MR. BLA.TCHFORD'S ARTICLES.
[To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR:"] SIR,—As a resident in the district where the Rev. George W. Taylor laboured before he was called to Leith, I have watched with regret the progress of Socialism among working men, and I attribute the success of Mr. Blatchford's and Mr. Keir Hardie's disciples in a very large measure to the apathy of the clergymen of Scotland. I have on many occasions, both by word and pen, endeavoured to combat the insidious doctrines of the Clarion and the Fabian Society, and to enlist the aid of the clergy in that direction, but the invariable answer of the latter has been that it is not their province to interfere in such matters. Time was when the ministers of Scotland would have grappled with a matter of this kind in its infancy and told the people their duty, but in these days too many members of the cloth fold their hands and com- placently say that the social condition of the people and kindred subjects are political, not spiritual, questions.
I am of opinion that lack of interest on the part of the clergy in the everyday things of life has contributed more to the advance of Socialism, and also to non-church-going, in Scotland in recent years than any other cause, and I suggest to Mr. Taylor and all ministers to exercise their talents in the pulpit and on the platform, and so guide the working men of Scotland to form an intelligent opinion on a question which affects their welfare to such an extent as Socialism does. I do not approve of ministers dictating to their people on general political questions, but Socialism as it is now presented to us is so far-reaching in its evil effects that ministers may safely deal with it without in any way being considered special pleaders for either the Liberal or the Unionist Party. The influence of an earnest minister is still of some account in Scotland, and his counsel, if wisely given, will be gratefully received by those in whose eyes the blatant street-corner Socialist orator and the political carpet-bagger—who is all things to all men when desiring their votes—too frequently throw dust.
I do not know what side Mr. Taylor is taking in the present General Election, but when resident in the West he was, I think, closely associated with the political party which of late years has pandered to an alarming extent to Socialists in the House of Commons and in the country, and iu this way he may have unconsciously contributed to the success of a move- ment which he now deplores. It is well known that most of the ministers of the denomination to which Mr. Taylor belongs are ardent supporters of the political party just referred to, and so, indirectly, help to advance the doctrines of Sccialism.
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