3 o6 SCIENCE PROGRESS 



their opinions on certain points (or refuse to consider such 

 points), in order that they may carry decisions on other points 

 which interest them more, or in order that they may stand 

 well with their fellow intriguers, and, perhaps, pick up the 

 plums of office. 



It is argued that party is necessary for a strong govern- 

 ment. That is, again, suppression of truth for an object. But 

 the argument is merely advanced in the interests of party. 

 There have been many strong governments which were not 

 based upon party. An assembly of straight thinkers and voters 

 is much more likely to organise a strong government than 

 one consisting largely of professional prevaricators. 



These facts are dimly apparent to all. It is admitted 

 even by party politicians that certain questions requiring 

 unbiassed judgment should be kept outside party politics 

 altogether. Then why not all questions ? — for truth is never 

 attained without unbiassed reasoning. 



The party system was not always with us. At its birth 

 it lost us our American colonies to begin with. Let us hope 

 that before its forthcoming death it will not also have lost us 

 the rest of our empire. 



Party government means the preference of personal to 

 national interests. No party politician is morally or intel- 

 lectually fit to be a ruler of any nation. No nation which 

 adopts the party system is morally or intellectually fit to hold 

 the hegemony of the world. 



Party Cabinets 



The Ministers of State — the men who finally rule the 

 country — are selected by the same subterranean methods. A 

 clique within the party clique chooses the leader of the party, 

 who then chooses his cabinet when he comes into power. 

 Neither people nor Parliament possesses any vote in the selec- 

 tion nor any power to eject incompetent Ministers. Yet these 

 men not only hold the corporate direction of national affairs, 

 but individually dominate the executives of all the great 

 specialised departments of State. 



What qualifications have they for such powers ? That 

 the political head of a State department needs have no know- 

 ledge at all of the subject dealt with by that department is 

 proved by the fact that the same men are constantly being 



