The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, April 22, 1918, Page 12

A et et i & ~by labor in this country. Land, rail- After the War Will Come a New World Food and Shelter Must Be Guaranteed to All That Will Work, the British Labor Party Insists—A Scientific Plan BY FRED A. HARDING FTER the war, what? Will the fighting nations be able to pick up the threads of the old eco- nomic and political life, or will a readjustment be necessary? Who will pay the bulk of the national debt, in the United States, in Britain, France, Italy —yes and in Russia and the central powers? The program of the British Labor party as drawn up by a subcommittee and awaiting indorsement or amendment offers interesting study with an opportunity for comparison with the views held by American organized labor. The following statement taken from the Labor party program strikes a clarion note of democracy: “If we in Britain are to escape from the decay of civilization itself, we must insure that which is pres- ently to be built up is a new social order, based not on fighting but on fraternity * * *#&not on the utmost possible inequality of riches, but on a syste- matic approach toward a healthy equality of material circumstances for every person born into the world—not on an enforced dominion over sub- ject nations, subject races, subject colonies, subject lasses, or a subject sex, but, in industry as well “as in government, on that equal freedom, that general consciousness of consent, and that widest possible participation in power, both economic and political, which is characteristic of democracy.” THE RIGHT TO A LIVING WAGE L] There are four cardinal principles in the Labor party’s. program, which are: 1. The universal- enforcement of the national minimum wage; 2. The democratic control of indus- try; 3, The revolution of national finance; ° 4. The surplus wealth for the com- mon good. As amplified in the program, the British Labor party’s views are star- tlingly similar to those held and ad- vocated by organized labor in the United States. - . Take the first plank in the British Labor party’s platform, “the universal enforcement of the mnational mini- mum.” S This principle would secure to every member of the community, in good times and bad alike, whether they be weak or strong, well born or not, all the requisites of healthy life and worthy citizenship. “All of the reg- uisites” included universal adult suf- frage, decent wages, decent living and working conditions, universally ap- plied. ALL MONOPOLIES MUST BE TAKEN OVER_ Democratic control of industry pro- vides for immediate government ownership on a sweeping scale, much farther than has ever been advocated roads, canals, - electrical power, the telegraph, telephone and steamship companies, mines, insurance com- panies, the liquor business, “and all other main industries, especially those now becoming monopolized, should be nationalized as opportunity offers,” the program says. Democratic control of industry would eliminate profiteering. A note of warning is sounded, which will be particularly interesting over here: ; “The people will be extremely fool- ish if they ever allow their indispen- sable . industries to slip back into the unfettered control of private capital- ists, who are, actually at the instance of the government ‘itself, now rapidly combining, trade by trade, into monop- olistic trusts, which may presently be- come AS 'RUTHLESS IN THEIR Those will be great days when this war for democracy is won. In Great Britain the progressive elements have put their heads together to plan the clean- est, happiest, best world conceivable. The document, which is explained on this page, was drawn by men who are experts in history, economics and so- ciology. Read it and see if there is any- thing here with which you disagree. EXTORTION AS THE WORST AMERICAN EXAMPLES.” The following sounds like an excerpt from Non- partisan league literature: “In taxation, also, the ifterests of the. profes- sional and housekeeping classes are at one with those of the manual workers. Too long have our national finances been regulated, contrary to the teaching of political economy, according to the wishes of the possessing classes and the profits of the financiers. The colossal expenditure involved in the present war (of which, against the protest of the Labor party, only a quarter has been raised by taxation, whilst three quarters have been bor- rowed at onerous rates of interest, to be a burden on the nation’s future) brings things to a crisis.” AGAINST THE SCHEME OF A PROTECTIVE TARIFF “The Labor party stands for such a system of taxation as will yield all the necessary revenue to the government without encroaching on the pre- scribed national minimum standard of life of any HE HATES TO DO IT, BUT— : THE POOR TamG Wil NEVER BREATHE AGAIN, TEE ! HEE ‘ \ Tus HORTS ME MORE THAN (T BUY (LL WAKE You AFTER THE WAR 15 OVER e —Drawn expressly for the Leader by W. C. Morris Secretary of Agriculture Houston has announced that the unjust federal grain grades are to be supplanted by new grades. The protest of the farmers got too strong to resist and Houston acted. But oh! how he hated to do it. The carq toonist shows him chloroforming the old grades. But he has anno PAGE TWELVE E REVIVED. Not family whatsoever; without hampering production or discouraging any useful personal effort, and with the nearest possible approximation to equality of sacrifice. - We definitely repudiate all proposals for a protective tariff, in whatever specious guise they may be cloaked, as a device for burdening the consumer with unnecessarily enhanced prices, *to the benefit of the capitalist employer or landed proprietor, who avowedly expects his profit or rent to be increased thereby. We shall strenuously op- pose any taxation, of whatever kind, which would increase the price of food or of any other necessary article of life.” REAL INTERESTS OF ALL - PRODUCERS THE SAME Indirect taxation should be limited to luxuries. the program sets forth, and concentrated on those commodities, the consumption of which the govern- ment wishes discouraged. Continuing, the program declares: 2 “We are as one with the manufacturer, the farmer, and the trader in objecting to taxes interfering with production or commerce, or * hampering transport and communications.” « To raise¢ the needed revenue, the British Labor party looks to the direct taxation of all incomes above the necessary cost of a family’s living, and the ‘direct taxation of private fortunes both during life and at death. To distribute the burden fairly -on all, a steeply graded progressive income tax is urged. In addition, the Labor party would tax lands to absorb the “unearned value” caused by the steadily increasing rise in land values. This is what the single taxers call the “unearned increment.” An excess profits tax—the British government as a war measure now levies a tax of 80 per cent on excess war profits—an inheritance tax, the latter to fix a definite maxi- mum amount which a rich man can hold out from the national treasury, are other methods of taxation which the Labor party would put into force. The fourth plank, “the surplus wealth for the common good,” would eliminate the millionaire class through taxation, and appropriate their riches to pay the national debt, provide for community’s enterprises, provide for the sick, aged and infirm, aid those incapacitated by accident or disease, afford education for all, and provide for public improvements of all kinds, “including the brightening of lives of those now condemned to almost cease- less toil, and a great development in the means of recreation.” ‘LABOR IN AMERICA IS AWAKE TO THE TRUTH The Labor party in Great Britain comes out squarely against imperial- ism, disclaiming any desire to dis- posses or impoverish any other nation. It also’ takes a stand against secret diplomacy. - To prevent future wars, the party favors the formation of a league of nations along the same lines as ad- vocated by President Wilson. What is the program of the Amer- ican labor party? A The views of James H. Maurer, president of the Pennsylvania State Federation of Labor, may be taken to be fairly representative of.the opin- ions held by all organized labor." Mr. Maurer said: “’ljhere is too little taxation on war pr_of.lts now. Look at the number of millionaires the war has made.. I the war to produce 8,000 millionaires ] in this country. The two years of the ’ unced that the change in grades is only to be DURING THE WAR. That is the remark-’ able part of it. The unjust grades are to be revived after the war, he says. In other words, the farmers shouldn’t be rohbed in war times, but'it’s all right in peace times, But the Leader’s guess is just like the guess of the little bird in the picture—the old unfair grain grades WILL NEVER B while the farmers'are ORGANIZED. war before we entered it increased that number to 15,000, while the 11" ‘months since we actually entered * the war have added 9,000 more."” the program party. ; .. In a recent interview in New York, figure that it took us 140 years before . Maurer emphatically ‘indorses of the Britis'h‘-~ Labor XA P /'. B i