The Dominion SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 1917. DEMOCRACY AND DISCIPLINE

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3012, 24 February 1917, Page 8

The Dominion SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 1917. DEMOCRACY AND DISCIPLINE

; The need for a self-disciplined democracy was insisted upon by Mb. 0. J. Parr, M.P., in the course of an address recently delivered in Auckland. 1 Taking a line of argument similar- to tliat adopted -by Dr. H. B.'Geav and Mr. Samuel Turner in their book entitled Eclipse or Empire-1 Mr. Parr declared'that the war has brought into prominence the-question.: _ Can a democracy evolve a, discipline of its own, and can it make itself as. efficient as an autocracy? If it cannot autocracies; must rule the world. Messrs. Gray and Turner argue "that the only path of salvation for a democracy is to set its face towards self-discipline. ■ In itself it is a negation of discipline. Left to itself, it has a tendency to pull half its -weight in time of peacs, and to put forth only part of its strength in time of war." AVithout self-discipline an individual is apt to fritter away .his energies; his character deteriorates; he lacks stability of purpose; he is unable to attain a high standard of efficiency; ho is surpassed by men with inferior natural gifts who are able and will-' ing to make the.most of their capabilities', by steady and;sustained effort and intelligent concentration on the .work in hand. It is just as unreasonable to expect thoroughness and efficiency from an undisciplined nation as from an undisciplined individual. It cannot truthfully be "said that-the-spirit'of-self-discipline has been one.'of the outstanding' -of ".British communi--ties; in modern' times. Discipline lias- almost entirely disappeared from family life', and many of our young people are allowed to run wild. Prior to the outbreak of the war, selfish sectarianism was rife in politics and in tho industrial world. The promotion of tho interests of the individual; the party, or the class was . the paramount consideration, and in the scramble for privileges and benefits the welfare of the State or Empire as a whole was forgotten. The war has compelled us to see things from the Empire's point of view. It has enlarged our vision; it has shown us the necessity for discipline; it has made us realise that the nation is something more than a discordant conglomeration of isolated classes and irreconcilable interests.

But it would bo folly to pretend that the sectarian spirit has been completely banished from our na-.i tional- life, and that we have become a fully disciplined Empire. Industrial strife has not ceased in - Newi Zealand. At a- time when it is o£ the;-utmost importance that.the-pr'o-duc'tiveriess of. o.iir staple, industries should be. maintained at the highest point, it, is' very disquieting to find indications that- -a- '-'go slow" policy is being-adopted in certain quarters. If-wewant to.make quite sure-of winning- this war- and., of holding our. own in the gfeat commercial struggle'which will commence as soon'as peace'has'been restored,.there must be no 'slackening of the industrial momentum, .Me. Runciman recently asserted that it must'be apparent to all. close observers that a country -which fails to .regulate and foster its industries in -the national-interest cannot in the'.nature, of things, long survive tho rivalry of an'other country where the industries are so regulated and fostered. It is'impossible for a "go slow" nation to' compete successfully with countries which have thoroughly organised their industries with the object .'of securing - the greatest possible output: Some recently published statistics comparing 'the value of the annual output. of .-■ English and American workers per;man employed in the industries mentioned provide food for serious . thought.. The following table has been compiled from the Censuses of Production of- Britain'' and the United States taken in 1907 and 1909. respectively: -.: .•■'.'" " ,' ; " """• "United United Kingdom. States.. • " "••••" "cE., £ .-. Boot and shoe.-trade -171'" . 516 Cocoa, chocolate, ■-. and '. .confectionery- ■.-.'..: : ■ 296 G(S2 Cutlery and' tools 161 323 Clothing ; 158 4St Hats and caps 149 114 . Hosiery ;.... 184 309 Leather- .' ..:..;...... 666 1,054 Matches 223 625 •"Paper ...;..'..;...... .330 705 Printing and publishing 396" 572 • Commenting on these figures, Messrs. Gray and ■ Turner state that doubtless contributory causes may in some cases, be-pi ted, subjecting their full' value to dispute orattack, but the general.inference to be drawn from them, is unassailable. A good idea of tho significance of the above table is gained when ono bears in mind that forty years ago it used to be said' that a given number of British workmen did ; much- more than the.-.samo number of men almost-anywhere else.' '. 'It is foolish" to try to make ourselves believe that' the power of the British Empire to. outstrip its rivals i for all time is assured by the opera-

tion of some mysterious law of nature. Wo can only maintain outplace in. tho world if we have the will to do so. Our opportunities are incalculably vast, hut if we neglect them we bave'no right or reason to expect the realisation of tho splendid vision of Imperial greatness which our imagination has projected into the now ago which is to begin after we have frustrated the German plot to wreck civilisation. If we "go slow" we will certainly be left behind. Efficiency in every department of national life is essential- to progress, and without selfdiscipline democracy cannot become as efficient as a, well-organised autocracy. AVe have learned' that without discipline and self-sacrifice it is impossible for a nation to wage war 'successfully under modern conditions. ' His recognition of this fact caused Mr! Lloyd George to appeal to the people of the Empire to observe a National Lent for the duration of the war. His idea was to impress upon us the need of selfsacrifice, self-discipline, and service. Service and' discipline go together. Dr. G. -A:; Parkin has •' remarked that for a people'" like ourselves, long accustomed to and rejoicing in individual freedom of action, the surrender to discipline is,even more difficult than surrender to service. "But even the thoughtless have now learned what.the wise knew well before, that the spirit of service can only have its full effect when it is joined to a willingness for discipline." .'. Progress depends, largely upon organisation and tho adoption of scientific methods, but the human factor is stilMhe most important. The democratic system of government is now passing through a crucial ordeal- British democracy has on the wholo stood the test of this tremendous war remarkably well. Every class of tho community is making great sacrifices in a great spirit. The demands of the States have, generally speaking, met with a ready response, but even the discipline of war has not fully succeeded in effecting a reconciliation between capital and labour, and unless they can bo reconciled tho work of reconstruction will be seriously hindered. There must be more discipline and less self-seeking on both sides. There are some people who still, believo that discipline and liberty are incompatible, but as a matter of fact it is anarchy that is tho real foe of liberty. Without law there can be no true-freedom, and willing obedience to law is one of the natural fruits of self-discipline. Tho highest type of service is consistent with tho most perfect freedom.