,new ,edition 7enlarged7 ,,two ,,pence  
,the ,place of ,anarchism   in          
,socialistic ,evolution     ,an ,address
 delivered in ,paris   ,,by   ,,pierre  
,,kropotkin    ,translated by ,,henry   
,,glasse     ,,an ,,appeal ,,to ,,the   
,,young   ,by ,pierre ,kropotkin        
,,price - - - #b;d4     ,,william       
,,reeves          #hc ,,charing ,,cross 
,,road1   ,,bookseller ,,limited4       
--,,london1 ,w4,c4#b4--     ,,the       
,,place ,,of ,,anarchism ,,in           
,,socialistic ,,evolution     ,,part ,i4
   ,you must often have asked yourselves
 what is the cause of ,anarchism1 and   
why1 since there are already so many    
,socialist schools1 it is necessary to  
found an additional one--that of        
,anarchism4 ,in order to answer this    
question ,i will go back to the close of
 last century4  ,you all know the       
characteristics which marked that epoch3
 there was an expansion of intelligence1
 a prodigious development of the natural
 sciences1 a pitiless examination of    

accepted prejudices1 the formation of a 
theory of ,nature based on a truly      
scientific foundation1 observation and  
reasoning4 ,in addition to these there  
was criticism of the political          
institutions bequeathed to ,humanity by 
preceding ages1 and a movement towards  
that ideal of ,liberty1 ,equality1 and  
,fraternity which has in all times been 
the ideal of the popular masses4        
,fettered in its free development by    
despotism and by the narrow selfishness 
of the privileged classes1 this         
movement1 being at the same time        
favoured by an explosion of popular     
indignation1 engendered the ,great      
,revolution which had to force its way  
through the midst of a thousand         
obstacles both without and within4  ,the
 ,revolution was vanquished1 but its    
ideas remained4 ,though at first        
persecuted and derided1 they became the 
watchword for a whole century of slow   
evolution4 ,the history of the          
nineteenth century is summed up in an   

effort to put in practice the principles
 elaborated at the end of last century3 
this is the lot of revolutions3 though  
vanquished they establish the course of 
the evolution which follows them4 ,in   
the domain of politics these ideas are  
abolition of aristocratic privileges1   
abolition of personal government1 and   
equality before the law4 ,in the        
economic order the ,revolution          
proclaimed freedom of business          
transactions2 it said--,sell and buy    
freely4 ,sell1 all of you1 your         
products1 if you can produce1 and if you
 do not possess the implements necessary
 for that purpose but have only your    
arms to sell1 sell them1 sell your      
labour to the highest bidder1 the ,state
 will not interfere6 ,compete among     
yourselves1 contractors6 ,no favour     
shall be shown1 the law of natural      
selection will take upon itself the     
function of killing off those who do not
 keep pace with the progress of         
industry1 and will reward those who take

 the lead4  ,the above is at least the  
theory of the ,revolution of #aghi1 and 
if the ,state intervenes in the struggle
 to favour some to the detriment of     
others1 as we have lately seen when the 
monopolies of mining and railway        
companies have been under discussion1   
such action is regarded by the liberal  
school as a lamentable deviation from   
the grand principles of the ,revolution4
  ,what has been the result8 ,you know  
only too well1 both women and men1 idle 
opulence for a few and uncertainty for  
the morrow and misery for the greater   
number2 crisis and wars for the conquest
 of markets1 and a lavish expenditure of
 public money to find openings for      
industrial speculators4 ,all this is    
because in proclaiming liberty of       
contract an essential point was         
neglected by our fathers4 ,not but what 
some of them caught sight of it1 the    
best of them earnestly desired but did  
not dare to realise it4 ,while liberty  
of transactions1 that is to say a       

conflict between the members of society1
 was proclaimed1 the contending parties 
were not equally matched1 and the       
powerful1 armed for the contest by the  
means inherited from their fathers1 have
 gained the upper hand over the weak4   
,under such conditions the millions of  
poor ranged against a few rich could not
 do otherwise than give in4  ,comrades6 
you have often asked yourselves--,whence
 comes the wealth of the rich8 ,is it   
from their labour8 ,it would be a       
mockery to say that it was so4 ,let us  
suppose that ,m4 ,rothschild has worked 
all his life3 well1 you also1 every one 
of you working men have also laboured3  
then why should the fortune of ,m4      
,rothschild be measured by hundreds of  
millions while your possessions are so  
small8 ,the reason is simple3 you have  
exerted yourselves to produce by your   
own labour1 while ,m4 ,rothschild has   
devoted himself to accumulating the     
product of the labour of others--the    
whole matter lies in that4  ,but some   

