James Connolly
Edited by Aindrias Ó Cathasaigh
p.26The Independent and New Machinery
1 October 1898
Our contemporary, the Independent newspaper, has lately introduced to its printing department some new machinery, which, it has loudly informed the Irish public, is second to none in Ireland, perhaps in Europe. We do not wish, in the smallest degree, to disparage the enterprise or the management of the Independent, but we think it right at this moment to offer to its literary staff some free instruction in the elementary principles of capitalist development; which free instruction, when thoroughly assimilated, will, we think, somewhat cool their enthusiasm over this achievement.
No one denies the right of a capitalist to introduce in his business whatever new methods or new machinery may best serve his purposes in competition with his rivals. Indeed in the competitive field there is recognised no other law than the survival of the fittest; ethics or religion are at all times deliberately laid aside in the work-a-day world, and are only taken up when the stern business of profit-making is interrupted by the weekly Sunday holiday. Even then no preacher dare apply ethical considerations to economic questions; or treat of the former in any other fashion than as mere abstractions having little, if any, bearing upon the problems of civilization.
Socialists recognise these facts while denouncing them; our enemies deny the facts while shaping their lives in accordance therewith. This much being made clear to the reader it will at once be perceived that our criticism is not likely to take the form of merely railing against this new venture should it happen to displace labour; but will be directed towards another point – a point probably even less understood than the one alluded to.
Whosoever embarks in the competitive world must keep pace with his rivals; should his industrial equipment fall beneath the standard of his competitors he will go down in the maelstrom of competition; his business will be drawn away from him by the rival who better succeeds in satisfying the p.27 public desires. If, therefore, one firm introduces into its business a machine capable of better work than its rivals, each of those rivals must also procure a similar machine or else see their business pass into the hands of their more enterprising competitor. They have absolutely no alternative. The public will go to the firm which suits them best and charges them least. Under pressure of this knowledge each firm so menaced hastens to procure machinery which will place it upon an equality with its rival; when this is accomplished and each firm stands similarly equipped and equal in productive capacity, they find that, as a result of all their anxiety and expenditure, they are exactly at the same point as they were before any such machinery was introduced. To use a homely simile: – Competition is like a crowd of people in the street striving to see some spectacle. One man gets a stool, and, standing upon it, sees better than his fellows; but should all the rest get stools and stand upon them, they would be at the same position for sight-seeing as if they all stood upon the ground.
In time, however, some one of the business firms we have spoken of – as typical of society in general – or some new competitor in the business, introduces some new machinery even better than the last; and if he is a wealthy competitor, his new machine cancels the value of all the old ones, and reduces them to the position of mere lumber. If their owners would save themselves from ruin they must equip themselves with machinery as good as this new product of the inventor's brain. Once again the weary circle must be retraced, until every firm is again equipped with the new invention, and, as a result, finds itself precisely at its starting point.
Each new machine invented renders nugatory the competitive value of all former machines; compels all the rivals of its owner to become owners of a like machine; and is generally in its turn replaced by an improvement making again a similar demand upon the owners of industry.
The Independent introduces, with a flourish of trumpets, an improved printing press. Shareholders smile in expectation of the long deferred dividend. But should it be found that this improvement accomplishes what it is intended to, viz, to draw advertisers away from the rivals of the Independent (the Freeman's Journal or Irish Times), the managerial departments of these journals will hasten also to introduce a similar machine; and so after the expenditure of much cash and energy, the competing daily papers of Dublin will find themselves again on p.28 equal terms, and not a whit better off than if such machinery had never crossed the sea.
Thus is the iron law of capitalism exemplified. Onward, ever onward, we are hurried by the pressure of economic forces; the greed of the capitalist, the competition of the market, the revolt of humane souls aghast at the atrocities of civilization, all working together toward the one end; and even when apparently in the fiercest antagonism contributing equally to produce a hatred of present conditions and so pave the way for the Socialist Republic.
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Title (uniform): The Independent and New Machinery
Author: James Connolly
Editor: Aindrias Ó Cathasaigh
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Electronic edition compiled by: Benjamin Hazard
proof corrections by: Aisling Byrne
Funded by: University College, Cork, via the Writers of Ireland Project
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2. Second draft.
Extent: 2022 words
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Publisher: CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts: a project of University College Cork
Address: College Road, Cork, Ireland—http://www.ucc.ie/celt
Date: 2006
Date: 2010
Distributor: CELT online at University College, Cork, Ireland.
CELT document ID: E900002-009
Availability: Available with prior consent of the CELT programme for purposes of academic research and teaching only.The text is here reproduced with kind permission of the editor.
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Edition
- Aindrias Ó Cathasaigh (ed.), James Connolly: The Lost Writings (London 1997) 26-28.
Selected further reading
- James Connolly and William Walker, The Connolly-Walker controversy on socialist unity in Ireland (Dublin 1911, repr. Cork 1986).
- Robert Lynd, James Connolly: an appreciation, to James Connolly, Collected works (2 vols, October 1916, repr. Dublin 1987) i, pp. 495-507.
- Lambert McKenna, The social teachings of James Connolly (Dublin 1920).
- Desmond Ryan, James Connolly: his life, work and writings (Dublin 1924).
