OLD AGE PENSIONS IN ENGLAND AND GERMANY 163 



of sickness, old age, accident, and invalidity. The scope of it is 

 shown by the fact that in the present year £34,000,000 will be 

 raised for all these purposes in Germany. The (xovernment are 

 now addino^ clerks and widows ; that, in all, will ])riii<f it up to 

 £.^3,000,000 c<intril)utcd by the nation itself for its own insurance. 

 The sum contributed by the State amounts to a little more than the 

 workinj? expenses.' 



" ' Do you think we can copy it in this country ? ' 



NON-CONTRIBUTOEY SCIIEME BEST 



" ' I should like to think that out. I have broui^ht a great deal 

 of literature which I must read. I must also study the systems at 

 work in Belgium and Austria, either myself or thi'ough my officials. 

 But I will say this much — as far as old men and old women over 

 seventy are concerned — I am of oi)inion that their cases are best 

 dealt with by a non-contributory system. Accidents are already 

 dealt with in this country under the Compensation Act ; the only 

 question is whether sickness and invalidity can be dealt with on the 

 German lines. On that point, I would like the trade union leaders 

 in this country to employ their visit to Germany to study this 

 question carefully and to help me in working it out,' 



Socialists and Labourites satisfied with German Scheme 



" ' Are the working classes in Germany satisfied with it ? ' 



" ' Both Socialists and trade union leaders seem to me to be 

 perfectly satisfied with its working. 1 pressed them for suggestions 

 for improvement, and the chief suggestion they had to make was 

 that the pension was too small. It certainly is too small, and in the 

 case of sick insurance — to which the State contributes nothing, but 

 which is a compulsory scheme forced upon all employers and work- 

 men — there is a large growth of collateral organisations for supple- 

 menting the pension. Trade union leaders, I found, were not in 

 any case opposed on principle to the contributory system. They 

 were perfectly ready to increase the workmen's contribution in order 

 to raise the level of the pension. They were all full of enthusiasm as 

 to the influence of the whole system in raising the general standard 

 of life and comfort in Germany. Some of the trade unions thought 

 that it had taught the lessons of co-operation among themselves.' 



" ' What did they think of our system ? ' 



" ' They know very little about it ; but when we told them about 

 it, they said, ' England must be a very rich country.' 



Employers satisfied 



" ' What do the employers think of the German system ? ' 

 " ' The employers seem to have been at first very dissatisfied ; 

 but, now, they are highly pleased with it. They did not at first 



