The Oblong
Savings Bank, and Building and Friendly Societies?' said Crass.
'A very large part of that belongs to people who are in business, or who have some other source of income than their own wages. There are some exceptionally fortunate workers who happen to have good situations and higher wages than the ordinary run of workmen. Then there are some who are so placed—by letting lodgings for instance—that they are able to live rent free; others whose wives go out to work; and others again who have exceptional jobs and work a lot of overtime. But these are all exceptional cases.'
'I say as no married workin' man can save any money at all,' shouted Harlow, 'not unless 'e goes without some of even the few things we are able to get—and makes 'is wife and kids go without as well.'
''Ear, 'ear!' said everybody except Crass and Slyme, who were both thrifty working men, each of whom had some money saved in one or other of the institutions mentioned.
'Then that means,' said Owen, 'that the wages received by the people in division four is not equivalent to the work they do.'
'Wotcher mean, quiverlent?' cried Crass. 'Why the 'ell don't yer talk plain English without draggin' in a lot of long words wot nobody can't understand?'
'I mean this,' replied Owen, speaking very slowly. ' Everything is produced by the people in number four. In return for their work they are given Money, and the things they have made become the property of the people who do nothing. Then, as the money is of no use, the workers go to shops and give it away in exchange for some of the things they themselves have made. They spend—or give back—all their wages; but as the money they got as wages is not equal in value to the things they produced, they find that they are only able to buy back a very small part. So you see that these little disks of metal, this Money, is a device for enabling those who do not work to rob the workers of the greater part of the fruits of their toil.'
The silence that ensued was broken by Crass.
'It sounds very pretty,' he sneered, 'but I can't make no 'ead or tail of it, meself.'
'Look here!' cried Owen. 'The Producing Class—these
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