WCP2728

[1]

Andreas Scheu.

"Burgoyne,"

Stanley Park Road,

Wallington (Surrey)

February 3rd 1909

Dear Alfred Russel Wallace,

I have to thank you for the handy little pamphlet you sent me through Julia Dawson. It is just what is wanted on the platform every day when the ignorant, the ill-conditioned and the malevolent ask the by no means impertinent question: "But how will you bring all this about?" —

It will not do to shirk this question continually by saying: "Oh, I don't know. Those, who after us will be called upon to work the change, will doubtless know much better!"

Hence the thanks of the movement are due to you for having called it's [sic] [2] attention to Bellamy's¹ "Equality".² I must confess that "Looking Backward"³ by the same author did not make me desirous of reading more from his pen. His vision of the Society of the Future was so dry, so mechanical, so altogether American that my aesthetic sense revolted against it.

Upon William Morris⁴ it had a similar effect. I well remember the conversation we had about it when one day ^{we were} taking a walk along the riverside. "I must surely write something as a counterblast to this" he said, and his "News from Nowhere"⁵ was the consequence.

I feel greatly indebted to you also for directing the attention of our sluggish leaders to the project of self[-]supporting agricultural communities as a means against Unemployment. No doubt it will require a deal of pushing to make the Labour Party adopt it.

[3] Good that it comes from you who are not a sectarian Socialist and whose voice commands universal attention and respect! —

If all the constituencies who send Labour Members to Parliament were to charge their representatives with a Imperative Mandate respecting this project; if, in consequence, the Labour Party as a whole would press it on the government, threatening to obstruct every liberal measure to the utmost of their power unless the government adopted as their own this excellent scheme against Unemployment, then there would be progress in sight at last. Let us hope we shall be able to force the hands of the leaders in this urgent matter.

Of course, you are aware the Robert Owen, as far back as 1817, submitted a report upon this question to the British Government in which he advocated such co-operative communities. He had planned the whole thing carefully in the minutest detail [4] with drawings of the buildings, the number of members for each community (1500 [perhaps 7500]) etc etc. I wonder whether Mr Mills' idea had its footing in Mr Owen's, or whether it originated independently.

Unfortunately I am not in possession of Robert Owen's⁶ Autobiography (it is quite unprocurable in the market) and must rely on Helene Simon's book:

"Robert Owen, sein Leben und seine Bedeutung für die Gegenwart."

From this, however, it would appear that it took nearly a hundred years to call the attention of the English People effectively to the possibility of settling this burning question in a satisfactory manner on a Socialist basis.

I hope you will forgive me for inflicting such a long letter upon you, and remain,

Respectfully and sincerely| Yours

And[reas] Scheu [signature]⁶