Imperial Expansion 29 



the height of which varies according to the age of the 

 child, and the child and the meals, to say nothing of the 

 birds in the air, vultures or otherwise, are left alone for 

 tlie best one to win. If the child knocks down the food 

 with a stone from his sling he has a meal ; it he does 

 not he goes hungry ; no wonder, therefore, that the child 

 soon becomes expert at stone-slinging. All we ask for 

 is that every citizen of the Empire should be equally 

 trained until he can help to a useful degree to obtain his 

 meals, the meals for himself and his dependents by helping 

 to increase the production and trade of the Empire to a 

 far greater degree than most of us are doing at present. 

 Until they can do so, such people should be restricted as to 

 the size and variety of the meals or other comforts and 

 advantages which they have been enjoying, since they 

 never would have come their way if it were not for the 

 labours and forethought of others, who have secured the 

 energy and training mentioned by the Prime Minister, to 

 get the better of the vultures and so become expert food- 

 producers for themselves and the lotus eaters as well. 



The time has arrived, however, when these lotus eaters, 

 as well as the inefficients, shirkers, half-timers, or advo- 

 cates for reduced outputs must no longer be tolerated. 

 They are as dangerous to the welfare of this country as 

 the undermining and peaceful penetration tactics of the 

 Germans. From now onwards everyone must be trained 

 to add his full quota of utility to the good of his own 

 country — of the Empire at large, or else be treated, no 

 matter what his or her station in life or share of wealth 

 may be, as all tramps and won't-works should be, viz., 

 sent to a labour-home and fed on dry bread and water 

 plus meat and semi-luxuries according to the amount 

 of food-stuffs they raise or of other useful work they 

 do. This refers equally to the public everywhere within 

 the Empire as well as to landed proprietors in England, 

 princes in India, or black chiefs in Africa. If they do 

 not justify their ownership and control of the land that 

 is theirs by law, then by the same law must we take it 

 from them in trust and develop it for the good of the 

 community until another member of the family owning 

 the property comes along and proves himself able and 

 willing to do what his kinsman failed in doing. And as 

 it is with the wealthy landowners, so it must be with 

 the workmen throughout the Empire — artisans, engineers, 

 or transport men here, and peasant proprietors and field 

 workers in the Tropics. They must be trained to put, as 



