SOCIALIST ORGANIZATION AND "BORING IN"
The avowed enemies of our constitutional government have within recent
years met with stupendous success in persuading the credulous to rely on
their extravagant promises and to look forward to the golden era of
Socialism with the same bright hopes that little children do to the
candies and toys in kidnappers' homes.
If it be asked why the conspirators against our country, religion,
family and everything dear to us are so successful in their efforts to
undermine the foundations of a grand and glorious nation like our own,
the answer is that their astounding progress is due, first, to an
exceptional zeal in the propagation of their doctrines, and, secondly,
to the deceptive and specious arguments used for gaining recruits.
The extraordinary activity that has secured for the Socialists of the
United States by far the greater part of a million votes in several
presidential elections, and the acceptance of their revolutionary
doctrines by a much larger number of radicals, who for one reason or
another do not vote the Marxian ticket, is manifested under many
different aspects.
The Socialist Party of the United States in the early part of 1919
contained a little more than 100,000 dues-paying members, enrolled in
approximately 7,000 locals and branches. The members of these locals and
branches frequently meet to devise means for spreading the doctrines of
Karl Marx and for overthrowing the government of our country. It is
almost needless to add that their zeal would do great credit to men
engaged in a truly noble cause. The American people would be astounded
at their activity, should they carefully read, from the first to the
last page, a single copy of one of the foremost Socialist papers such as
the "New York Call." Socialists are working by the tens of thousands
every day, from January 1st to December 31st, endeavoring to undermine
our government. They have been doing this for years, and only recently
have the American people begun to wake up. Waking up, however, will not
suffice. We must act, act quickly and vigorously, before it is too late
and before the forces of destruction become too numerous to control.
Supplementing the indoor work of the locals and branches, one cannot but
notice the so-called soap-box orators, found on the street corners of
nearly every city of importance in the country. The specialty of these
men is to preach class hatred and arouse dissatisfaction in their
audiences with the present system of government and industry, and after
this to assert, but never to prove, that Socialism is the sole remedy
for the evils of our time.
It will be well to remember that the revolutionary Socialist Party, even
as far back as 1913, published in the United States some 200 or more
papers and periodicals in English, German, Bohemian, Polish, Jewish,
Slovac, Slavonic, Danish, Italian, Finnish, French, Hungarian, Lettish,
Norwegian, Croatian, Russian and Swedish. Attorney General Palmer made
the number over 400 in 1919. Among the papers are two important dailies
in English, "The Call" of New York City and the "Milwaukee Leader," two
dailies[22] in German, two in Bohemian, one in Polish, and one in
Yiddish, the "Forward," which in the spring of 1919 had a circulation of
about 150,000. The "Appeal to Reason" was once the greatest Socialist
weekly in the country having had, in the fall of 1912, a circulation of
nearly a million copies. About the latter part of 1917 it became
lukewarm in upholding Socialist anti-war principles. As a consequence it
lost most of its circulation, and in March, 1920, was still looked upon
contemptuously by most members of the Socialist Party.
By the vivid pictures which the revolutionary papers and periodicals
draw of the abuses, corruptions and wrongs of our age, they succeed in
blinding many American citizens to such an extent that the latter do not
realize that they have been caught in the snares of a deceitful and
dangerous enemy. Like the soap-box orators, these publications, besides
criticising real present-day abuses, frequently lie and exaggerate, and
either assert that in the Marxian state man would enjoy the choicest
blessings under heaven, or else arrive at this same conclusion by
arguing from false and unproven assertions as premises. The Socialist
papers and periodicals, notwithstanding their beautifully painted
pictures of the visionary state, should in no way incline us towards
enlisting under the red flag. For to say nothing of their lies and
exaggerations, neither their criticisms of actual present-day wrongs,
their unproven assertions of the benefits of Socialism, nor their
conclusions drawn from false and unfounded premises, show in any wise
that the Marxian state would remedy existing evils and be a source of
blessings to our people. Indeed, it would be just as foolish for us to
trust in these revolutionary publications as it would be to confide in
quacks who should ask us to purchase their so-called remedies merely
because they had pointed out the harmful effects of a few drugs sold by
a certain apothecary, or because they had claimed excellent healing
properties for their own potions.
Not only do the Marxians exert great influence through the papers which
they publish, but they help their cause to a great extent by articles
published in non-Socialist papers and magazines of the United States.
Another way in which they have distinguished themselves for their
activity is by the immense number of books, novels and pamphlets they
have written, large numbers of which are in circulation throughout our
country and are rapidly undermining the very foundations of our National
Government. As these works are found in abundance and are available to
all classes of persons in public libraries, our country's library system
is supplying its enemies with well-stocked arsenals wherein weapons are
kept for the use of those who will one day join the ranks of these
national conspirators.
