BOOK II. CH. X. had lost confidence in the concern, and were withdrawing their capital from it. A panic ensued, and such a run was made by frightened shareholders upon the funds of the society that it was for some time in imminent peril. It is impossible to have a more instructive example of the widespread mischief which may result from meddlesome and ill-considered legislation. As another instance of the manner in which the development of cooperation has been retarded by legal impediments, it may be mentioned that until two Acts were passed in 1867 and 1871 cooperative societies could not buy or sell land except for the purposes of their special trade. Now that these societies have been empowered to buy and sell land, many of them have invested a considerable portion of their surplus capital in the erection of houses for their members. The Rochdale Pioneers have already expended many thousands in this way, and it need scarcely be said that it is not possible to render the working classes a greater service than to make it more practicable for them to obtain suitable dwellings. The members of a cooperative society may obtain their houses just as the customers of a cooperative store, at the lowest possible price, since the object of investing the money of the society in building houses is not to obtain a large profit, but to secure the best possible house accommodation for the members of the society. Various other schemes have from time to time been propounded with the object of improving the houses of the poorer classes. These schemes, though not cooperative in the sense in which we have employed the word, are based on the principle that much more can often be done by an union of several small capitals than can be done by each of these small capitals working separately. Thus if a hundred men subscribed 2007. each, with the 20,000l. thus collected, a block of buildings could be erected which would provide each member with much better accommodation than if each had expended his 200l. in building a house for himself. The building societies which have Building assumed such marked prominence during the last few years afford important facilities for workmen becoming the owners of the houses in which they live. These societies gather together a great number of small capitals and employ the fund thus collected in making advances societies. BOOK II. The opera tions of the Artisans', Labourers', and General to those who wish to build or purchase a house. The house itself is a security for the money advanced, and the loan is repaid by small weekly or monthly instalments. It is difficult adequately to estimate the good which is done by these societies. They have undoubtedly enabled many hundreds of thousands of workmen to become the proprietors of their own houses. During the last few years a society has been started which is known as the Artisans', Labourers', and General Dwellings Company, and which, though possessing in many respects the character of an ordinary building society, yet has so many peculiar features of its own that Dwellings it will be desirable to give a brief description of the manCompany described. ner in which it carries out its operations. This society not only assists the occupier of a house in acquiring it as his own property, but also encourages workmen to become the builders of their own houses, and, further, takes security that the houses shall be built as part of a general scheme, strict attention being paid to sanitary and other regulations. In order to carry out these desirable objects, the society in the first instance purchases a tract of building ground. Upon this ground roads and drains are laid out, and all the other necessary preparations are made for building. It is then decided that a certain number of houses shall be erected; it is thus provided that too many houses shall not be crowded together, and a certain amount of garden ground, when the occasion permits, is reserved for each house. Any one who wishes to build a house obtains from the society an advance of money, which he can repay by weekly, monthly, or yearly instalments. Although houses of different character and size are erected, yet various regulations with regard to drains, ventilation, etc., are strictly enforced. At Salford sufficient land was purchased by the society for the erection of 76 houses. In Birmingham three estates have been purchased, on which it is proposed to erect 600 houses. Probably, however, the most successful and the most extensive scheme yet carried out by the society has been in the neighbourhood of London on what is known as the Shaftesbury Park Estate. This estate, which is close to the Clapham Junction railway station, consists of about 40 acres. Upon it 370 houses have already been erected, and it is pro The bury Park posed to build 410 more. When the scheme is thus completed it will constitute a town of no less than 7000 inhabitants, which will be in many respects a self-contained organization. A lecture-hall and schools have been erected, a recreation ground has been reserved, and it is proposed to rent a dairy-farm in order to secure a supply of pure milk. It need scarcely be said that great advantage must result from encouraging workmen to build their own houses. In an account lately written of this society it is stated': "The whole shows what an amount of practical ingenuity a body of workmen (for each man contributes his suggestions) can bring to bear on a project on which the men's hearts are set, and, above all, in passing through those lines of streets it is impossible to forget that to a great extent the builders are the occupiers. The men are working on the estate cheerfully with the evident conviction that it is their own property, and, moreover, with the look of men who know that it is no 'charity' scheme in which they are concerned, but one of complete independence." It need only further be remarked that there seems to be nothing to prevent the operations of the society being almost indefinitely extended. Hitherto losses from bad debts have been so entirely avoided, and its finances have been managed on so sound a system, that a considerable surplus profit remains, after a fair amount has been reserved for interest on capital. As these surplus profits are devoted to extend the business of the society, it is obvious that its scope will gradually become enlarged. We have now described some of the more important results of cooperation, and we have also indicated some of the probable phases of its future development. Anyone who considers what it has already effected, and what it is capable of doing in the future, must, we think, come to the conclusion that we may look with more confidence to cooperation than to any other economic agency to improve the industrial condition of the country. It cannot be too carefully borne in mind that those who have achieved the most striking success in cooperation have not been assisted by any extraneous aid. They have placed their chief 1 See The Times of Nov. 14, 1873. BOOK II. CH. X. reliance in union of effort, in prudence, and in self-denial. In striking contrast to this, we shall in the next chapter describe a scheme in which many have much greater faith than in cooperation, and which, far from not depending on any extraneous aid, is to be carried out entirely through the direct intervention of the State. The scheme to which we now refer is one to which allusion has already been made, and which is known as the Nationalisation of the Land. CHAPTER XI. THE NATIONALISATION OF THE LAND. T has been pointed out in a previous chapter that the pro present day is the reliance which it places on the intervention of the State. The most distinguished advocate of this new form of socialism was probably Lassalle; between him and M. Schulze-Delitzsch there was for many years in Germany a keen and active contest. They respectively became the founders of two rival schools of social and industrial reformers, and there was in almost every respect the widest divergence in the ideas pounded by each of these schools. M. Schulze-Delitzsch gave, as we have seen, a most important stimulus to the cooperative movement; and the guiding principle which influenced him was that the people were to rely for their improvement upon self-help. Lassalle, on the other hand, thought that what the people chiefly needed was a greater amount of aid from the State. The movement. which he set on foot is now represented by the society which is known as the International, and especially by the foreign branches of this organisation. The International has put forward various proposals, nearly all of which involve State intervention. Probably however the scheme to which it looks with most confidence to effect an improvement in the condition of the people is that which is known as the Nationalisation of the land and the other instruments of production. We have endeavoured, by a careful perusal of the documents of the International, and by frequent conversations with many of its members, to ascertain with as |