one may say to me2--,how comes it that  
millions of men thus allow the          
,rothschilds and the ,mackays to        
appropriate the fruit of their labour8  
,alas1 they cannot help themselves under
 the existing social system6 ,but let us
 picture to our minds a city all of     
whose inhabitants find their lodging1   
clothing1 food and occupation secured to
 them1 on condition of producing things 
useful to the community1 and let us     
suppose a ,rothschild to enter this city
 bringing with him a cask full of gold4 
,if he spends his gold it will diminish 
rapidly2 if he locks it up it will not  
increase1 because gold does not grow    
like seed1 and after the lapse of a     
twelvemonth he will not find #aaj in his
 drawer if he only put #ajj into it4 ,if
 he sets up a factory and proposes to   
the inhabitants of the town that they   
should work in it for four shillings a  
day while producing to the value of     
eight shillings a day they reply--,among
 us you'll find no one willing to work  

on those terms4 ,go elsewhere and settle
 in some town where the unfortunate     
people have neither clothing1 bread1 nor
 work assured to them1 and where they   
will consent to give up to you the      
lion's share of the result of their     
labour in return for the barest         
necessaries of life4 ,go where men      
starve6 there you will make your        
fortune6  ,the origin of the wealth of  
the rich is your misery4 ,let there be  
no poor1 then we shall have no          
millionaires4  ,the facts ,i have just  
stated were such as the ,revolution of  
last century did not comprehend or else 
could not act upon4 ,that ,revolution   
placed face to face two opposing ranks1 
the one consisting of a hungry1 ill-clad
 army of former serfs1 the other of men 
well provided with means4 ,it then said 
to these two arrays--,fight out your    
battle4 ,the unfortunate were           
vanquished4 ,they possessed no fortunes1
 but they had something more precious   
than all the gold in the world--their   

arms2 and these arms1 the source of all 
wealth1 were monopolised by the wealthy4
 ,thus we have seen those immense       
fortunes which are the characteristic   
feature of our age spring up on all     
sides4 ,a king of the last century1 the 
great ,louis the ,fourteenth of         
mercenary historians1 would never have  
dreamed of possessing a fortune such as 
are held by those kings of the          
nineteenth century1 the ,vanderbilts and
 the ,mackays4  ,on the other hand we   
have seen the poor reduced still more   
and more to toil for others1 and while  
those who produced on their own account 
have rapidly disappeared1 we find       
ourselves compelled under an ever       
increasing pressure to labour more and  
more to enrich the rich4 ,attempts have 
been made to remove these evils4 ,some  
have said--,let us give equal           
instruction to all1 and forthwith       
education has been spread abroad4       
,better human machines have been turned 
out1 but these educated machines still  

labour to enrich others4 ,this          
illustrious scientist1 that renowned    
novelist1 despite their education are   
still beasts of burden to the           
capitalist4 ,instruction improves the   
cattle to be exploited but the          
exploitation remains4 ,next1 there was  
great talk about association1 but the   
workers soon learned that they could not
 get the better of capital by           
associating their miseries1 and those   
who cherished this illusion most        
earnestly were compelled to turn to     
,socialism4  ,timid1 at the outset1     
,socialism spoke at first in the name of
 ,christian sentiment and morality3 men 
profoundly imbued with the moral        
principles of ,christianity--principles 
which it possesses in common with all   
other religions--came forward and       
said--,a ,christian has no right to     
exploit his brethren6 ,but the ruling   
classes laughed in their faces with the 
reply--,teach the people ,christian     
resignation1 tell them in the name of   

,christ that they should offer their    
left cheek to whosoever smites them on  
the right1 then you will be welcome2 as 
for the dreams of equality which you    
find in ,christianity1 go and meditate  
on your discoveries in prison4  ,later  
on ,socialism spoke in the name of      
,governmentalism2 it said--,since it is 
the special mission of the ,state to    
protect the weak against the strong1 it 
is its duty to aid working men's        
associations2 the ,state alone can      
enable working men to fight against     
capital and to oppose to capitalistic   
exploitation the free workshop of       
workers pocketing the entire value of   
the produce of their labour4 ,to this   
the ,bourgeoisie replied with grapeshot 
in #ahdh4  ,it was not until between    
twenty to thirty years later1 at a time 
when the popular masses were invited to 
express their mind in the ,international
 ,working ,men's ,association1 that     
,socialism spoke in the name of the     
people1 and formulating itself little by

