ABSTRACT
Elderly people sometimes find it difficult to accept a full denunciation of the iniquity of the financial system, because in their own lifetime they have seen so great an improvement in the standard of living of the poor. It is true that there has been such an improvement, though it is also true that the rise in the standard of living has by no means kept pace with the increase in productivity. But it is necessary to remember how great was the depth from which improvement had to be won, how miserable was the condition of the poor in the 1840’s, how wretched was the share which they were allowed to enjoy of the country’s vast productivity.