- G. Schüller, James Connolly and Irish freedom: a marxist analysis (Chicago 1926, repr. Cork 1974).
- Noelle Davis, Connolly of Ireland: patriot and socialist (Carnarvon 1946).
- Richard Michael Fox, James Connolly: the forerunner (Tralee 1946).
- Desmond Ryan, Socialism and nationalism: a selection from the writings of James Connolly (Dublin 1948).
- Desmond Ryan, 'James Connolly', in J. W. Boyle (ed.), Leaders and workers (Cork 1960, repr. 1978).
- C. Desmond Greaves, The life and times of James Connolly (London 1961, repr. Berlin 1976).
- François Bédarida, Le socialisme et la nation: James Connolly et l'Irlande (Paris 1965).
- Joseph Deasy, James Connolly: his life and teachings (Dublin 1966).
- James Connolly, Press poisoners in Ireland and other articles (Belfast 1968).
- James Connolly, Yellow unions in Ireland and other articles (Belfast 1968).
- Peter McKevitt, James Connolly (Dublin 1969).
- Owen Dudley Edwards, The mind of an activist: James Connolly (Dublin 1981).
- Derry Kelleher, Quotations from James Connolly: an anthology in three parts (2 vols Drogheda 1972).
- Peter Berresford Ellis (ed.), James Connolly: selected writings edited with an introduction by P. Berresford Ellis (Harmondsworth 1973).
- Samuel Levenson, James Connolly: a biography (London 1973).
- James Connolly, Ireland upon the dissecting table: James Connolly on Ulster and Partition (Cork 1975).
- Nora Connolly O'Brien, James Connolly: portrait of a rebel father (Dublin 1975).
- E. Strauss, Irish nationalism and British democracy (Westport CT 1975).
- Bernard Ransom, Connolly's Marxism (London 1980).
- Communist Party of Ireland, Breaking the chains: selected writings of James Connolly on women (Belfast 1981).
- Ruth Dudley Edwards, James Connolly (Dublin 1981).
- Brian Kelly, James Connolly and the fight for an Irish Workers' Republic (Cleveland, OH 1982).
- John F. Murphy, Implications of the Irish past: the socialist ideology of James Connolly from an historical perspective (unpubl. MA thesis, University of North Carolina at Charlotte 1983).
- Anthony Lake, James Connolly: the development of his political ideology (unpubl. MA thesis, NUI Cork 1984).
- Frederick Ryan, Socialism, democracy and the Church (Dublin 1984). With reviews of Connolly's 'Labour in Irish History' and Jaures' 'Studies in socialism'.
- Connolly: the Polish aspects: a review of James Connolly's political and spiritual affinity with Józef Pilsudski, leader of the Polish Socialist Party, organiser of the Polish legions and founder of the Polish state (Belfast 1985).
- X. T. Zagladina, James Connolly (Moscow 1985).
- James Connolly and Daniel De Leon, The Connolly-De Leon Controversy: On wages, marriage and the Church (London 1986).
- David Howell, A Lost Left: three studies in socialism and nationalism (Chicago 1986).
- Priscilla Metscher, Republicanism and socialism in Ireland: a study of the relationship of politics and ideology from the United Irishmen to James Connolly, Bremer Beiträge zur Literatur- und Ideologiegeschichte 2 (Frankfurt-am-Main 1986).
- Michael O'Riordan, General introduction, to James Connolly, Collected works (2 vols Dublin 1987) i, pp. ix-xvii.
- Cathal O'Shannon, Introduction, to James Connolly, Collected works (2 vols Dublin 1987) i, 11-16
- Austen Morgan, James Connolly: a political biography (Manchester 1988).
- Helen Clark, Sing a rebel song: the story of James Connolly, born Edinburgh 1868, executed Dublin 1916 (Edinburgh 1989).
- Kieran Allen, The politics of James Connolly (London 1990).
- Andy Johnston, James Larraggy and Edward McWilliams, Connolly: a Marxist analysis (Dublin 1990).
- Lambert McKenna, The social teachings of James Connolly, by Lambert McKenna, ed. Thomas J. Morrissey (Dublin 1991).
- Donnacha Ní Gabhann, The reality of Connolly: 1868-1916 (Dublin 1993).
- William K. Anderson, James Connolly and the Irish left (Dublin 1994).
- Proinsias Mac Aonghusa, What Connolly said: James Connolly's writings (Dublin 1994).
- James L. Hyland, James Connolly: life and times (Dundalk 1997).
- William McMullen, With James Connolly in Belfast (Belfast 2001).
- Donal Nevin, James Connolly: a full life (Dublin 2005).
Connolly, James (1997). ‘The Independent and New Machinery’. In: James Connolly: The Lost Writings. Ed. by Aindrias Ó Cathasaigh. London: Pluto, pp. 26–28.
You can add this reference to your bibliographic database by copying or downloading the following:
@incollection{E900002-009,
author = {James Connolly},
title = {The Independent and New Machinery},
editor = {Aindrias Ó~Cathasaigh},
booktitle = {James Connolly: The Lost Writings},
publisher = {Pluto},
address = {London},
date = {1997},
pages = {26–28}
}
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Creation: by James Connolly
Date: 1898
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Keywords: political; essay; prose; 19c
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