 little in the ,congresses of the great 
,association and later on among its     
successors1 arrived at some such        
conclusion as the following3  ,all      
accumulated wealth is the product of the
 labour of all--of the present and of   
all preceding generations4 ,this hall in
 which we are now assembled derives its 
value from the fact that it is situated 
in ,paris--this magnificent city built  
by the labours of twenty successive     
generations4 ,if this same hall were    
conveyed amid the snows of ,siberia its 
value would be next to nothing4 ,the    
machinery which you have invented and   
patented bears within itself the        
intelligence of five or six generations 
and is only possessed of value because  
it forms part of that immense whole that
 we call the progress of the nineteenth 
century4 ,if you send your lace-making  
machine among the natives of ,new       
,guinea it will become valueless4 ,we   
defy any man of genius of our times to  
tell us what share his intellect has had

 in the magnificent deductions of the   
book1 the work of talent which he has   
produced6 ,generations have toiled to   
accumulate facts for him1 his ideas have
 perhaps been suggested to him by a     
locomotive crossing the plains1 as for  
elegance of design he has grasped it    
while admiring the ,venus of ,milo or   
the work of ,murillo1 and finally1 if   
his book exercises any influence over   
us1 it does so1 thanks to all the       
circumstances of our civilisation4      
,everything belongs to all6 ,we defy    
anyone soever to tell us what share of  
the general wealth is due to each       
individual4 ,see the enormous mass of   
appliances which the nineteenth century 
has created2 behold those millions of   
iron slaves which we call machines1 and 
which plane and saw1 weave and spin for 
us1 separate and combine the raw        
materials1 and work the miracles of our 
times4 ,no one has the right to         
monopolise any one of these machines and
 to say to others--,this is mine1 if you

 wish to make use of it you must pay me 
a tax on each article you produce1 any  
more than the feudal lord of the middle 
ages had the right to say to the        
cultivator--,this hill and this meadow  
are mine and you must pay me tribute for
 every sheaf of barley you bind1 and on 
each haycock you heap up4  ,all belongs 
to everyone6 ,and provided each man and 
woman contributes his and her share of  
labour for the production of necessary  
objects1 they have a right to share in  
all that is produced by everybody4      
,,part ,,ii4   ,all things belong to    
all1 and provided that men and women    
contribute their share of labour for the
 production of necessary objects1 they  
are entitled to their share of all that 
is produced by the community at large4  
,but this is ,communism1 you may say4   
,yes1 it is ,communism1 but it is the   
,communism which no longer speaks in the
 name of religion or of the state1 but  
in the name of the people4 ,during the  
past fifty years a great awakening of   

the working-class has taken place6 the  
prejudice in favour of private property 
is passing away4 ,the worker grows more 
and more accustomed to regard the       
factory1 the railway1 or the mine1 not  
as a feudal castle belonging to a lord1 
but as an institution of public utility 
which the public has the right to       
control4 ,the idea of possession in     
common has not been worked out from the 
slow deductions of some thinker buried  
in his private study1 it is a thought   
which is germinating in the brains of   
the working masses1 and when the        
revolution1 which the close of this     
century has in store for us1 shall have 
hurled confusion into the camp of our   
exploiters1 you will see that the mass  
of the people will demand               
,expropriation1 and will proclaim its   
right to the factory1 the locomotive1   
and the steamship4  ,just as the        
sentiment of the inviolability of the   
home has developed during the latter    
half of our century1 so also the        

sentiment of collective right to all    
that serves for the production of wealth
 has developed among the masses4 ,it is 
a fact1 and he who1 like ourselves1     
wishes to share the popular life and    
follow its development1 must acknowledge
 that this affirmation is a faithful    
summary of the people's aspirations4    
,the tendency of this closing century is
 towards ,communism1 not the monastic or
 barrack-room ,communism formerly       
advocated1 but the free ,communism which
 places the products reaped or          
manufactured in common at the disposal  
of all1 leaving to each the liberty to  
consume them as he pleases in his own   
home4  ,this is the solution of which   
the mass of the people can most readily 
take hold1 and it is the solution which 
the people demands at the most solemn   
epochs4 ,in #ahdh the formula ,from each
 according to his abilities1 to each    
according to his needs was the one which
 went straight to the heart of the      
masses1 and if they acclaimed the       

