Chapter VIII
The problem of riches—Necessity for scientific investigation into the lives of the rich—Interdependence of riches and poverty—Analysis of expenditure on houses, servants, clothes, food, amusements—Impressions of a poor crowd and a rich crowd—Tragedies.
On all sides it is admitted that there is a problem of Poverty, but it has never yet been suggested that just in the same way there is a problem of Riches. Not the problem of how to become rich and how to invest money and make more money, that is the very obsession which ought to be dispelled, but the important question of how the rich spend their money, how they live, to what objects they devote their riches, and whether the vast accumulations are being disposed of to the greatest advantage. The connection between riches and poverty is capable of proof, that is to say, the maladministration of wealth by individuals can be shown to be closely linked to the disorganisation of labour which creates such evils as sweating and unemployment. But before further advance can be made towards any possible solution there must be a dissection and analysis of the lives of the rich as well as of the poor, so that some knowledge may be acquired of both sides of the medal which will demonstrate their interdependence.
We are allowed to extract every conceivable detail of the most intimate nature from the poor householder, but any sort of inquiry as to how the rich live is regarded as an impertinence. Even the suggestion that they should make a return of all their income, as a man of moderate means must do for income tax purposes, is scouted as inquisitorial.
We inquire into the lives of the poor in order to ascertain the actual facts, so that with a full knowledge of the evil we may set to work scientifically to improve their condition. But this is really only half the problem. No investigation can be complete unless an equally careful and exhaustive inquiry is made into the way the rich live. It cannot be regarded as an inquisitive prying into personal and private habits, for when the expenditure is on such a scale as to have extensive economic consequences it ceases to be of a private nature and ought to be investigated on public grounds. Not only might the inquiry be made with a view to the improvement of their own way of living—though they would refuse to admit there was any room for improvement—but by this means more light would also be thrown on the problem of poverty.
It is the question of distribution that is admittedly the insoluble difficulty, and yet we set to work to examine the barren patches and leave out of account the land that is soured by over-fertilisation. To accomplish a successful work of irrigation attention must not only be turned to the dry and arid land, but to the marshy, low-lying parts that have got more of the water than they need and require draining, otherwise an even flow over the whole can never be engineered and the full capacity of the soil cannot be given a fair chance.
It is absurd to suppose that any section of the community, whatever pretensions they may have, can live as they like without affecting the lives and wellbeing of their fellow-men. Riches may set up a fence, make those inside it believe that they are living in a world apart and blind them to what is going on outside, but riches have no power to sever the moral and spiritual, as well as the invisible economic ties which bind every individual from his birth to his death with the whole of the rest of humanity. This attitude of aloofness which the rich adopt makes it true to say of them that “they are outcasts and are cut off from natural and human relationship with the great mass of mankind.”[19] The people who consider the richness of the rich has nothing to do with the poverty of the poor are in the habit of asserting that even if all incomes large and small were added together there would not be enough “to go round.” They fail to remember that money which is invested without any return, or only getting a very low return, has not the same value and cannot go as far as the same sum bringing in a high return from a remunerative investment.
The attacks of a vaguely disparaging nature made against the rich are often beside the mark from the lack of accurate knowledge of their position, their habits, and their methods. But ought not the expenditure of these accumulated masses of money to be subjected to some scientific scrutiny? Can another “Personal Service Association” be established among the poor for visiting the rich? It is just as necessary. Can a supplement be compiled to Mr. Charles Booth’s Life and Labour of the People, Mr. Rowntree’s Poverty: a Study of Town Life?
What would be the fate of an investigator who dared to pursue his inquiries at houses in Mayfair or Belgravia? In response to the bell the massive front door would slowly open, and out of the darkness of the hall would emerge the solemn figure of an overfed butler flanked by two giants with powdered hair. The investigator, note-book in hand, if he had the courage to proceed, would ask his string of queries as to how many rooms the house contained, how many people, the cost of living, the health of the children, the employment of the man, etc. etc. But he would not get very far before the incensed and outraged dignity of his audience would take an active form and he would find himself hurled down the steps into the street.