industrial labour of children. It further fixed the normal working day at ten hours.1 Union with the more advanced parties, which forms a great obstacle to the Catholics of other countries, has not proved a difficulty for Swiss Catholics. On the question of economic reforms, Catholics and Democrats have been able to harmonise without there being any need of the former failing in obedience to the canons of their faith, or of the latter denying their principles. And in this free country, in which the various parties are constantly contesting for the government of each canton, and where, by necessity of warfare, they know each other intimately, the union has been possible, and has taken place sooner than elsewhere. 1 See, on the congress at Olten and the part taken in it by G. Decurtins, the "Chronique," by Charles Gide, in the Revue d'économie politique, pp. 315, 316, May-June, 1890; the Association Catholique, pp. 615, 617, 15th May, 1890; H. de Moly, "La réglementation du travail en France et les catholiques," in the Réforme Sociale, p. 591, 10th May, 1890; and the article by Georges Michel, "Le socialisme Chrétien," in the Économiste Français, pp. 517-519, 26th April, 1890. Michel, however, commits a number of mistakes; he thinks the Congress of Olten was entirely composed of Catholics, on whom he expresses most erroneous opinions. 258 CHAPTER X. CATHOLIC SOCIALISM IN FRANCE AND BELGIUM. Origins and Tendencies of French Socialism-Its Character and EvolutionInfluence of Marx and of German Socialism-Possibilists and Impossibilists -The Catholic Movement-Catholic Liberalism-Catholic Socialism-The Two Currents among French Catholic Socialists-Charles Périn-The Le Play School-Claude Jannet-Father Ludovic de Besse and Liberal Economics Catholic Socialists-L'Euvre des Cercles Catholiques d'Ouvriers and its Tendencies-L'Euvre and the Socialists-Origin, History, and Programme of the Euvre-Count de Mun-Criticism of Liberal Economics -The Guild System-Effects of Liberty according to De Mun-De Mun and Socialism-De Mun's Action-De Mun's Bill and the Catholic Socialists of the French Chamber-Protection and Regulation of Labour-Marquis de La Tour du Pin Chambly-Compulsory Guilds and Christian EconomySocial Programme of La Tour du Pin-Le Parlementarisme, voilà l'Ennemi ! -Ségur-Lamoignon-Criticism of Capitalism and Industrialism—Capitalism and Social Dissolution-G. de Pascal-Roquefeuil-Bréda-Diffusion of the Euvre-The Defenders of the Free Guilds-Léon Harmel-Practical Attempts at Val-des-Bois-Organisation and History of a Christian Corporation-The Catholic Industrialists of the North-French Catholic Jurisconsults and their Conservative Programme-Catholic Socialism in BelgiumFrançois Huet and the Social Reign of Christianity-Huet's Collectivism— Influence of Périn-Organisation of Belgian Catholics-Monseigneur Dontcloux-Abbé Pottier and the Claims of Labour-Moderation of the Belgian Catholics-Action of Catholic Governments. FRA RANCE is the country of Europe in which the doctrines of modern Socialism first obtained a wide diffusion among the people. Though in Germany, previous to 1848, a few isolated thinkers, like Rodbertus Jageztow, or original philosophers, like Fichte, or more or less daring economists, like Michael or Engels, maintained doctrines having much affinity with those of modern Socialism, Germany was not disturbed by socialistic agitations till long after 1848, when the people, having obtained civil equality, and roused by the active propa ganda of Ferdinand Lassalle, aimed at securing political power as well. But although Democratic Socialism in France was the cause of considerable evils, and the agitations of the French Socialists have very frequently assumed a violent and revolutionary character, French Socialism at its beginning had not these tendencies, which it only acquired through the slow and fatal infiltration of German Socialism. Setting aside Caius Gracchus Baboeuf, whose criminal dreams and projects met with but a relatively small number of adherents, the founders of French Socialism were not revolutionaries. Pecqueur demanded the nationalisation of the land and of industry by means of progressive reforms; Saint-Simon, the unwitting apostle of bourgeois Socialism, extolled the popularisation of credit and the suppression of inheritance; Fourier wanted "guarantees" and phalansteries; Proudhon limited the greater part of his aspirations to gratuitous credit and the people's bank; Blanqui, a true Possibilist, was willing to content himself with gradual and progressive reforms, and, indeed, took much more interest in political than in economic questions. Without attempting to deny the evil influence exercised on French Socialism by the Collectivist theories of Germany, and before that by those of Bakunin, we must, however, admit that the Commune was much more the result of special causes than of Socialistic ideas. The city had for several months been suffering from