,republic and universal suffrage1 it was
 because they hoped to attain to        
,communism through them4 ,in #ahga1     
also1 when the people besieged in ,paris
 desired to make a supreme effort to    
resist the invader1 what was their      
demand8--,that free rations should be   
served out to everyone4 ,let all        
articles be put into one common stock   
and let them be distributed according to
 the requirements of each4 ,let each one
 take freely of all that is abundant and
 let those objects which are less       
plentiful be distributed more sparingly 
and in due proportions--this is the     
solution which the mass of the workers  
understand best4 ,this is also the      
system which is commonly practised in   
the rural districts 7of ,france74 ,so   
long as the common lands afford abundant
 pasture1 what ,commune seeks to        
restrict their use8 ,when brush-wood and
 chestnuts are plentiful1 what ,commune 
forbids its members to take as much as  
they want8 ,and when the larger wood    

begins to grow scarce1 what course does 
the peasant adopt8--,the allowancing of 
individuals4  ,let us take from the     
common stock the articles which are     
abundant1 and let those objects whose   
production is more restricted be served 
out in allowances according to          
requirements1 giving preference to      
children and old persons1 that is to    
say1 to the weak4 ,and1 moreover1 let   
all be consumed1 not in public1 but at  
home1 according to individual tastes and
 in company with one's family and       
friends4 ,this is the ideal of the      
masses4  ,but it is not enough to argue 
about1 ,communism and ,expropriation2 it
 is furthermore necessary to know who   
should have the management of the common
 patrimony1 and it is especially on this
 question that different schools of     
,socialists are opposed to one another1 
some desiring authoritarian ,communism1 
and others1 like ourselves1 declaring   
unreservedly in favour of anarchist     
,communism4 ,in order to judge between  

these two1 let us return once again to  
our starting point1 the ,revolution of  
last century4  ,in overturning royalty  
the ,revolution proclaimed the          
sovereignty of the people2 but1 by an   
inconsistency which was very natural at 
that time1 it proclaimed1 not a         
permanent sovereignty1 but an           
intermittent one1 to be exercised at    
certain intervals only1 for the         
nomination of deputies supposed to      
represent the people4 ,in reality it    
copied its institutions from the        
representative government of ,england4  
,the ,revolution was drowned in blood1  
and1 nevertheless1 representative       
government became the watchword of      
,europe4 ,all ,europe1 with the         
exception of ,russia1 has tried it1     
under all possible forms1 from          
government based on a property          
qualification to the direct government  
of the little ,swiss republics4 ,but1   
strange to say1 just in proportion as we
 have approached nearer to the ideal of 

a representative government1 elected by 
a perfectly free universal suffrage1 in 
that same proportion have its essential 
vices become manifest to us1 till we    
have clearly seen that this mode of     
government is radically defective4 ,is  
it not indeed absurd to take a certain  
number of men from out the mass1 and to 
entrust them with the management of all 
public affairs1 saying to them1 ,attend 
to these matters1 we exonerate ourselves
 from the task by laying it upon you3 it
 is for you to make laws on all manner  
of subjects--armaments and mad dogs1    
observatories and chimneys1 instruction 
and street-sweeping3 arrange these      
things as you please and make laws about
 them1 since you are the chosen ones    
whom the people has voted capable of    
doing everything6 ,it appears to me that
 if a thoughtful and honest man were    
offered such a post1 he would answer    
somewhat in this fashion3--  ,you       
entrust me with a task which ,i am      
unable to fulfil4 ,i am unacquainted    

with most of the questions upon which ,i
 shall be called on to legislate4 ,i    
shall either have to work to some extent
 in the dark1 which will not be to your 
advantage1 or ,i shall appeal to you and
 summon meetings in which you will      
yourselves seek to come to an           
understanding on the questions at issue1
 in which case my office will be        
unnecessary4 ,if you have formed an     
opinion and have formulated it1 and if  
you are anxious to come to an           
understanding with others who have also 
formed an opinion on the same subject1  
then all you need do is to communicate  
with your neighbours and send a delegate
 to come to an understanding with other 
delegates on this specific question2 but
 you will certainly reserve to          
yourselves the right of taking an       
ultimate decision2 you will not entrust 
your delegate with the making of laws   
for you4 ,this is how scientists and    
business men act each time that they    
have to come to an agreement4  ,but the 

