the new machiavelli-第61章

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had　a　dozen　men　alert　to　get　me　special　matter　of　the　sort　that　

draws　in　the　unattached　reader。　　The　chief　danger　on　the　literary　

side　of　a　weekly　is　that　it　should　fall　into　the　hands　of　some　

particular　school；　and　this　I　watched　for　closely。　　It　seems　

impossible　to　get　vividness　of　apprehension　and　breadth　of　view　

together　in　the　same　critic。　　So　it　falls　to　the　wise　editor　to　

secure　the　first　and　impose　the　second。　　Directly　I　detected　the　

shrill　partisan　note　in　our　criticism；　the　attempt　to　puff　a　poor　

thing　because　it　was　〃in　the　right　direction；〃　or　damn　a　vigorous　

piece　of　work　because　it　wasn't；　I　tackled　the　man　and　had　it　out　

with　him。　　Our　pay　was　good　enough　for　that　to　matter　a　good　deal。　。　。　。



Our　distinctive　little　blue　and　white　poster　kept　up　its　neat　

persistent　appeal　to　the　public　eye；　and　before　1911　was　out；　the　

BLUE　WEEKLY　was　printing　twenty　pages　of　publishers'　advertisements；　

and　went　into　all　the　clubs　in　London　and　three…quarters　of　the　

country　houses　where　week…end　parties　gather　together。　　Its　sale　by　

newsagents　and　bookstalls　grew　steadily。　　One　got　more　and　more　the　

reassuring　sense　of　being　discussed；　and　influencing　discussion。







5





Our　office　was　at　the　very　top　of　a　big　building　near　the　end　of　

Adelphi　Terrace；　the　main　window　beside　my　desk；　a　big　undivided　

window　of　plate　glass；　looked　out　upon　Cleopatra's　Needle；　the　

corner　of　the　Hotel　Cecil；　the　fine　arches　of　Waterloo　Bridge；　and　

the　long　sweep　of　south　bank　with　its　shot　towers　and　chimneys；　past　

Bankside　to　the　dimly　seen　piers　of　the　great　bridge　below　the　

Tower。　　The　dome　of　St。　Paul's　just　floated　into　view　on　the　left　

against　the　hotel　facade。　　By　night　and　day；　in　every　light　and　

atmosphere；　it　was　a　beautiful　and　various　view；　alive　as　a　

throbbing　heart；　a　perpetual　flow　of　traffic　ploughed　and　splashed　

the　streaming　silver　of　the　river；　and　by　night　the　shapes　of　things　

became　velvet　black　and　grey；　and　the　water　a　shining　mirror　of　

steel；　wearing　coruscating　gems　of　light。　　In　the　foreground　the　

Embankment　trams　sailed　glowing　by；　across　the　water　advertisements　

flashed　and　flickered；　trains　went　and　came　and　a　rolling　drift　of　

smoke　reflected　unseen　fires。　　By　day　that　spectacle　was　sometimes　a　

marvel　of　shining　wet　and　wind…cleared　atmosphere；　sometimes　a　

mystery　of　drifting　fog；　sometimes　a　miracle　of　crowded　details；　

minutely　fine。



As　I　think　of　that　view；　so　variously　spacious　in　effect；　I　am　back　

there；　and　this　sunlit　paper　might　be　lamp…lit　and　lying　on　my　old　

desk。　　I　see　it　all　again；　feel　it　all　again。　　In　the　foreground　is　

a　green　shaded　lamp　and　crumpled　galley　slips　and　paged　proofs　and　

letters；　two　or　three　papers　in　manuscript；　and　so　forth。　　In　the　

shadows　are　chairs　and　another　table　bearing　papers　and　books；　a　

rotating　bookcase　dimly　seen；　a　long　window　seat　black　in　the　

darkness；　and　then　the　cool　unbroken　spectacle　of　the　window。　　How　

often　I　would　watch　some　tram…car；　some　string　of　barges　go　from　me　

slowly　out　of　sight。　　The　people　were　black　animalculae　by　day；　

clustering；　collecting；　dispersing；　by　night；　they　were　phantom　

face…specks　coming；　vanishing；　stirring　obscurely　between　light　and　

shade。



I　recall　many　hours　at　my　desk　in　that　room　before　the　crisis　came；　

hours　full　of　the　peculiar　happiness　of　effective　strenuous　work。　　

Once　some　piece　of　writing　went　on；　holding　me　intent　and　forgetful　

of　time　until　I　looked　up　from　the　warm　circle　of　my　electric　lamp　

to　see　the　eastward　sky　above　the　pale　silhouette　of　the　Tower　

