"That will do, George. We will close the session here. Our discussion, I
find, has taken a broader range than I expected, and to complete the
subject we shall need to have a brief session this afternoon.--And now,
by way of concluding the morning, I propose to offer a little
contribution of my own. The other day, at the museum, I was delving among
the relics of literature of the great Revolution, with a view to finding
something that might illustrate our theme. I came across a little
pamphlet of the period, yellow and almost undecipherable, which, on
examination, I found to be a rather amusing skit or satirical take-off on
the profit system. It struck me that probably our lesson might prepare us
to appreciate it, and I made a copy. It is entitled "The Parable of the
Water Tank," and runs this way:
"'There was a certain very dry land, the people whereof were in sore need
of water. And they did nothing but to seek after water from morning until
night, and many perished because they could not find it.
"'Howbeit, there were certain men in that land who were more crafty and
diligent than the rest, and these had gathered stores of water where
others could find none, and the name of these men was called capitalists.
And it came to pass that the people of the land came unto the capitalists
and prayed them that they would give them of the water they had gathered
that they might drink, for their need was sore. But the capitalists
answered them and said:
"'"Go to, ye silly people! why should we give you of the water which we
have gathered, for then we should become even as ye are, and perish with
you? But behold what we will do unto you. Be ye our servants and ye shall
have water."
"'And the people said, "Only give us to drink and we will be your
servants, we and our children." And it was so.
"'Now, the capitalists were men of understanding, and wise in their
generation. They ordered the people who were their servants in bands with
captains and officers, and some they put at the springs to dip, and
others did they make to carry the water, and others did they cause to
seek for new springs. And all the water was brought together in one
place, and there did the capitalists make a great tank for to hold it,
and the tank was called the Market, for it was there that the people,
even the servants of the capitalists, came to get water. And the
capitalists said unto the people:
"'"For every bucket of water that ye bring to us, that we may pour it
into the tank, which is the Market, behold! we will give you a penny, but
for every bucket that we shall draw forth to give unto you that ye may
drink of it, ye and your wives and your children, ye shall give to us two
pennies, and the difference shall be our profit, seeing that if it were
not for this profit we would not do this thing for you, but ye should all
perish."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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