above reply would be a repudiation of   
the representative system1 and          
nevertheless it is a faithful expression
 of the idea which is growing everywhere
 since the vices of representative      
government have been exposed in all     
their nakedness4 ,our age1 however1 has 
gone still further1 for it has begun to 
discuss the rights of the ,state and of 
,society in relation to the individual2 
people now ask to what point the        
interference of the ,state is necessary 
in the multitudinous functions of       
society4         99       99       99   
99       99  ,do we require a government
 to educate our children8 ,only let the 
worker have leisure to instruct himself1
 and you will see that1 through the free
 initiative of parents and of persons   
fond of tuition1 thousands of           
educational societies and schools of all
 kinds will spring up1 rivalling one    
another in the excellence of their      
teaching4 ,if we were not crushed by    
taxation and exploited by employers1 as 

we now are1 could we not ourselves do   
much better than is now done for us8    
,the great centres would initiate       
progress and set the example1 and you   
may be sure that the progress realised  
would be incomparably superior to what  
we now attain through our               
ministeries4--,is the ,state even       
necessary for the defence of a          
territory8 ,if armed brigands attack a  
people1 is not that same people1 armed  
with good weapons1 the surest rampart to
 oppose to the foreign aggressor8       
,standing armies are always beaten by   
invaders1 and history teaches that the  
latter are to be repulsed by a popular  
rising alone4--,while ,government is an 
excellent machine to protect monopoly1  
has it ever been able to protect us     
against ill-disposed persons8 ,does it  
not1 by creating misery1 increase the   
number of crimes instead of diminishing 
them8 ,in establishing prisons into     
which multitudes of men1 women1 and     
children are thrown for a time in order 

to come forth infinitely worse than when
 they went in1 does not the ,state      
maintain nurseries of vice at the       
expense of the tax-payers8 ,in obliging 
us to commit to others the care of our  
affairs1 does it not create the most    
terrible vice of societies--indifference
 to public matters8  ,on the other hand1
 if we analyse all the great advances   
made in this century--our international 
traffic1 our industrial discoveries1 our
 means of communication--do we find that
 we owe them to the ,state or to private
 enterprise8 ,look at the network of    
railways which cover ,europe4 ,at       
,madrid1 for example1 you take a ticket 
for ,st4 ,petersburg direct4 ,you travel
 along railroads which have been        
constructed by millions of workers1 set 
in motion by dozens of companies2 your  
carriage is attached in turn to         
,spanish1 ,french1 ,bavarian1 and       
,russian locomotives3 you travel without
 losing twenty minutes anywhere1 and the
 two hundred francs which you paid in   

,madrid will be divided to a nicety     
among the companies which have combined 
to forward you to your destination4     
,this line from ,madrid to ,st4         
,petersburg has been constructed in     
small isolated branches which have been 
gradually connected1 and direct trains  
are the result of an understanding which
 has been arrived at between twenty     
different companies4 ,of course there   
has been considerable friction at the   
outset1 and at times some companies1    
influenced by an unenlightened egotism  
have been unwilling to come to terms    
with the others2 but1 ,i ask1 was it    
better to put up with this occasional   
friction1 or to wait until some         
,bismarck1 ,napoleon1 or ,zengis ,khan  
should have conquered ,europe1 traced   
the lines with a pair of compasses1 and 
regulated the despatch of the trains8   
,if the latter course had been adopted1 
we should still be in the days of       
stage-coaches4  ,the network of railways
 is the work of the human mind          

proceeding from the simple to the       
complex by the spontaneous efforts of   
the parties interested1 and it is thus  
that all the great enterprises of our   
age have been undertaken4 ,it is quite  
true1 indeed1 that we pay too much to   
the managers of these enterprises2 this 
is an additional reason for suppressing 
their incomes1 but not for confiding the
 management of ,european railways to a  
central ,european government4  ,what    
thousands of examples one could cite in 
support of his same idea6 ,take all     
great enterprises such as the ,suez     
,canal1 the lines of ,atlantic steamers1
 the telegraph which connects us with   
,north and ,south ,america4 ,consider   
also that commercial organisation which 
enables you on rising in the morning to 
find bread at the baker's--that is1 if  
you have the money to pay for it1 which 
is not always the case now-a-days--meat 
at the butcher's1 and all other things  
that you want at other shops4 ,is this  
the work of the ,state8 ,it is true that

