Results of influence of money—No motive in lives of the rich—Money as our master—If money ideal could be discarded—Possibility of change of ideal for all classes.

Only the surface of the subject has been touched, only a few of the many heads into which the discussion might be divided have been considered at all, and only some of the more patent dangers have been very briefly indicated. But enough has been said to support the original contention and to bring us fairly to the conclusion that in all directions the influence of the money possessed by individuals beyond the limit of what constitutes a full competence is harmful and noxious. It has a hardening, crippling, and deadening effect on the highly susceptible and sensitive organism of human vitality, like varnish would have on the wings of a butterfly. It substitutes patronage for fraternity, arrogance for humility, indolence for effort, vanity for love, the spirit of submission for the spirit of independence, an artificial class society for a natural society of mutual respect and affection. It saps vitality by surfeit and superabundance, and at the same time stunts healthy development by misery and want. It is a false and vicious standard for estimating worth. Greed and Cupidity are its parents, Envy and Jealousy its children.

But it is easier to disregard all this and to go on in what appears to be the natural and, indeed, inevitable course. We must take the world as it is, is the common cry, not as it ought to be, and unless we are prepared to be submerged and trodden under, we must follow in the throng and push forward and struggle with the rest. Some of us are able to feel resentment at A’s riches, but, alas! it is not because he is rich, but because he is rich. It is said that the craving to satisfy material wants is as inseparable a part of human nature as any other appetite. This may be so to some extent, but it is clearly a matter of proportion. After the appetite has reached a certain point it is no more natural than gluttony, drunkenness, or any other form of debauchery. In far too many cases that point has long been passed and a state of society has been evolved to suit the new order, and not only to excuse, but to extol and strengthen the power of money.

Let men live, whatever kind of life they choose, without interference, let them indulge their hobbies and amuse themselves within bounds; but let them recognise that there are bounds, and that the inter-cohesion of the isolated atoms in the whole mass of human life is such that every step they take over those bounds they are depriving someone else of living the life they choose, indulging their hobbies, and amusing themselves.

The rich are mostly unconscious of the harm they are doing. There is no deliberate intention in any of their actions. They travel carelessly along the broad road laid down for them by custom, and they never count the costs or examine the consequences. Their lives, more especially those of their women, are entirely aimless and certainly devoid of any determined motive. As long as they are allowed to pursue their course undisturbed, making or spending the money which they look on as their own in any way that suits their fancy, they make no complaint. They ask the State to guard them securely in the enjoyment of their great possessions, and they employ the energy they derive from them in poisoning the springs of national prosperity. The moment it is suggested that some small share of their gains should be taken by the State for the general benefit and for safeguarding the security of others besides themselves, they, including even those of them who have declared their wealth to be a burden, send up a wail of execration and protest with all the force they have at their command.

This condition of things, as it has been shown, brings no happiness to the rich and it brings great mischief to the State. Individual energy is dissipated and human capacity is misapplied in a society where effort is so ill-directed in the extremes of riches and poverty; while the social power of the community is wasted in a society where capitalists control so many of the sources of wealth.

Money, by convincing us of its indispensable nature and egging us on in the scramble for more, has, however much we may resent it, got the upper hand and has practically enslaved us. A comparison can be made with the modern mania for speed. The rapidity of the means of locomotion encourages a perpetual rush and deludes people into supposing that the faster they go the more they will accomplish. There is a foolish belief that steam, electricity, and petrol have been turned to our own use and have been mastered, whereas these giant forces are playing with us and stirring us, like ants in a disturbed ant-hill, into an almost ridiculous state of flurry and confusion which is detrimental both to our minds and our bodies, and the sum total of our higher accomplishments is more likely to show a decline than an increase from the days before these forces were let loose. But rapid locomotion is at present too fascinating for us to resist. Just in the same way the allurements of money are carrying us away down a steep incline to unforeseen perils.

Where and when shall we stop? Some say that society, having got on to this dangerous downward slope, gradual evolution to a healthier state is no longer possible; but, as in the case of the abolition of slavery and the abolition of autocracy, the change can only be brought about by a cataclysmic upheaval. As the power of money augments and vast riches are piled higher and higher, it is becoming the more apparent that an opposing force of bitter antagonism is being created which may one day gain strength enough to sweep away the vampire of capitalism.

