t take their
assurances in lieu of details. "Those who fear that Socialism will
destroy individual liberty fail to distinguish between liberty and
licence. Individualism is licence--it is the freedom of the individual
to do as he likes without regard to the effect of his action on
others, or even without regard to his own best welfare. Socialism is
liberty; for it will restrict the freedom of the individual to inflict
injury upon others or to do what is morally injurious to himself."[57]

Socialism will release the British slaves out of their slavery, and
restore them to everlasting freedom. "Such Socialism as we champion
means for all future generations not slavery, but full and
never-ending freedom."[58] "Socialism declares it to be the duty of
man to remove all artificial barriers to the improvement of
circumstances, in order that humanity, as a whole, may have freedom
and all possible assistance to attain to its full stature, physically,
mentally, and spiritually."[59]

With the introduction of the Socialist _regime_ the earth would, as by
a magician's wand, be transformed into a paradise. Over-population,
bad harvests, the maladjustment of international demand and supply,
and individual folly, laziness, wastefulness, improvidence, and
passion would apparently no longer have the same unfortunate
consequences which they have now. "The struggle for individual
existence disappears...."[60] "The words 'poor' and 'charity' will be
expunged from the dictionary as relics of a barbarous past."[61]
"There would be no starvation, there would be no pauperism, there
would be no sweaters; there would be no barefooted children in the
streets; there would be no fraudulent trustees, no bankrupts; there
would be no slums, no annual massacre of innocents by preventable
disease; there would be hardly such a thing known as ignorance, there
would be scarcely any drunkenness, and crime would shrink to
microscopic dimensions."[62]

"Practical Socialism would educate the people. It would provide cheap
and pure food. It would extend and elevate the means of study and
amusement. It would foster literature and science and art. It would
encourage and reward genius and industry. It would abolish sweating
and jerry-work. It would demolish the slums and erect good and
handsome dwellings. It would compel all men to do some kind of useful
work. It would recreate and nourish the craftsman's pride in his
craft. It would protect women and children