The leaflet campaign of the Socialists has long since reached alarming
proportions. To show what progress has been made by the arch enemies of
our country, two quotations are hereby presented to the reader. The
first is a letter which appeared in "The Call," New York, March 31,
1919, and reads as follows:
"Editor of 'The Call':
"We are living in the days of big events. The revolution in Russia
has taught us some things that we ought to follow. One of them is
the distribution of literature. In the past we have been climbing
up four or five flights of stairs, standing on the street corners
handing out leaflets, wearing out our strength and patience. I took
a leaf out of the way the thing is done in Germany at present. All
over the city there are any number of large window sills, at the
top or very near the exits of the subway and elevated stations, the
window sills of large stores. These window sills will hold a large
amount of literature. Comrades going to work in the morning could
very easily place the leaflets on them; it would take only a few
seconds, the workers coming after them will pick them up. There is
also, in the downtown districts, quite a few empty newsstands that
are not used in the morning. These newsstands are generally at the
very mouth of the subway stations. Then there are a number of
benches in and on the stations that can be used. Our overcoat
pockets will easily hold 100 or 200 pieces of literature. The time
it takes to transfer the literature from our pockets to the window
sills, newsstand or bench is about two seconds. I have been on the
job for the last three weeks and the results have been astonishing.
What are not picked up by the workers are in a few hours read by a
large number of those out of work. We have got to come to it in the
very near future. The halls are closed to us; let's get busy.
"Very cold, windy and rainy mornings are not very good ones. The
one big drawback is to get some Comrade to write the leaflets. The
leaflet I have used is one taken from 'The Call,' issued by local
Kings, entitled 'Hell in Russia.' The way the workers grab it does
your heart good.
"Yours for the education of the workers,
"Andrew B. DeMilt.
"P. S.--The above-named places are also good for that 'Call' you
have laying around the house."
In the April 24, 1919, edition of "The Call," under the caption,
"Official Socialist News," and the subheading, "Queens" (County, New
York), we read:
"100 Socialists Wanted
"One hundred are required tonight to aid in distributing Socialist
literature throughout the Ridgewood section. Those who are able and
willing to help should call this evening at the Queens County Labor
Lyceum, Myrtle and Cypress Avenues."
The number of revolutionary books, pamphlets and papers on the market is
really astounding, and all out of proportion to the number of
Socialists, Communists and I. W. W.'s who could possibly support them.
Money for their publication must be forthcoming from other interested
parties of considerable means. In fact, Deputy State Attorney General
Samuel A. Berger, in a statement published in the "New York Times" on
October 18, 1919, declared that rich radicals of the metropolis were the
means of support for all but two of the forty or fifty extremely radical
publications which reach 3,000,000 readers from New York City as a
center. The same public official added that he did not have the
authority to make known the names of the well-to-do men and women
engaged thus in financing the plot to overthrow our National
Government.
Not only are the Reds rapidly undermining our institutions by means of
literature, but also through the forces of organized labor. Enough has
already been said in a previous chapter relative to the I. W. W. itself;
but it will not be out of place to comment on the revolutionary
influence which the I. W. W. and many Socialist labor leaders as, for
example, Maurer of Pennsylvania, are bringing to bear upon the American
Federation of Labor.
The members of the I. W. W., as well as the Socialists and Communists
throughout the country, have all along made every endeavor to fan the
flames of class hatred between rich and poor, the employer and employee.
They have, moreover, left nothing undone to promote discontent and
strikes on as large a scale as possible with a view to finally ruining
our present system of industry and the Government itself. Read any of
the radical papers and you will be convinced that the "Red" rebels now
place the greatest hopes for their rise to power in the strikes they are
fomenting wherever and whenever an opportunity is offered.
The Marxian leaders realize that the high cost of living is constantly
gaining recruits for their cause, and that the greater the number of
strikes and the greater the number of persons involved, the longer it
will take to reduce the cost of the necessaries of life. They know that
if the working class secures a six-hour day, a five-day week and, in
addition, an immense increase in wages, production will fall far short
of the demand, the cost of living will go up by leaps and bounds, and
business men will be ruined. Workingmen will then lose their positions
and discontent will be far more prevalent than ever. Again, if laboring
men can only be made to break their wage contracts soon after every
victorious strike, the industries of the whole country will soon be
"topsy-turvy."
What will bring on strikes more readily than to teach rebellion against
all conservative labor leaders who would oppose uncalled-for walk-outs?
It is much easier to get men to strike by having labor agitators
harangue and deceive them, than it would be to have the workingmen
quietly discuss both sides of the question honestly and fairly and then
vote pro or con.
Sympathetic strikes are well calculated to bring on a general strike,
which might easily lead to the rebellion that the Reds so much desire.
Strikes very often induce the action of courts against the workers
involved and frequently demand the use of police and the calling out of
troops, and thus the rebel "Reds" obtain other arguments, sound or
otherwise, to win more of the working-class to their diabolical cause.
If the Socialist strike leaders are imprisoned, justly or not,
Socialists do not fail to start nation-wide agitations for amnesty.
Strikes, therefore, excessive demands, the breaking of wage contracts,
revolts against conservative labor leaders, and impassioned
class-conscious strike agitators are among the leading assets of the
Marxian rebels for starting a bloody rebellion.
