第112章 THE DISTRIBUTION OF WEALTH(9)

The Bantu and most other Africans, new to processes of wage-labour and to the needs of civilised life, will take the whole of a sudden rise of wages in increased leisure, but that leisure will be spent almost wholly in idleness.Pushful German traders in tropical countries commonly complain of the 'verdammte Bedürfnislösigkeit' (accursed wantlessness)of the inhabitants.This low conservative standard of living impedes economic processes of exchange.It also precludes the fruitful use of leisure, the satisfaction of the non-economic needs.Though there is no reason to hold that any race or type of man is unprogressive, in the sense that his mind is impervious to new wants and is incapable of inciting him to new efforts for their satisfaction, the extent and pace of such progress vary greatly with the economic environment and with the degree of conscious culture hitherto attained.The stimuli of economic needs and of non-economic needs will normally proceed together, and in the masses of a working population will manifest themselves in a simultaneous demand for higher wages and more leisure.But as wages reach a tolerably high standard of economic comfort, it might be expected that the relatively stronger pressure of the non-economic needs would give increasing emphasis to the demand for a shorter and easier working day.This, indeed, will seem to accord with the general claim which socialists as well as individualists make for progressive industrialism, that it shall make larger provision for personal liberty and self-development.As specialised and regimented industry represents the direct economic service each must render to society, the demands of expanding personality are held to require that an increasing proportion of each man's time and energy shall be put at his disposal.

§11.No abstract considerations indeed, can be adduced to support an indefinite reduction of the work-day.As a high level of civilisation is attained in any community, the proportion of energy devoted to material, as compared with non-material Commodities and services, will doubtless be reduced.But that does not necessarily imply a corresponding reduction of economic time and activity.For among economic goods themselves, those which are wholly or mainly non-material will form an increasing proportion of the whole.A community like that of great Britain, with a population declining in its growth, will tend to take a continually increasing share of its real income in the shape of intellectual, moral, aesthetic, recreative, and other non-material services.These will absorb an ever-growing share of the productive energy of the people.This demand for the satisfaction of higher economic needs will be likely to put a check upon the tendency towards an illimitable reduction of the work-day.For most of these higher non-material goods do not admit the application of those economies of capitalist production available in the making of material goods.Take one example, that of education.Here is a service which will probably absorb a continually increasing percentage of the total time and energy devoted to economic services.The same is probably true of hygienic services.Though portions of these and other activities may pass from the economic into the non-economic sphere, being undertaken by individuals as private occupations, for their leisure, as public services they will certainly furnish employment to an increasing number of employees.

Thus the claims of a growing progressive social organisation will impose some necessary limits upon the demands of the individual for larger liberty and leisure.

There is, however, no final conflict between the claims of personal liberty and the social order.Even though the process of readjustment between the claims of industry and leisure should incline generally in favour of more leisure, with the prime purpose of nourishing more fully the private personality and affording larger scope for home life and recreation, society is not thereby the loser.For some of the finest and most profitable uses of leisure will consist of the voluntary rendering of social services of a non-economic order.I allude in particular to a fuller participation in the active functions of citizenship, a more intelligent interest in local and national politics, in local administration and in the numerous forms of voluntary association which are generally social in the services they render.More leisure is a prime essential of democratic government.

There can be no really operative system of popular self-government so long as the bulk of the people do not possess the spare time and energy to equip themselves for effective participation in politics and to take a regular part in deliberative and administrative work.This is equally applicable to other modes of corporate activity, the life of the churches, friendly societies, trade unions, cooperative societies, clubs, musical and educational associations, which go to make up the social life and institutions of a country.Leisure, demanded primarily in the interests of the individual for his personal enjoyment, will thus yield rich nutriment to the organic life of society, because the individual will find himself drawn by the social needs and desires embedded in his personality to devote portions of his leisure to social activities which contribute to the commonwealth as surely as do the economic tasks imposed upon him in his daily industry.

NOTES:

1.( Times , 23 Dec.1912.)

2.The best that can be said for this education has recently been said by Mr.George Peel, who writes of London children ( The Future of England , p.96):

'They spend 28 hours a week continuously during nine years under fairly satisfactory conditions of air, warmth and light, engaged in wholesome and stimulating pursuits.Considering what their homes often are, this itself must be reckoned an immense benefit.'