Bridge；　flushed　and　banded　brightly　with　the　dawn。







CHAPTER　THE　FOURTH



THE　BESETTING　OF　SEX







1





Art　is　selection　and　so　is　most　autobiography。　　But　I　am　concerned　

with　a　more　tangled　business　than　selection；　I　want　to　show　a　

contemporary　man　in　relation　to　the　state　and　social　usage；　and　the　

social　organism　in　relation　to　that　man。　　To　tell　my　story　at　all　I　

have　to　simplify。　　I　have　given　now　the　broad　lines　of　my　political　

development；　and　how　I　passed　from　my　initial　liberal…socialism　to　

the　conception　of　a　constructive　aristocracy。　　I　have　tried　to　set　

that　out　in　the　form　of　a　man　discovering　himself。　　Incidentally　

that　self…development　led　to　a　profound　breach　with　my　wife。　　One　

has　read　stories　before　of　husband　and　wife　speaking　severally　two　

different　languages　and　coming　to　an　understanding。　　But　Margaret　

and　I　began　in　her　dialect；　and；　as　I　came　more　and　more　to　use　my　

own；　diverged。



I　had　thought　when　I　married　that　the　matter　of　womankind　had　ended　

for　me。　　I　have　tried　to　tell　all　that　sex　and　women　had　been　to　me　

up　to　my　married　life　with　Margaret　and　our　fatal　entanglement；　

tried　to　show　the　queer；　crippled；　embarrassed　and　limited　way　in　

which　these　interests　break　upon　the　life　of　a　young　man　under　

contemporary　conditions。　　I　do　not　think　my　lot　was　a　very　

exceptional　one。　　I　missed　the　chance　of　sisters　and　girl　playmates；　

but　that　is　not　an　uncommon　misadventure　in　an　age　of　small　

families；　I　never　came　to　know　any　woman　at　all　intimately　until　I　

was　married　to　Margaret。　　My　earlier　love　affairs　were　encounters　of　

sex；　under　conditions　of　furtiveness　and　adventure　that　made　them　

things　in　themselves；　restricted　and　unilluminating。　　From　a　boyish　

disposition　to　be　mystical　and　worshipping　towards　women　I　had　

passed　into　a　disregardful　attitude；　as　though　women　were　things　

inferior　or　irrelevant；　disturbers　in　great　affairs。　　For　a　time　

Margaret　had　blotted　out　all　other　women；　she　was　so　different　and　

so　near；　she　was　like　a　person　who　stands　suddenly　in　front　of　a　

little　window　through　which　one　has　been　surveying　a　crowd。　　She　

didn't　become　womankind　for　me　so　much　as　eliminate　womankind　from　

my　world。　。　。　。　　And　then　came　this　secret　separation。　。　。　。



Until　this　estrangement　and　the　rapid　and　uncontrollable　development　

of　my　relations　with　Isabel　which　chanced　to　follow　it；　I　seemed　to　

have　solved　the　problem　of　women　by　marriage　and　disregard。　　I　

thought　these　things　were　over。　　I　went　about　my　career　with　

Margaret　beside　me；　her　brow　slightly　knit；　her　manner　faintly　

strenuous；　helping；　helping；　and　if　we　had　not　altogether　abolished　

sex　we　had　at　least　so　circumscribed　and　isolated　it　that　it　would　

not　have　affected　the　general　tenor　of　our　lives　in　the　slightest　

degree　if　we　had。



And　then；　clothing　itself　more　and　more　in　the　form　of　Isabel　and　

her　problems；　this　old；　this　fundamental　obsession　of　my　life　

returned。　　The　thing　stole　upon　my　mind　so　that　I　was　unaware　of　its　

invasion　and　how　it　was　changing　our　long　intimacy。　　I　have　already　

compared　the　lot　of　the　modern　publicist　to　Machiavelli　writing　in　

his　study；　in　his　day　women　and　sex　were　as　disregarded　in　these　

high　affairs　as；　let　us　say；　the　chemistry　of　air　or　the　will　of　the　

beasts　in　the　fields；　in　ours　the　case　has　altogether　changed；　and　

woman　has　come　now　to　stand　beside　the　tall　candles；　half　in　the　

light；　half　in　the　mystery　of　the　shadows；　besetting；　interrupting；　

demanding　unrelentingly　an　altogether　unprecedented　attention。　　I　

feel　that　in　these　matters　my　life　has　been　almost　typical　of　my　