 we pay abominably dearly for middlemen2
 this is1 however1 an additional reason 
for suppressing them1 but not for       
believing that we must entrust          
government with the care of providing   
for our feeding and clothing4 ,if we    
closely scan the development of the     
human mind in our times we are struck by
 the number of associations which spring
 up to meet the varied requirement of   
the individual of our age--societies for
 study1 for commerce1 for pleasure and  
recreation2 some of them1 very small1   
for the propagation of a universal      
language or a certain method of         
short-hand writing2 others with large   
arms1 such as that which has recently   
been established for the defence of the 
,english coast1 or for the avoidance of 
lawsuits1 and so on4 ,to make a list of 
the associations which exist in ,europe1
 volumes would be necessary1 and it     
would be seen that there is not a single
 branch of human activity with which one
 or other does not concern itself4 ,the 

,state itself appeals to them in the    
discharge of its most important         
function--war2 it says1 ,we undertake to
 slaughter1 but we cannot take care of  
our victims2 form a ,red ,cross ,society
 to gather up the wounded on the        
battle-field and to take care of them4  
,let others1 if they will1 advocate     
industrial barracks or the monastery of 
,authoritarian ,communism1 we declare   
that the tendency of society is in an   
opposite direction4 ,we foresee millions
 and millions of groups freely          
constituting themselves for the         
satisfaction of all the varied needs of 
human beings--some of these groups      
organised by quarter1 street1 and house2
 others extending hands across the walls
 of cities1 over frontiers and oceans4  
,all of these will be composed of human 
beings who will combine freely1 and     
after having performed their share of   
productive labour will meet together1   
either for the purpose of consumption1  
or to produce objects of art or luxury1 

or to advance science in a new          
direction4 ,this is the tendency of the 
nineteenth century1 and we follow it2 we
 only ask to develop it freely1 without 
any governmental interference4          
,individual liberty6 ,take pebbles1 said
 ,fourrier1 put them into a box and     
shake them1 and they will arrange       
themselves in a mosaic that you could   
never get by entrusting to anyone the   
work of arranging them harmoniously4    
,,part ,,iii4   ,now let me pass to the 
third part of my subject--the most      
important with respect to the future4   
,there is no more room for doubting that
 religions are going2 the nineteenth    
century has given them their death blow4
 ,but religions--all religions--have a  
double composition4 ,they contain in the
 first place a primitive cosmogony1 a   
rude attempt at explaining nature1 and  
they furthermore contain a statement of 
the public morality born and developed  
within the mass of the people4 ,but when
 we throw religions overboard or store  

them among our public records as        
historical curiosities1 shall we also   
relegate to museums the moral principles
 which they contain8 ,this has sometimes
 been done1 and we have seen people     
declare that as they no longer believed 
in the various religions so they        
despised morality and boldly proclaimed 
the maxim of bourgeois selfishness1     
,everyone for himself4 ,but a ,society1 
human or animal1 cannot exist without   
certain rules and moral habits springing
 up within it2 religion may go1 morality
 remains4 ,if we were to come to        
consider that a man did well in lying1  
deceiving his neighbours1 or plundering 
them when possible 7this is the         
middle-class business morality71 we     
should come to such a pass that we could
 no longer live together4 ,you might    
assure me of your friendship1 but       
perhaps you might only do so in order to
 rob me more easily2 you might promise  
to do a certain thing for me1 only to   
deceive me2 you might promise to forward

 a letter for me1 and you might steal it
 just like an ordinary governor of a    
jail4 ,under such conditions society    
would become impossible1 and this is so 
generally understood that the           
repudiation of religions in no way      
prevents public morality from being     
maintained1 developed1 and raised to a  
higher and ever higher standard4 ,this  
fact is so striking that philosophers   
seek to explain it by the principles of 
utilitarianism1 and recently ,spencer   
sought to base the morality which exists
 among us upon physiological causes and 
the needs connected with the            
preservation of the race4  ,let me give 
you an example in order to explain to   
you what we think on the matter4  ,a    
child is drowning1 and four men who     
stand upon the bank see it struggling in
 the water4 ,one of them does not stir1 
he is a partisan of ,each one for       
himself1 the maxim of the commercial    
middle-class2 this one is a brute and we
 need not speak of him further4 ,the    

