ sion ; discipline has been needed to train men to work at the right thing, and to keep them working at it for the proper time. The discipline which fits a man for being a useful member of the community is essential to the continuance of well-ordered society ; and though it interferes with his liberty, it helps to make a better man of him. The discip¬ line which man may exercise on the lower animals is an instructive illustration. Sir Percy Fitzpatrick insists that the rigorous training to which he submitted his favourite dog 2 was amply justified, since it made it possible for the dog to be the trusted friend and companion of man. A large proportion of the human race are so lacking in fore¬ sight and perseverance that they would fritter away their lives in idleness unless they were subjected to compulsion. This has been the principle on which all the great civilisa¬ tions of antiquity acted, but the system of compulsory slavery they adopted was defective, as it gave so little opportunity for the individual human being to develop his higher qualities. In so far as free labour can be intro¬ duced, and the principle of reward, which appeals to free men, is substituted for the principle of compulsion, there is an attraction and a stimulus for the individual to do his best and to improve his position ; and this introduces

The opening of the book is shown; the full text loads in the reader.

Loading the full text…

Christianity and social questions

About this book

Front matter

Preface

Part I. World-wide Influences Chapter I. Physical Conditions Pack

Chapter II. Racial Differences

Chapter III. Civil Authority

Chapter I. The Functions Of Government

Chapter II. The Reward Of Services

Chapter III. Half Truths

Chapter I. Christian Character

Chapter II. Secularised Christianity

Part I World-wide Influences Chapter I

The end

Christianity and social questions

About this book

Front matter

Preface

Part I. World-wide Influences Chapter I. Physical Conditions Pack

Chapter II. Racial Differences

Chapter III. Civil Authority

Chapter I. The Functions Of Government

Chapter II. The Reward Of Services

Chapter III. Half Truths

Chapter I. Christian Character

Chapter II. Secularised Christianity

Part I World-wide Influences Chapter I

The end

Related books

More by this author

From the same collection, nearest in year