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THE NEW AGE A WEEKLY REVIEW OF POLITICS, LITERATURE AND ART. Vol. VII. No. I I. THURSDAY,JULY 14, 1910. THREEPENCE. CONTENTS. PAGE PAGE NOTES OF THE WEEK ................. 241 A BOOKOF BEAUTY.By MichaelWilliams ......... 254 FOREIGN AFFAIRS By S. Verdad 243 ........... SOME LATERIBSEN STORIES ............... 255 THEODORE ROOSEVELT : ANOTHER SOCIALISTVIEW By J. A NOTE ON THE HAYMARKETPRODUCTION. By T. Martin William Lloyd ............... .... 244 Wood ........................ 256 PAULINE VIARDOT-GARCIA By Francis Grierson ...... 245 ART. ByHuntly Carter .................. 257 THEPHILOSOPHY OF A DON. XVII. : POLYGAMY ...... 247 CORRESPONDENCE.--MRS. Herringham, E. Belfort Bax, H. W. ON TRYINGAGAIN. By Holbein Bagman ......... 250 Nevinson H. G. Wells, J. H.Ingram, S. Verdad, Rose THE ALLIEDARTISTS’ ASSOCIATION. By Walter Sickert ... 251 LamartineYates, St. John G. Ervine, J. M. Kennedy, A GENTLEMANOF ENGLAND.By W. L.George ...... 252 DuseMohamed, S. Moussa, BeatriceHastings, etc., etc. 258 HERE’SROSEMARY FOR REMEMBRANCE.By W. R.Titterton 253 ARTICLES OF THE WEEK .................. 262 BOOKSAND PERSONS.ByJacob Tonson ......... a53 MODERNBIBLIOGRAPHIES. XXXIV. Frederic Harrison ... 263 Subscriptions to the NE W A GE are at the following thehearts of its political friends. It is theywho find rates :- themselves daily and hourly depressed, flouted and dis- Great Britain.. A broad. gusted. It is they and their ideals that are perpetually One Year ... ... 15 0 17 4 beingmisrepresented and sacrificed ; while, on the Six Months.. ... 7 68 8 whole,it is their enemies whose word is regarded by Three Months ... 3 94 4 theCabinet with deference. This, surely, is the only All orders and remittances should be sent to the NEWAGE conclusion to be drawn from the series of concessions PRESS,38, Cursitor Street, E.C. made by the Government during the last few weeks ; MSS., drawings and editorial communications should be concessions beginning with the holding of a Conference addressed to the Editor, 38, CursitorStreet, E.C. andreaching, let us hope, their climax in the Civil AIl communications regarding Advertisements should be List at which the “ Nation ” turns. addressed to the AdvertisementManager, 38, Cursitor *** Street, E.C. Something of this moral disquietude in the presence of politics has become articulate in a novel and some- NOTES OF THE WEEK. whatromantic appeal theincurrent “ Hibbert Journal ” tothe Gentlemen of England.If we under- THEGovernment are having a long rope, but they will stand the reasoning of this highly interesting document assuredly hang themselves in the end. A fortnight ago we are bound to say that we agree with its purport. It we had occasion to deplore the Birthday Honours’ List, ispointed out that the regeneration of England can the most disgraceful and shameless of which any recent scarcelybe brought about by thesole agency of the Cabinet has been guilty. This week it is the “ Nation ” workingclasses, even with the help of the “ intellec- whichis almost in despair over the Civil List, a List tuals.”Discredit can so easilybe fastened on the which adds nearly a quarter of a million per annum to equipmentor the motives of anyleaders in a purely the royal salaries. But what can either the “ Nation ” proletarianmovement of reform. On theother hand, or THENEW AGE do? Though time and again we turn partypoliticians are equally discredited. The docu- away in disgust from the spectacle of an obviously cor- menttherefore appeals to the gentlemen of England rupt politics, our wandering eyes rest on no more hope- irrespective of their class or of their whilom politics, in fulvision elsewhere. Willing enough to throw away a word,to English patriots. This is so similar in aim thedirty water, would it be wise to do so untilwe toour own comments of thelast six months that ne haveclean ? And where is theclean? Apparently we have no hesitation in endorsing it; but we must observe must continue the task of criticism, despairing yet not thattherace of Englishgentlemen rapidlyis giving in. Perhaps after some yearsunderstanding dwindling,that the task before them is colossal, that will begin to dawn on the people. they are without an organ or an organisation,and *** that so far as we can see their ideas are somewhat out We are notthe only observersto feel alarm at the of date. In spite,however, of thesedisadvantages, cynicism of politics, which increases with the apathy of something,we are sure, could be done if properlyat- the public. If we were we might feel disposed to enjoy tempted. The direction, in ourview, should be less oursingularity But everywhere, and even in the most political thansocial, less public than private, and less unlikelyplaces, dissatisfaction is being expressed, We criticalthan constructive. The model, in short,should do not know whether the Cabinet has any ulterior pur- bePlato’s rather than Bacon’s. pose in thus making itself an object a€ despair and *** disgust ; but certain it is that these feelings in regard