ded, the new state could count them among its most
bitter enemies.

On the other hand, skilled laborers would want skill and talent to be
the main factors in determining wages, arguing that they had worked hard
to become proficient and that their talent and skill made the work more
valuable to the state. They would protest that they should not suffer
simply because unskilled laborers lacked their skill and talent. Should
the skilled workingmen not be heard, the new state would have another
throng of enemies.

Compromises might be attempted by different adjustments of talent and
skill to physical labor in determining the wage schedule; but in each
case the new regime would only be at the beginning of troubles. What
bitter disputes among the skilled workingmen in different trades! There
would be conflicting views of every sort regarding the exact amount of
skill and of physical labor required in the different trades, and
regarding the difficulties, disagreeableness of work, dangers to health
and life, and increased value added to the raw material in each line.

But what would happen even if the ship of state under the red flag and
its mast could weather the wage-storm and come safely into port with
some working system?

The people, we are told, would enjoy equal rights. The government could
not refuse to grant work to any qualified person applying for it.
Suppose the members of some trade, the carpenters, for example,
displeased with the wages they were getting, should apply for other work
and stick to it until the government was forced to grant their demands.
Other craftsmen, seeing how easily the carpenters had won their strike,
would imitate their example. Thus would occur derangements of the
intricate wage scale--which had occupied the attention of the country
for so long a time and been adopted only after the greatest
difficulty--causing great discontent and jealousy, while the economic
losses through successful strikes would raise the prices of commodities,
bringing on a general fever of discontent.

A further source of trouble would be the problem of determining what
wages should be paid to shirkers and those incapable of working with
efficiency. Would wage courts decide the value of their services? If so,
how many thousands of such courts would be required? If not, would state
officials or politicians decide the cases? The wages of such persons,
no matter how determined, would cause discontent.

It would be