6.

[667] Shaw, _The Impossibilities of Anarchism_, p. 26.

CHAPTER XVII

SOCIALISM AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Many Socialists, especially the Fabians, hope to introduce Socialistic
principles and Socialistic rule into Great Britain rather through the
local than through the national authorities. They are strenuously
exerting themselves to bring about that result, and so far their
exertions have been by no means unsuccessful.

"Socialists to-day are working in the towns with a twofold object. (1)
To level up their districts. If Glasgow has municipal telephones,
there is a very good precedent for Liverpool, Manchester, Bradford,
Leeds, &c., doing likewise. If Liverpool owns a municipal milk-supply,
London, Manchester, Bradford, Leeds, must be brought into line. Each
town must adopt the good points from every other town. (2) To urge
their districts to launch out into something new."[668] "The property
held and worked and controlled by municipalities already exceeds
_500,000,000l._ sterling in value, and is being added to yearly. This
process has but to continue long enough to ensure that every industry
will pass under public control, and thus State Socialism will become
an accomplished fact by a gradual process of easy transition."[669]

"The proper sphere of municipal activity includes everything a
municipality can do better than a private company."[670] "The
immediate object should be to municipalise all those services which
are necessary to a healthy life. Food, fuel, clothing, shelter--these
are required by all--and no man should have the right to deny them to
any worker. We must not stop at municipal trams. We must not stop at
municipal gas. We must not stop at municipal electricity. These are
only stepping-stones. Not until we can say that poverty and disease
and unemployment are abolished out of the land shall we have the right
to discuss the limits of municipal trading."[671] "The economic forces
which replaced the workshop by the factory will replace the private
shop by the municipal store, and the private factory by the municipal
one."[672]

According to Socialist teaching the destruction of private enterprise
by municipal undertakings will be a blessing to all citizens. "Where a
city supplies its own gas there is no 'middle-man.' The corporation
stands in the place of the 'middle-man,' and as the corporation is
elected by the citizens the people are thus in the position of getting
their own gas made