I do not speak from hear-
say for I was numbered among the bargain hunters--"recruits" are
the natural victims, and there arrive enough of them each year to
get rid of worthless stock. Ten minutes after making the purchase
I set out to walk to Corozal through the first mild shower of the
rainy season--and arrived there I went and laid the bargain gently
in the waste-basket of Corozal police station.
Thus does the government sink to the petty rascalities of shop-
keepers. Even a government manager on a fixed salary--in work-
coupons--will descend to these tricks of the trade to keep out of
the clutches of the auditor, or to make a "good record." The
socialist's answer perhaps would be that under their system
government factories would make only perfect goods. But won't the
factory superintendent also be anxious to make a "record"? And
even government stock will deteriorate on the shelves.
All small things, to be sure; but it is the sum of small things
that make up that great complex thing--Life. Few of us would
object to living in that ideal dream world. But could it ever be?
I have anxiously asked this question and hinted at these little
weaknesses suggested by Zone experiences to several Zone
socialists--who are not hard to find. They merely answer that
these things have nothing to do with the case.
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