“Wealth is in the hands of the few rich and the suffrage in the hands of the many poor. In the concentration of wealth and the diffusion of political power lies the great danger of Modern Society. The danger becomes every day greater, and democracy, which seemed to have saved society, is really destined to overturn it.”34 Perhaps it can save it by overturning it. But at present any such danger would seem remote, as, in spite of the great advances made by organised Labour, the mass of the people, more especially those herded into towns, are sadly lacking in vitality. In the first stages of the rise of democracy there have been thrown to the surface men of great business ability, but of no imagination, and firm believers in money. The process of a deeper and more general enlightenment must of necessity be slow.

On the whole, we need have no fear that plutocracy will ever gain complete ascendancy, even though it may have aristocracy, royalty, and at times political power to support it. But it is not so much the attack from without that is likely to destroy the entrenched position of the rich as the rot within which is steadily undermining their stronghold with corruption and decay.

A cataclysm, in the shape of a social revolution, is too apt to lead to reaction, and the fundamental alteration of social relations would only be delayed thereby. This, however, in a smaller or larger degree, is the course of advance that progress takes. Rising, falling, and yet advancing in a spiral shape. History never repeats itself exactly, the path never passes over the same point; but a cyclical resemblance occurs in the course of events which sometimes makes us feel we are only the sport of circumstances. And yet at the same time, within us there seems to be stored up a latent power strong enough to break away and make great changes if our efforts could only be united in sympathy and fortified by agreement. The tendency of society may be downward and in the wrong direction, but the natural trend of human endeavour, free and unfettered, is upwards towards a better state, and there are encouraging indications that in the future, the distant future, perhaps, this power will prevail and we shall all unite in a better purpose. At this moment certainly there is no room for despair when we see around us a growing indignation and impatience with social injustice. Never before has humanitarian impulse been so well fortified by scientific theory in its attempt to cope with the evils of poverty and destitution. All we want is an equally scientific discernment of the evils of riches and waste.

If the money ideal could only be discarded with the same universal alacrity and conviction with which it is now clung to and cherished, the change and improvement in our social life would be as miraculous and yet as natural as the change from the dark chill of winter to the sunshine of spring. But it will not be by bitter vituperation and invective that the change can be brought about. The attack must be directed not against particular individuals, not against isolated follies, nor against single instances of wicked extravagance, thoughtlessness, and cruelty, but against the stereotyped system which is responsible for it all. The awaking to a different faith must take place just as much among the poor as among the rich. The former must be taught to recognise that cringing submission to so-called superiors is neither to their own nor to anyone else’s advantage; the latter must learn that to isolate themselves in a fool’s paradise of ease and thoughtlessly to assume impossible responsibilities is fatal to their own happiness and to the welfare of their fellows. And the large medium class, who are well-to-do but not rich, living modestly but not poor, must be shaken from their indolent and self-complacent position of spectators securely railed off from the arena where the combat is taking place; thanking heaven they are not among the victims and secretly admiring the assailants, though proudly conscious that they themselves can be exonerated from all blame. There are too many in this class who, to put it plainly, hate the poor and reverence the rich, and they will be the last to be reached or influenced by the cleansing spirit of enlightened thought.

Any transformation must proceed from within. The effectual resistance to what seems to be the compulsion of modern conventions and habits can only arise from a clearer knowledge and a more complete comprehension of the falseness of these conventions and the worthlessness of these habits. In order to combat vanity, selfishness, and love of ease, not only a change of front and ideal is essential, but there must also be a supreme and sustained effort to stand up against and head back the dead weight of opinion which has gained impetus from never being checked. There must be sincere and deep-seated conviction. Without this any political or social revolution will fail. “The mightiest changes have come from religious and moral changes in men’s hearts.”

The fervent devotion to the service of Mammon acts as a baneful influence working havoc and destruction in men’s lives. Instead of ignoring or excusing it, attention must be called to it loudly, repeatedly, and emphatically by all who are convinced of its dangers and wish to warn their fellows against its deadly infection.

THE END