time。　　Woman　insists　upon　her　presence。　　She　is　no　longer　a　mere　

physical　need；　an　aesthetic　bye…play；　a　sentimental　background；　she　

is　a　moral　and　intellectual　necessity　in　a　man's　life。　　She　comes　to　

the　politician　and　demands；　Is　she　a　child　or　a　citizen？　　Is　she　a　

thing　or　a　soul？　　She　comes　to　the　individual　man；　as　she　came　to　me　

and　asks；　Is　she　a　cherished　weakling　or　an　equal　mate；　an　

unavoidable　helper？　　Is　she　to　be　tried　and　trusted　or　guarded　and　

controlled；　bond　or　free？　　For　if　she　is　a　mate；　one　must　at　once　

trust　more　and　exact　more；　exacting　toil；　courage；　and　the　hardest；　

most　necessary　thing　of　all；　the　clearest；　most　shameless；　

explicitness　of　understanding。　。　。　。







2





In　all　my　earlier　imaginings　of　statecraft　I　had　tacitly　assumed　

either　that　the　relations　of　the　sexes　were　all　right　or　that　anyhow　

they　didn't　concern　the　state。　　It　was　a　matter　they；　whoever　〃they〃　

were；　had　to　settle　among　themselves。　　That　sort　of　disregard　was　

possible　then。　　But　even　before　1906　there　were　endless　intimations　

that　the　dams　holding　back　great　reservoirs　of　discussion　were　

crumbling。　　We　political　schemers　were　ploughing　wider　than　any　one　

had　ploughed　before　in　the　field　of　social　reconstruction。　　We　had　

also；　we　realised；　to　plough　deeper。　　We　had　to　plough　down　at　last　

to　the　passionate　elements　of　sexual　relationship　and　examine　and　

decide　upon　them。



The　signs　multiplied。　　In　a　year　or　so　half　the　police　of　the　

metropolis　were　scarce　sufficient　to　protect　the　House　from　one　

clamorous　aspect　of　the　new　problem。　　The　members　went　about　

Westminster　with　an　odd；　new　sense　of　being　beset。　　A　good　

proportion　of　us　kept　up　the　pretence　that　the　Vote　for　Women　was　an　

isolated　fad；　and　the　agitation　an　epidemic　madness　that　would　

presently　pass。　　But　it　was　manifest　to　any　one　who　sought　more　than　

comfort　in　the　matter　that　the　streams　of　women　and　sympathisers　and　

money　forthcoming　marked　far　deeper　and　wider　things　than　an　idle　

fancy　for　the　franchise。　　The　existing　laws　and　conventions　of　

relationship　between　Man　and　Woman　were　just　as　unsatisfactory　a　

disorder　as　anything　else　in　our　tumbled　confusion　of　a　world；　and　

that　also　was　coming　to　bear　upon　statecraft。



My　first　parliament　was　the　parliament　of　the　Suffragettes。　　I　don't　

propose　to　tell　here　of　that　amazing　campaign；　with　its　absurdities　

and　follies；　its　courage　and　devotion。　　There　were　aspects　of　that　

unquenchable　agitation　that　were　absolutely　heroic　and　aspects　that　

were　absolutely　pitiful。　　It　was　unreasonable；　unwise；　and；　except　

for　its　one　central　insistence；　astonishingly　incoherent。　　It　was　

amazingly　effective。　　The　very　incoherence　of　the　demand　witnessed；　

I　think；　to　the　forces　that　lay　behind　it。　　It　wasn't　a　simple　

argument　based　on　a　simple　assumption；　it　was　the　first　crude　

expression　of　a　great　mass　and　mingling　of　convergent　feelings；　of　a　

widespread；　confused　persuasion　among　modern　educated　women　that　the　

conditions　of　their　relations　with　men　were　oppressive；　ugly；　

dishonouring；　and　had　to　be　altered。　　They　had　not　merely　adopted　

the　Vote　as　a　symbol　of　equality；　it　was　fairly　manifest　to　me　that；　

given　it；　they　meant　to　use　it；　and　to　use　it　perhaps　even　

vindictively　and　blindly；　as　a　weapon　against　many　things　they　had　

every　reason　to　hate。　。　。　。



I　remember；　with　exceptional　vividness；　that　great　night　early　in　

the　session　of　1909；　whenI　think　it　wasfifty　or　sixty　women　went　

to　prison。　　I　had　been　dining　at　the　Barham's；　and　Lord　Barham　and　I　

came　down　from　the　direction　of　S