Elbert Hubbard on William Morris, from William Morris Book (1907).

And so I will answer the question of the critics as to how society has been benefited by, say, a William Morris book:

1 -- The workmen who made it found a pride and satisfaction in their work.

2 -- They receive a goodly reward in cash for their time and efforts.

3 -- The buyers were pleased with their purchase, and received a decided satisfaction in its possession.

4 -- Readers of the book were gratified to see their author clothed in such fitting and harmonious dress.

5 -- Reading the text has instructed some; and possibly inspired a few to nobler thinking (20-21)

Socialism, according to William Morris, does not consider it desirable to supply cheap stuff to anybody. The socialist aims to make every manufactured article of the best quality possible. It is not how cheap can this be made, but how good. Make it as excellent as it can be made to serve its end. Then sell it at a price that affords something more than a bare existence to the workmen who put their lives into its formation. In this way you raise the status of the worker--you pay him for his labor and give him an interest and pride in the product. Cheap products make cheap men. The first thought of socialism is for the worker who makes the thing, not the man who buys it (20).