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and it is not improbable that the collapse in England would have taken place before this.

A philanthropist in the United States, Mr. Charles Loring Brace, devoted himself to the poor children of New York City, and used chiefly private efforts. It is said that during his life he was able to touch and improve three hundred thousand lives. These examples show how large the returns are which well directed effort secures, and what could be done if men would really concern themselves with the improvement of society. The social resources are more than ample. They are superabundant. It is only necessary that they should be utilized. If one out of ten persons who call themselves Christians should actually guide his conduct by the precepts of Christianity, all reforms of a social nature which can now be suggested would be speedily accomplished.

Perhaps a word in regard to the attitude with which we should approach the question of practicable social reform may not be amiss. We are discussing measures and not men. Those who have made wealth out of practices and institutions condemned, are not by any means to be regarded as necessarily worse than others. We must all live under the social system which exists. A city may make a mistake in preferring private gas-works to municipal gas-works; but so long as private gas-works exist, it is hard to see why any person should be blamed for utilizing private ownership of gas-works for his own. advantage. Quite the contrary. The people need gas, and if they do not choose to help themselves, the one who is willing to render them the service is doing something which is praiseworthy. This presupposes, of course, that he uses no improper methods in securing franchises or contracts, and does not attempt by improper means to

maintain an excessively high price for gas. It also follows, as a matter of course, that one should not allow his private individual interests to stand in the way of measures calculated to effect improvement. Personal interests should be subordinated. Fortunately, many leaders in the industrial world take this large view. The late Josiah Quincy, author of that charming work, "Figures of the Past," was a railway president, but he himself tells us that he thinks it is not safe to entrust so great a power to any private individual as that which a railway president enjoys. A living railway president has recommended the nationalization of railways; and another well known as a skilful railway manager has criticised. with severity American railway methods.

We must furthermore remember that we are not dealing with questions concerning wage-earners alone. We have already stated that the question of socialism can be viewed from the standpoint of different social classes, and that perhaps other social classes have almost equal reason to hope for the coming of socialism, if it brings. with it what socialists promise us.

CHAPTER II.

SOCIALIZATION OF MONOPOLY.

SOCIALISM is a theory of monopoly, and we can say, roughly speaking, that it holds good for monopoly. The admission is made that the plan of socialism for the ownership and operation of monopoly by society in its organic capacity is the best which has yet been devised. This plan is socialization, or to use a more current expression, government ownership. It must not be understood by this statement that the ownership and the management by government of businesses which fall under the head of monopoly are devoid of difficulties. On the contrary, we must anticipate serious obstacles to be overcome; but the difficulties and disadvantages of private ownership and management are far greater. The problems of modern civilization are complex at best, and their solution cannot, in the nature of things, be easy.

Monopolies may be divided into two main classes, natural and artificial; and natural monopolies again may be divided into two sub-classes, namely, First, those businesses which are monopolies by virtue of the qualities inherent in the business itself; and second, those businesses which are monopolies by reason of the fact that the supply of the raw material upon which they are based is so limited in area, that the entire supply can be acquired by a single combination of men.

We will first consider natural monopolies of the first sub-class, These are the natural monopolies ordinarily

discussed, and they include the means of communication and transportation, as well as the lighting service by gas or electricity of cities. Railways, water-ways, irrigation works, telegraphs, telephones, are especially important. But street-car lines, whether they are surface lines, subways, or elevated railways, and the means of lighting. cities, are scarcely less so. These are all primary businesses in modern society; businesses of every other kind are dependent upon them.

The proof that these pursuits are natural monopolies is twofold; namely, deductive and inductive, or historical. The deductive proof takes account of characteristics of businesses of the kind mentioned, and discovers that businesses with these characteristics must necessarily become monopolies. Their main characteristics are three: They occupy peculiarly desirable spots or lines of land; second, the service or commodity which they supply is furnished in connection with the plant itself; and, in the third place, it is possible to increase the supply of the service or commodity indefinitely, without proportionate increase in cost. Any business which has these qualities tends to become a monopoly by virtue of its inherent qualities, and it must become such in time. The fact that peculiarly desirable spots or lines of land are occupied, gives a business an advantage. If the spots or lines of land are exclusive, of course that establishes a monopoly in itself, but that does not often happen. Street-car lines, however, very often occupy what we may call exclusive lines of land, as in ordinary streets we cannot well have more than two tracks; and so far as the street in question is concerned, the only competition must come from sub-ways or elevated railways. Steam railways sometimes occupy what are prac

tically exclusive lines of land when they go through mountain passes, or when they run between rivers and high mountains very near the rivers. Any competing lines must necessarily be at a great disadvantage, as the cost of excavations would be enormous. The second characteristic is of great importance, because it makes it impossible to bring the commodities or service from a distance for the purpose of competition.

The flour of one city may compete with the flour of another city, but the street-car service of a city must be used in connection with the street-car plant. If telegraph services could be used apart from the plant, we could, in America, order these services from Germany, and get them for less than half of what we now pay for them, but unfortunately they must be used in connection with the plant which furnishes the services.

The third characteristic, however, is one of chief importance, for it includes, by implication, the other two. As the business increases in extent, the cost of the service or commodity decreases, consequently there is always an inducement held out to carry on the business as one undivided whole. If two competing companies are furnishing services or commodities of the kind mentioned, they will gain, and gain greatly, by combination. But gain is the purpose for which business is carried on, and this increased gain is like a powerful magnet; sooner or later, it pulls the competing companies together.

Inductive or historical proof calls attention to actual experience. It is found that sooner or later attempted competition always gives way to combination and consolidation. The gas business furnishes an excellent illustration, because the experience with respect to this is

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