HOW TO PAY FOE THE WAR

CHAPTER I

THE CHARACTER OF THE PROBLEM

It is not easy for a free community to organisefor war. We are not accustomed to listen toexperts or prophets. Our strength lies in anability to improvise. Yet an open mind to un-tried ideas is also necessary. No-one can saywhen the end will come. In the war services itis recognised that the best security for an earlyconclusion is a plan for long endurance. It isludicrous to proceed on a different assumption inthe economic services;—which is what we aredoing at present. On the economic front we lack—to borrow a phrase of M. Reynaud—notmaterial resources but lucidity and courage.

Courage will be forthcoming if the leaders ofopinion in all parties will summon out of thefatigue and confusion of war enough lucidity ofmind to understand for themselves and to explainto the public what is required; and then proposea plan conceived in a spirit of social justice, aplan which uses a time of general sacrifice, notas an excuse for postponing desirable reforms,but as an opportunity for moving further thanwe have moved hitherto towards reducing in-equalities.

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