“It’s about time you was buried, if the smell’s anything to go by,” said Harlow, addressing Wantley, who laughed and appeared to think he had distinguished himself.
“But even if we include the whole of the working classes,” continued Owen, “that is, the people in number three as well as those in number four, we find that their combined wages are insufficient to buy the things made by the producers. The total value of the wealth produced in this country during the last year was £1,800,000,000, and the total amount paid in wages during the same period was only £600,000,000. In other words, by means of the Money Trick, the workers were robbed of two-thirds of the value of their labour. All the people in numbers three and four are working and suffering and starving and fighting in order that the rich people in numbers one and two may live in luxury, and do nothing. These are the wretches who cause poverty: they not only devour or waste or hoard the things made by the worker, but as soon as their own wants are supplied—they compel the workers to cease working and prevent them producing the things they need. Most of these people!” cried Owen, his usually pale face flushing red and his eyes shining with sudden anger, “most of these people do not deserve to be called human beings at all! They’re devils! They know that whilst they are indulging in pleasures of every kind—all around them men and women and little children are existing in want or dying of hunger.”
The silence which followed was at length broken by Harlow:
“You say the workers is entitled to all they produce, but you forget there’s the raw materials to pay for. They don’t make them, you know.”
“Of course the workers don’t create the raw materials,” replied Owen. “But I am not aware that the capitalists or the landlords do so either. The raw materials exist in abundance in and on the earth, but they are of no use until labour has been applied to them.”
“But then, you see, the earth belongs to the landlords!” cried Crass, unguardedly.
“I know that; and of course you think it’s right that the whole country should belong to a few people—”
“I must call the lecturer to horder,” interrupted Philpot. “The land question is not before the meeting at present.”
“You talk about the producers being robbed of most of the value of what they produce,” said Harlow, “but you must remember that it ain’t all produced by hand labour. What about the things what’s made by machinery?”
“The machines themselves were made by the workers,” returned Owen, “but of course they do not belong to the workers, who have been robbed of them by means of the Money Trick.”