II2

THE  SOCIALISM  OF  TO-DAY.

as  at  the  time  of  the  Jacquerie  in  France,  of  Wat  Tyler  in
England,  and,  in  the  sixteenth  century,  of  the  peasants’  war  in
Germany.  To-day  the  lot  of  the  lower  classes  is  much  improved,
and  yet  it  is  at  this  moment  that  the  disease  is  showing  itself.
It  appears  even  in  countries  where  easy  circumstances  are
general,  as  in  the  United  States.  Poverty,  then,  is  not  its
cause,  but  rather  the  contrast  between  the  ideal  and  the  actual.
What  will  make  it  spread  and  endure  is,  in  the  second  place,
the  diffusion  of  a  certain  amount  of  natural  science  and  political ­
  economy  ;  and  lastly,  the  constant  and  rapid  means  of
communication  between  man  and  man—the  railways,  the  post,
and,  above  all,  the  press.
When  a  revolutionary  movement  starts  from  a  few  leaders,
it  is  possible  to  put  an  end  to  the  danger  by  suppressing  them.
But  when  a  profound  fermentation  takes  hold  of  the  masses,  it
is  of  no  use  to  get  rid  of  the  leaders  :  others  will  always  be
found  to  fill  their  places.  It  is  too  late  in  the  day  to  suppress
all  liberties.  People  will  put  up  with  an  exceptional  régime
during  a  critical  period,  but  no  civilized  State  in  the  West  will
any  longer  submit  definitively  to  absolution  and  a  state  of  siege.
We  may  see,  moreover,  by  the  case  of  Russia,  that  security  is
not  to  be  obtained  in  this  way.  According  to  Herrlodt,
Christianity  alone  can  reconcile  the  antagonistic  classes,  the
rich  and  the  poor,  by  filling  their  hearts  with  brotherly  love
and  the  sense  of  justice.
Examining  in  succession  the  several  articles  of  the  programme ­
  of  Radical  Socialism,  our  author  compares  them  with
the  principles  of  the  Gospel,  and  points  out  in  what  they  agree
with  it  and  in  what  they  differ  from  it.  This  study  of  the  social
bearing  of  Christianity  indicates  clearly  the  close  relations
which  exist  between  Political  Economy  and  religious  ideas.
We  cannot  discuss  here  the  numerous  questions  raised  by
this  comparison.  We  believe  it  may  be  said  that  the  fundamental ­
  idea  of  the  Social  Evangelical  group  is  correct,  d'o  disarm ­
  popular  animosities,  the  upper  classes,  commencing  with
the  leaders  of  the  State,  must  concern  themselves  with  ever)-thing
  that  can  better  the  lot  of  the  masses.  Christian  charity
must  be  translated  into  facts.  Formerly,  this  duty  was  thought