FERDINAND  LASSALLE.  67
takes  place  to-day,  only  upon  a  more  equitable  basis  The
general  welfare  would  be  much  greater,  not  only  because
distribution  would  be  more  equitable,  but  also  because  production ­
  would  be  on  a  much  larger  scale.  One  of  Lassalle’s
disciples,  Baron  Schweiter,  gives  the  leading  principles  of  the
scheme  in  a  small  pamphlet  published  after  the  death  of  the
master,  under  the  title  of  “The  dead  Schulze  against  the
iving  Lassalle.  ’  *  Losses  at  present  arising  from  works  undertaken ­
  at  haphazard,  and  consequently  often  useless,  would  be
avoided;  efforts  which  now  merely  result  in  ruining  competitors
  would  then  be  directed  towards  ends  profitable  to  all  •
the  labour  of  workmen  would  be  more  productive,  because,  since
the  whole  product  would  belong  to  them,  they  would  try,  in
emulation  with  one  another,  to  render  it  as  large  as  possible;
and  finally,  the  idle,  not  being  able  to  live  without  work
would  enter  the  ranks  of  the  great  army  of  producers,  which
henceforward  would  comprise  all  citizens.
Lassalle  succeeded  in  winning  over  to  his  ideas  two  of  the
ost  eminent  men,  in  their  different  ways,  of  contemporary
ermany—Ketteler,  bishop  of  Mayence,  and  Prince  Bismarck,
in  the  sitting  of  the  of  September,  1878,  the  Imperial
Chancellor  spoke  of  his  connection  with  Lassalle  ;  he  said  that
«e  had  never  met  a  more  agreeable  talker,  and  that  he  should
^ve  been  delighted  to  have  him  for  a  neighbour  in  the  country.
We  appears  still  to  share  the  faith  of  the  celebrated  agitator  in
eo-operative  societies  endowed  by  the  State.
At  this  same  sitting,  he  said,  “  I  did,  in  fact,  consult  with
cassalle  upon  the  subject  of  the  aid  to  be  given  by  government
o  co-operative  societies  ;  and  even  to-day  I  cannot  think  that  it
ould  be  a  useless  thing.  I  do  not  know  if  it  was  the  effect  of
ssalle’s  reasoning  or  the  result  of  my  own  experience  in
t  gland,  during  my  sojourn  there  in  1862,  but  I  have  always
o  ught  that  by  organizing  co-operative  societies,  such  as
in  fh  country,  a  real  improvement  might  be  effected
.  condition  of  the  labourers.  I  conferred  with  His
the  ^  interest  in  the  working  classes,  and
i^mg  gave  a  sum  of  money  large  enough  to  make  an  experi-*
  Schulzegegen  den  lebenden  Lassalle.