ite certain that "two or three hours' labour out of the
twenty-four by all adult males would be enough to give the whole
community all the wholesome necessaries and comforts of life,"[351]
and Bax thinks that "In a perfectly organised Socialist State men
never worked more than two or three hours a day."[352] Yves Guyot
wittily says: "There is no reason why their demands should not go
further. Zero alone can bid them defiance."[353] It is worth noting
that many Anarchists also promise a great lessening of the hours of
labour when the State has been destroyed. Kropotkin, for instance,
requires only from four to five hours' work.[354] Agitators desirous
to secure the support of the workers cannot be too lavish in their
promises.

In the Socialist State of the future a few hours' work every day will
give boundless prosperity to all, for "Wealth may easily be made as
plentiful as water at the expense of trifling toil."[355] "Under
Socialism, nineteen-twentieths of the people will be better off
materially than they are to-day, for they will be equal partners in
all the productive and distributive wealth of the community."[356]
"Comparative affluence would be enjoyed by each member of the
community."[357]

In the Socialist commonwealth of the future "all wages will be
immediately increased," for "the social community will apply itself to
raise all salaries of workers and peasants."[358] "In a Socialist
State you will have everyone paid a living wage. The surplus will be
dispensed by the State, bringing happiness to the whole
community."[359]

The British national revenue amounts at present only to a little more
than _140,000,000l._ By the abolition of the private capitalists and
landowners the Socialist Government of Great Britain "would at once
find themselves in possession of a revenue amounting to some
_900,000,000l._ per annum, and would probably be puzzled for a time
how to dispose of it and prevent themselves being buried under its
accumulation."[360] This is neither a joke nor a misprint, for the
well-known writer, author of countless Socialist pamphlets, continues:
"After a variety of attempts to dispose of it by dividing into good
fat salaries among those of your community who had had least to do
with its production, after the usual custom, I believe means would be
employed ultimately for inducing them to keep it under by increasing
the wages of the workers, which is another way of saying that those
whose labour