next one reasons thus3 ,if ,i save the  
child1 a good report of my action will  
be made to the ruler of heaven1 and the 
,creator will reward me by increasing my
 flocks and my serfs1 and thereupon he  
plunges into the water4 ,is he therefore
 a moral man8 ,clearly not6 ,he is a    
shrewd calculator1 that is all4 ,the    
third1 who is an utilitarian1 reflects  
thus 7or at least utilitarian           
philosophers represent him as so        
reasoning73 ,pleasures can be classed in
 two categories1 inferior pleasures and 
higher ones4 ,to save the life of anyone
 is a superior pleasure infinitely more 
intense and more durable than others2   
therefore ,i will save the child4       
,admitting that any man ever reasoned   
thus1 would he not be a terrible        
egotist8 and1 moreover1 could we ever be
 sure that his sophistical brain would  
not at some given moment cause his will 
to incline toward an inferior pleasure1 
that is to say1 towards refraining from 
troubling himself8 ,there remains the   

fourth individual4 ,this man has been   
brought up from his childhood to feel   
himself one with the rest of humanity3  
from his childhood he has always        
regarded men as possessing interests in 
common3 he has accustomed himself to    
suffer when his neighbours suffer1 and  
to feel happy when everyone around him  
is happy4 ,directly he hears the        
heart-rending cry of the mother1 he     
leaps into the water1 not through       
reflection but by instinct1 and when she
 thanks him for saving her child1 he    
says1 ,what have ,i done to deserve     
thanks1 my good woman8 ,i am happy to   
see you happy2 ,i have acted from       
natural impulse and could not do        
otherwise6  ,you recognise in this case 
the truly moral man1 and feel that the  
others are only egotists in comparison  
with him4 ,the whole anarchist morality 
is represented in this example4 ,it is  
the morality of a people which does not 
look for the sun at midnight--a morality
 without compulsion or authority1 a     

morality of habit4 ,let us create       
circumstances in which man shall not be 
led to deceive nor exploit others1 and  
then by the very force of things the    
moral level of humanity will rise to a  
height hitherto unknown4 ,men are       
certainly not to be moralised by        
teaching them a moral catechism3        
tribunals and prisons do not diminish   
vice2 they pour it over society in      
floods4 ,men are to be moralised only by
 placing them in a position which shall 
contribute to develop in them those     
habits which are social1 and to weaken  
those which are not so4 ,a morality     
which has become instinctive is the true
 morality1 the only morality which      
endures while religions and systems of  
philosophy pass away4  ,let us now      
combine the three preceding elements1   
and we shall have ,anarchy and its place
 in ,socialistic ,evolution4            
,emancipation of the producer from the  
yoke of capital2 production in common   
and free consumption of all the products

 of the common labour4  ,emancipation   
from the governmental yoke2 free        
development of individuals in groups and
 federations2 free organisation         
ascending from the simple to the        
complex1 according to mutual needs and  
tendencies4  ,emancipation from         
religious morality2 free morality1      
without compulsion or authority1        
developing itself from social life and  
becoming habitual4  ,the above is no    
dream of students1 it is a conclusion   
which results from an analysis of the   
tendencies of modern society3 ,anarchist
 ,communism is the union of the two     
fundamental tendencies of our society--a
 tendency towards economic equality1 and
 a tendency towards political liberty4  
,so long as ,communism presented itself 
under an authoritarian form1 which      
necessarily implies government1 armed   
with much greater power than that which 
it possesses to-day1 inasmuch as it     
implies economic in addition to         
political power--so long as this was the

 case1 ,communism met with no sufficient
 response4 ,before #ahdh it could1      
indeed1 sometimes excite for a moment   
the enthusiasm of the worker who was    
prepared to submit to any all-powerful  
government1 provided it would release   
him from the terrible situation in which
 he was placed1 but it left the true    
friends of liberty indifferent4         
,anarchist ,communism maintains that    
most valuable of all                    
conquests--individual liberty--and      
moreover extends it and gives it a solid
 basis--economic liberty--without which 
political liberty in delusive2 it does  
not ask the individual who has rejected 
god1 the universal tyrant1 god the king1
 and god the parliament1 to give unto   
himself a god more terrible than any of 
the preceding--god the ,community1 or to
 abdicate upon its altar his            
independence1 his will1 his tastes1 and 
to renew the vow of asceticism which he 
formerly made before the crucified god4 
,it says to him1 on the contrary1 ,no   

