ABSTRACT
In combination, Douglas’s empirical observations of cost accounting in leading
enterprises of his time and Orage’s central position within guild socialism produced a
powerful critique of the two major economic philosophies of capitalism and of the
‘orthodox’ varieties of socialism. All the major themes covered in the texts were
developed, if only in embryonic form, in Economic Democracy. They were
subsequently ‘simplified’, often to the point of obscurity, in later books, pamphlets,
articles and speeches by Douglas and other proponents of social credit. Even in
Economic Democracy, acknowledged to have been co-authored by Orage (Orage
1926: 435; Hattersley 1922), themes are incoherently juxtaposed, flowing from one
to another not merely within the same paragraph but even within the convoluted
sentences. ‘Major Douglas’ writings are not models of either clarity or concision’
(New Statesman 1922: 553). Certain passages are unintelligible, whilst others acquire
meaning only in conjunction with material in previous chapters or texts. In view of the
complete absence of editing by the original author(s), the variety of simplistic and
often misleading interpretations, sympathetic or otherwise, is scarcely remarkable.
