Being the Lectures and Papers which weredelivered at the Liberal Summer Schoolat Oxford, 1922
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The papers contained in this volume are summaries—insome cases, owing to the defectiveness ofthe reports, very much abridged summaries—of aseries of discourses delivered at the Liberal SummerSchool at Oxford in the first ten days of August,1922. In two cases (“The State and Industry”and “The Machinery of Government”) two lectureshave been condensed into a single paper.
The Summer School was not arranged by anyof the official organisations of the Liberal party,nor was any part of its expenses paid out of partyfunds. It was the outcome of a spontaneous movementamong a number of men and women who,believing that Liberalism is beyond all otherpolitical creeds dependent upon the free discussionof ideas, came to the conclusion that it was desirableto create a platform upon which such discussioncould be carried on, in a manner quite differentfrom what is usual, or indeed practicable, atordinary official party gatherings. From thefirst the movement received cordial support andencouragement from the leaders of the party, whowere more than content that a movement soessentially Liberal in character should be carriedon quite independently of any official control.The meetings were inaugurated by an address byMr. Asquith, and wound up by a valediction fromLord Grey, while nearly all the recognised leadersof the party presided at one or more of the meetings,or willingly consented to give lectures. In short,while wholly unofficial, the meetings drew togetherall that is most vital in modern Liberalism.
In some degree the Summer School representeda new departure in political discussion. Most ofthe lectures were delivered, not by active politicians,but by scholars and experts whose distinction hasbeen won in other fields than practical politics.One or two of the speakers were, indeed, not evenprofessed Liberals. They were invited to speakbecause it was known that on their subjects theywould express the true mind of modern Liberalism.Whatever Lord Robert Cecil, for example, maycall himself, Liberals at any rate recognise that onmost subjects he expresses their convictions.
As a glance at the list of contents will show, thepapers cover almost the whole range of politicalinterest, foreign, domestic, and imperial, but thegreatest emphasis is laid upon the problems ofeconomic and industrial organisation. Yet, sinceit is impossible to survey the universe in ten days,there are large and important themes which remainunexplored, while many subjects of vital significanceare but lightly touched upon. Perhaps the mostnotable of these omissions is that of any treatmentof local government, and of the immensely importantsubjects—education, public health, housing,and the like—for which local authorities areprimarily held responsible. These subjects areheld over for fuller treatment in later schools; andfor that reason two papers—one on local governmentand one on education—which were deliveredat Oxford have not been included in the presentvolume.
It must be obvious, from what has been saidabove, that these papers make no pretence todefine what may be called an officia