society is free so long as the          
individual is not so6 ,do not seek to   
modify society by imposing upon it an   
authority which shall make everything   
right2 if you do1 you will fail as popes
 and emperors have failed4 ,modify      
society so that your fellows may not be 
any longer your enemies by the force of 
circumstances3 abolish the conditions   
which allow some to monopolise the fruit
 of the labour of others2 and instead of
 attempting to construct society from   
top to bottom1 or from the centre to the
 circumference1 let it develop itself   
freely from the simple to the composite1
 by the free union of free groups4 ,this
 course1 which is so much obstructed at 
present1 is the true forward march of   
society3 do not seek to hinder it1 do   
not turn your back on progress1 but     
march along with it6 ,then the sentiment
 of sociability which is common to human
 beings1 as it is to all animals living 
in society1 will be able to develop     
itself freely1 because our fellows will 

no longer be our enemies1 and we shall  
thus arrive at a state of things in     
which each individual will be able to   
give free rein to his inclinations1 and 
even to his passions1 without any other 
restraint than the love and respect of  
those who surround him4  ,this is our   
ideal1 and it is the ideal which lies   
deep in the hearts of peoples--of all   
peoples4 ,we know full well that this   
ideal will not be attained without      
violent shocks2 the close of this       
century has a formidable revolution in  
store for us3 whether it begins in      
,france1 ,germany1 ,spain1 or ,russia1  
it will be an ,european one1 and        
spreading with the same rapidity as that
 of our fathers1 the heroes of #ahdh1 it
 will set all ,europe in a blaze4 ,this 
coming ,revolution will not aim at a    
mere change of government1 but will have
 a social character2 the work of        
expropriation will commence1 and        
exploiters will be driven out4 ,whether 
we like it or not1 this will be done    

independently of the will of            
individuals1 and when hands are laid on 
private property we shall arrive at     
,communism1 because we shall be forced  
to do so4 ,communism1 however1 cannot be
 either authoritarian or parliamentary1 
it must either be anarchist or          
non-existent2 the mass of the people    
does not desire to trust itself again to
 any saviour1 but will seek to organise 
itself by itself4  ,we do not advocate  
,communism and ,anarchy because we      
imagine men to be better than they      
really are2 if we had angels among us we
 might be tempted to entrust to them the
 task of organising us1 though doubtless
 even they would show the cloven foot   
very soon4 ,but it is just because we   
take men as they are that we say3 ,do   
not entrust them with the governing of  
you4 ,this or that despicable minister  
might have been an excellent man if     
power had not been given to him4 ,the   
only way of arriving at harmony of      
interests is by a society without       

exploiters and without rulers4 ,it is   
precisely because men are not angels    
that we say1 ,let us arrange matters so 
that each man may see his interest bound
 up with the interests of others1 then  
you will no longer have to fear his evil
 passions4  ,anarchist ,communism being 
the inevitable result of existing       
tendencies1 it is towards this ideal    
that we must direct our steps1 instead  
of saying1 ,yes1 ,anarchy is an         
excellent ideal1 and then turning our   
backs upon it4 ,should the approaching  
revolution not succeed in realising the 
whole of this ideal1 still all that     
shall have been effected in the         
direction of it will remain2 but all    
that shall have been done in a contrary 
direction will be doomed to disappear4  
,it is a general rule that a popular    
revolution may be vanquished1 but that1 
nevertheless1 it furnishes a motto for  
the evolution of the succeeding century4
 ,france expired under the heel of the  
allies in #ahae1 and yet the action of  

,france had rendered serfdom impossible 
of continuance1 all over ,europe1 and   
representative government inevitable2   
universal suffrage was drowned in blood1
 and yet universal suffrage is the      
watchword of the century4 ,in #ahga the 
,commune expired under volleys of       
grapeshot1 and yet the watchword in     
,france to-day is the ,free ,commune4   
,and if ,anarchist ,communism is        
vanquished in the coming revolution1    
after having asserted itself in the     
light of day1 not only will it leave    
behind it the abolition of private      
property1 not only will the working man 
have learned his true place in society1 
not only will the landed and mercantile 
aristocracy have received a mortal blow1
 but ,communist ,anarchism will be the  
goal of the evolution of the twentieth  
century4  ,anarchist ,communism sums up 
all that is most beautiful and most     
durable in the progress of humanity2 the
 sentiment of justice1 the sentiment of 
liberty1 and solidarity or community of 

interest4 ,it guarantees the free       
evolution1 both of the individual and of
 society4 ,therefore1 it will triumph4  
,printed by ,,the ,,new ,,temple        
,,press1 ,norbury1 ,london1 ,great      
,britain4