ely after the Great Revolution
that the three great theoretical founders of modern Socialism--Fourier,
Saint Simon, and Robert Owen, as well as Godwin (the No-State
Socialism)--came forward; while the secret communist societies,
originated from those of Buonarroti and Babeuf, gave their stamp to
militant, authoritarian Communism for the next fifty years.

To be correct, then, we must say that modern Socialism is not yet a
hundred years old, and that, for the first half of these hundred years,
two nations only, which stood at the head of the industrial movement,
i.e., Britain and France, took part in its elaboration. Both--bleeding
at that time from the terrible wounds inflicted upon them by fifteen
years of Napoleonic wars, and both enveloped in the great European
reaction that had come from the East.

In fact, it was only after the Revolution of July, 1830, in France, and
the Reform movement of 1830-1832 in this country, had begun to shake off
that terrible reaction, that the discussion of Socialism became possible
for a few years before the revolution of 1848. And it was during those
years that the aspirations of Fourier, St. Simon, and Robert Owen,
worked out by their followers, took a definite shape, and the different
schools of Socialism which exist nowadays were defined.

In Britain, Robert Owen and his followers worked out their schemes of
communist villages, agricultural and industrial at the same time;
immense co-operative associations were started for creating with their
dividends more communist colonies; and the Great Consolidated Trades'
Union was founded--the forerunner of both the Labour Parties of our
days and the International Working-men's Association.

In France, the Fourierist Considerant issued his remarkable manifesto,
which contains, beautifully developed, all the theoretical
considerations upon the growth of Capitalism, which are now described as
"Scientific Socialism." Proudhon worked out his idea of Anarchism and
Mutualism, without State interference. Louis Blanc published his
_Organization of Labour_, which became later on the programme of
Lassalle. Vidal in France and Lorenz Stein in Germany further developed,
in two remarkable works, published in 1846 and 1847 respectively, the
theoretical conceptions of Considerant; and finally Vidal, and
especially Pecqueur, developed in detail the system of Collectivism,
which the former wanted the National Assembly of 1848 to vote in the
shape of laws