THE SOCIAL ORDER

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 103, 26 January 1920, Page 6

THE SOCIAL ORDER

ADDRESS BY PROFESSOR MACKENZIE

DRASTIC CHANGES SUGGESTED "We in these days are confronted on ovcry hand with conditions that malm for, and, too often, niilitantly demand, change," remarked Professor Mackenzie in the course of an address in the Unitarian Church last evening on "The Task nf Education and Statesmanship in view nf the Social and Economic Maladies from wliich tho Masses Suffer." By way of prelude the speaker allinned that all serious-thinking persons must he conscious that the existing relation's between what are called Capital and Labour were a serious menace not only to individual nations and empires, but to society and civilisation themselves. Professor Mackenzie went on to indict the "get rich quick" spirit of the age made seventeen tentative suggestions towards remedying matters,- as follow:— (1) Let the maximum eaming-power of capital ho fixed (as far as possible); (2). let all kinds of labour and service bo elass'fiod and assigned an .equitable monetary value; (3) let the legal and medical * professions bo nationalised on preei--?ly the same lines as tho educational profession is- at present nationalised; (■{) lot the sale of all land and property be conducted through a Goveri mciit bureau, and let live Government experts determine the ".'ale-value." after conceding, say, some fire or ten per cent, in valuation more than the value mutually agreed upon by the State and the owners for taxation purposes; (5) let unearned increment, in every instance, bo wholly secured (by legislation) for the State or community; let all industries connected with the necessaries of life be nationalised or run by guilds or Soviet councils (under the State's auspices) and not with ft view to making any profit out of tho community other than what is rcouired for fie adequate remuneration of all engaged in the industry; (7) let all taxation on necessaries of life be abolished and let all taxation be levied on land, income, and luxuries; (8) let all death duties be exacted and such limits put to (he inheritance of money and of property that no able-ho'lied and sonndrr.iniled persons can enter upon life with the right or power to exploit their fellowmen; (!)) let compulsory systems of lifo insurance, of insurance airninst sickness and unemployment, and of compepsafion for injury be established in connection with all 'kinds of industries and service. (Ml Let a Stale statistics bureau be established to furnish official forecasts and estimates of the number of peoplo that can (so far as ran be foreseen), bo "productively" employed in the various professions, trades, and industries so that the community may be as far as possible effectively and efficiently organised for social and national service; (11) let all men and women be required . to ennip'themselves for some definite. kind of social service; (12) let a licenso he reonircd before engaging in the pi'fcliee of any profession, business, trade, industry, etc.; a standard of efficiency bo insisted upon in every one of-them; and the numhor of licenses issuable bear a definite relation or ratio to the number of the population; (13) let provisoin bo made, if possible, in the ueiehbourhood nf the laiw centres of population and of industry for establishing State and municipal farm«, fruit and vegetable gardens, and also reclamation work", so that employment can be readily found for any surnlns labour-power in the various trades and industries, and thus the loss, waste, and demoralisation incident to unemployment be. reduced to a minimum, it ml. if possible, eliminated altogether; (U) let such a standard of wniro or salary be insisted upon in connection with even- business, trade, industry, etc., that the male employees, on completing a reasonable term of apprenticeship, be optitled to sufficient wage or salary to maintain a wife and family in comfort; (151 let the manufacture and sale of all alcoholic linuor be under 'he direct control of a Department of Stale, the element of private profit to bs entirely eliminated in connection with the sale, of such linuor, and every offence against the accredited linuor laws on the part ot the servants of the State engaged in the sale of linuor incur summary dismissal; (1G) recognising the unmistakable fact that the createst obstacle to the efficiency of'our" citizens and to effeeUvo economic nroduction is the abuse of al-o.iol t heavv penalties be imposed.upon all who abuse its use. involving m the case o all except first offenders . a teiin of imprisonment (17) recognising the eriou evils incident to our social, eco- ' nomic and industrial life honi, ami pa cula.lv the demoralising influence of the ganbl'ing habit, let, every form of ; I gambling incur tho severest of penal- | H Ti,e speaker went, on to deal with tho problem of industrial unrest, and tho ' ' ,lcl i * birth-rate. and. continuing, em- ; la sed that until our statesmen came to realise and duly appreciate, the .fact ; iLrUiehome-inakers ondfamiy-r.se, , of the Dominion were il' backbone, the 1 mothers its greatest keuofactre.-ses, ana ' l,i en its greatest and grandest asset '' thev would find themselves confronted ''not onlv with potential, but al-o wit* 5 ■ c ive if nut militant. Bolshevism. Our • -em. and legislators had been so 1 ,Occupied with Ilu> interosU of ven H , and of the accumulators of weal.li Mat 1 h social, economic, and industria no ■ ' i d.tions of the Dominion 'had becomeuch ; : that the masses nad been dm en in pi 1 : hse that most demoralising . and un ; ' natural of practices-race sine <le. In ; . how in France the recc£ rM tls »•" 1 . deaths had risen from 53.32. n 19 4 to ' 359 575 in 1913. These were tlie/urn <* dep.utm™ts.. the' tei,[invaded | departments not being niclutal ho 1 '■ totals also d <l not include the losse.-. or 5 : soldiers of whoni over 1,700,000 perished speaker said that edi, " cation and statesmanship alone could 'I wo "oilour political, social,«■«. " I and industrial salvation, am\ ■««*» - i he deplored the drift back to the towns ] and cities.