The Spirit of Democracy - Softcover

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1910 Excerpt: ... CHAPTER Vin POLITICAL SOCIALISM f There are two radical and even revolutionary changes between which Democracy has to make its choice, if the spirit of Democracy is ever to dominate American industrial institutions:--the first is Political Socialism; the second is Industrial Democracy. If any of my readers are inclined to think that Political or State Socialism, as in this chapter defined, is no longer maintained in Socialistic circles, I can only say, first, that I hope he is right, but, second, that my observation of the currents of to-day leads me to agree with Edmond Kelly, an advocate of a modified Political Socialism, in his statement, "State Socialism, therefore, is the form probably most in vogue among workingmen."1 And I believe the best way to meet it is to define it clearly, and to distinguish it from what may be called voluntary Socialism, but what I prefer to call "Industrial Democracy." I avoid the term State Socialism because that term is often used to designate the doctrine of Bismarck: " That the State should 1 Twentieth Century Socialism, p. 235. take better care of its needy members than heretofore is not only a dictate of humaneness and Christianity, but also a necessity of conservative politics, which should aim to cultivate in the nonpossessing classes of the population, who are at the same time the more numerous and least instructed, the view that the State is not only a necessary but also a beneficent institution." This is directly opposed to Socialism which aims to abolish the distinction between possessing and non-possessing classes. It is as difficult to define Socialism as it is to define Orthodoxy; whatever definition one offers, there is sure to be a Socialist to declare that the definition is wrong. For there are many types o...