This brings us, indeed, to the very crux of the pro- toit are becoming widely spread.It is fair to dis- blem ofmodern discontent. From one point of view, sociatethis dissatisfaction from the merely party re- as we haverepeatedly demonstrated, the party politi- pugnance of Unionists and Tories. On party attacks of cian have done no mure than they have been permitted whatevervirulence a Cabinetmight even pride itself. to do.And they have been permitted to do what they But the deepest dissatisfaction with the present Cabinet havedone by theastounding apathy of thegeneral exists not in the ranks of its political enemies, but in public as well as by thecultivated indifference of the 242 THE NEW AGE JULY 14,1910 educatedclasses. Nobody can accuse the Socialist Coalition felt itself compelled to break the unity of the movement of having failed to do its best to throw the party. And if the Irish group, which is paramount and limelight on the appalling conditions of poverty in Eng- has most to lose by the failure of the Coalition, has so farfound no adequate excuse for abandoning the land.Unless a person is eithervery ignorant or very ship,neither in ouropinion has the Labour party. brutal he cannot pretend any longer not to know that *** what is reallywrong with England is thebestial Butthere is anotherreason which has been touched destitution of a largeminority of itspopulation. Yet on severaltimes, and notably by Mr.Philip Snowden thoughwe have succeeded in demonstratingthis te- in lastweek’s “ LabourLeader.” Mr. Snowden is yond thepossibility of dispute,we have neither suc- well qualified tospeak on thesubject of finance,and ceeded in arousing the poor themselves to resent their his contribution to the debate on the new Budget was conditionnor in awakening the rich to a senseof the only speech listened towith any interest. On the shame. On the contrary, the more we demonstrate the question of thefinance of theLabour party he was equallyinteresting, and even better informed. Will source of England’sweakness, the louder grows the criticsrealise that party politics and party organisa- sound of the drums that drown us, and the more supine tionsare, at bottom, an affair of money? We have the mass that needs to be helped. So hopeless, in fact, seen that both the Liberal and the Unionist parties are has our task become that we have lately been driven to ceaselessly engaged in replenishingtheir party coffers a mereattempt to make a fewpeople understand, in by thesale in thinlydisguised forms of titlesand the hope that understanding will infallibly lead to right places. By thismeans they are enabled to face an electionand, generally, incur political risks that no action sooneror later. Now thequestion is : How partywithout funds dare undertake. With a great many understanding men are there among the gentle- pricetheir freedom is bought.The Labour party, on men of England?Sodom and Gomorrah would have theother hand, draws its supportmainly from the been savedfor ten. England might be saved by a poor,has nothing to sell, and is consequentlyper- hundred.Are there a hundredgentlemen in England petuallyhampered, not merely in big,but in little whohave the intelligence to understand and the will thingsas well. Moreover,the old tradeunion levy hasgone, and gone, we think, for ever;and the andthe power to act on their understanding? It re- measurefor payment of members,which should have mainsto be seenwhat response the “ Hibbert takenits place, has been deferred on account of the Journal’s ’’ manifesto will receive ; but we may say that increased Civil Listuntil next year. Under these in ouropinion the appeal is timelyand not without circumstancesthere is smallwonder that the Labour partyhave appeared a littletimid. hope. *** *** Returningto the subject of partypolitics, we note What plainly is the duty of the rank and file of the Labour movement is to refrain from unintelligent criti- that the ‘‘ Spectator ” complains that the Government cism, and to push on the work of political education and is preparing a crisisfor November. That may be a propaganda. We whoobserve events closely at West- legitimate complaint for an enemy to make, but we find minsterare prepared to prognosticate that in afew in it a proof that all is not yet lost. We have deplored monthsat least the crisis will occurwhich will decide the laissez-faire attitude of theCoalition rank and file the fate of the Liberal party for at least a generation, intheir own constituencies, but we understand that and,, by implication,the fate of theLabour and activity is to beresumed in the provinces during the Socialistmovement as well. The“slump ” that now prevails is due to nothing more sinister than suspense. Parliamentaryrecess. If thatis so, theParliamentary The long rope with which the Liberal party may in the crisis may coincide with a greater interest in the con- endhang itselfis beingpaid out in the most ample stituencies than the last crisis at Westminster enjoyed. andgenerous fashion.

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