famine, and was in a state of the greatest fermentation. Betrayed by its chiefs, abandoned to itself, Paris inevitably fell into the excesses of the Commune.1 Besides, the violent Socialistic agitations so frequent in France, are less the fault of the Socialist writers than of the fatal heritage left to the people by the Revolution of 1789. According to the unfortunate popular idea, a revolution can overthrow a social régime, the result of an historic inheritance many centuries old, to create a new one based on more or less Utopian and extravagant aspirations. This fatal preconcep 1 See Camille Pelletan, De 1815 à nos jours, pp. 298-320. Paris, tion, which forms the great danger for the future of France, and has, for the last century, been the cause of a great part of its troubles, has helped for many years to give an odious and turbulent character to French Socialism. In the violent language of the French Socialists, up to about ten or twelve years ago, the word God was synonymous with tyrant; priest, with vampire; and at public meetings and in the papers used for purposes of propaganda the refrain was always: "Death to the bourgeois!" "God means evil," said Proudhon; "we may say the same thing of Fatherland."1 "What is property? A word void of sense which we must abolish." 2 None of the English or German Socialists ever expressed themselves in like manner; this strange violence of language is a sad prerogative of the Socialists of Latin race. Nevertheless, within the last twelve years, French Socialism has undergone a very rapid evolution in a conservative sense. In 1880 the chiefs of the Marxist party were the almost undisputed leaders of the Socialists' ranks. Guesde, Deville, and Lafargue, who directed the labours of the congress held that year at Havre, insisted upon the necessity of the action révolutionnaire being accepted, and imposed das Kapital of Marx as the gospel of the party. But the Possibilist current, disgusted by the violence and excesses of the Revolutionary Socialist party, continued gaining ground with wonderful rapidity, and in 1882, at the congress at St. Étienne, the Possibilists, headed by Benoît Malon, already formed a very large majority. The Marxists tried in in vain to resist, and in the last violent affray tried equally in vain to form obstruction; they not only found no favour with the majority, but were ultimately expelled from the assembly. When the Marxists hurled themselves against the majority, accusing it of "Possibilism," the latter replied: “Oui nous sommes des possibilistes, et vous êtes des impossibilistes". Yes, we are Possibilists, and you are Impossibilists. Almost about the same time Benoît Malon, writing in the 1 See the review, La question sociale, p, 76; March-April, 1888. Revue Socialiste, one of the most serious and scientific reviews of French Socialism, began to suppress the word Revolution, substituting for it crise d'évolution. And in the same review, in some articles of considerable importance, E. Rouanet demonstrated that the programme of German Socialistic Democracy is incompatible with the tendencies and wants of the French working classes. Thus, the title Parti ouvrier socialiste-révolutionnaire was replaced by Fédération des travailleurs socialistes de France. The dissensions between Possibilists and Marxists became more and more accentuated, and in 1888, at the ninth congress, the latter, who formed but a small minority, barely succeeded in having a few of their proposals adopted. And while there are but four Marxists in the French Chamber, the number of Possibilists is forty-three.1 Besides, it is very easy to understand how, in a naturally rich country, where the condition of the working-class is better than in almost any other part of Europe, and in which property is much sub-divided, and the people have enjoyed electoral rights for a number of years, that in spite of the superficial and violent character of the masses social conflicts must necessarily be much less intense and less dangerous than in Germany. It is already forty years since the problem of the attitude the Church ought to assume with regard to the new claims of labour presented itself to the minds of French Socialists. In 1852 Blanqui wrote: "There exist certain questions in political economy, such as the equitable distribution of the produce of labour, and many other problems, which must remain unsolved till religion takes them up". And long before him, Proudhon had written: "It is particularly the duty of the clergy to arouse the dormant spirits; let the priests, then, take up the noble mission thus offered them. The social question is already raised, but it is wavering, like a theory without principle; you must become masters of it, studying it in all its 1 See the study by Édourd Fontaine, “L'évolution du socialisme français," in the Revue Bleue, 6th September, 1890. 'Blanqui, Histoire de l'économie politique, vol. i., p. 152. Paris, 1852 |