Many of the laboring class, especially newly arrived immigrants, cannot
see the ultimate aim of the radical leaders and never dream of the
terrible times that will soon overwhelm them if the cost of living
continues to rise, business is ruined, and a terrible rebellion drenches
our fair land with rivers of blood, leaving in its trail anarchy, crime
and evils without end. Of what use are higher wages won by strikes, if
the cost of living ascends still more rapidly? Of what use are higher
wages for a short time if all industries and our Government with them
are to be ruined through continual strikes and unreasonable demands
suggested and agitated by men who have never yet given a single proof
that their Socialistic scheme would not fall a prey to anarchy and war?
The Reds, no matter of what type they are, have never proven that their
state would be a success, or that it would not have a million times as
many defects as our present system. Their empty assertions prove nothing
but the empty-mindedness and ignorance of their illogical rank and file.
Yes, Socialist, Communist and I. W. W. influence is making itself felt
even in the American Federation of Labor. During 1919 many an
unauthorized strike took place against the will of the lawful labor
leaders. The printers' strike and longshoremen's strikes in New York
City are examples. "Red" labor leaders and revolutionary propaganda
ruined the cause of the steel strikers.
The American Federation of Labor cannot afford to harbor Socialists and
members of the I. W. W. It is doomed to shipwreck if it does not rid
itself of Marxian agitators. The vast majority of the American people
will not tolerate a revolutionary American Federation of Labor any more
than they will tolerate a revolutionary I. W. W. If the principles of
the American Federation of Labor become radical like those of the I. W.
W., the Socialists, Communists and the Bolsheviki, the name "American"
and past conservatism will never save our greatest labor organization
from ruin. The greater part of the country is rapidly lining up against
unreasonable demands made in the name of organized labor, millions of
farmers taking the lead. Extreme advantages to city workingmen would
spell ruin to the farmers. Millions of others of the middle class in our
cities will also soon unite with the farmers, for they are getting tired
of the endless and costly series of unreasonable strikes.
The Socialists and agents of the I. W. W. have for years been "boring
from within" the A. F. of L. In other words, these Marxians, though
members of the A. F. of L., are undermining its conservatism,
discrediting and seeking to displace its less radical leaders, changing
its policy of co-operation between capital and labor into one of class
hatred between employee and employer, and attempting to reorganize it
along industrial lines, rather than along those of the various craft
divisions of each industry, with a view to making strikes more
widespread and dangerous for our Government. In a word, they are seeking
to turn the A. F. of L. into a second I. W. W., destined to join forces
with Haywood's discredited industrial union of rebels.
William Z. Foster, national leader of the steel strikers in the fall of
1919, affords us an example of an I. W. W. agent "boring from within"
the A. F. of L.
Mr. Carl W. Ackerman informs us in the "Boston Evening Transcript,"
September 24, 1919, that the first appearance of Foster as a radical was
in 1910, when, as a reporter for the "Seattle Call," a Socialist paper
at that time, he was sent along the Pacific Coast to report a number of
so-called free speech fights. "From this," continues Mr. Ackerman, "he
appears to have developed into a general agitator. As a result of his
tour of the west he joined the I. W. W. and in this capacity he began to
advocate sabotage....
"In 1911, while a member of the I. W. W., Foster went to Europe and
visited France, Germany and Hungary as a correspondent of
'Solidarity,' the official organ of the I. W. W. in America, at
that time published at New Castle, Pa. He wrote many articles for
this publication, some of them signed, 'Yours for the I. W. W., W.
Z. Foster,' and others, 'Yours for the revolution, W. Z. Foster.'"
In a letter written by Foster in 1911 and on file in the office of the
United States District Attorney in Chicago, Foster said:
"I am satisfied from my observation that the only way for an I. W.
W. to have the workers adopt and practice the principles of
revolutionary unionism, which I take it is its mission, is to give
up the attempt to create a new labor movement, turn itself into a
propaganda league, get into the organized labor movement, and by
building up better fighting machinery within the old unions than
these possessed by our reactionary enemies, revolutionize these
unions, even as our French syndicalist fellow-workers have so
successfully done."
This letter, showing Foster's plan of "boring from within" the A. F. of
L., was signed, "Yours for the revolution."
As late as 1915 Foster brought out a book entitled, "Trade Unionism, the
Road to Freedom." Several excerpts taken from the sixth chapter show the
true frame of mind of this leader, who has recently gained such a
following in the A. F. of L.:
"Under the new order as pictured above, government, such as we know
it, would gradually disappear. In an era of science and justice
this makeshift institution, having lost its usefulness, would
shrivel and die....
"Criminal courts, police, jails and the like would go also. Crime
is due almost wholly to poverty. In a reign of plenty for all, it
would practically disappear.... People would no longer have to
wrangle over property rights. The industries now in the hands of
national, state and municipal governments would be given over
completely into the care of the workers engaged in them.... With
war, crime, class antagonisms and property squabbles obliterated,
and the management of industry taken from its care, little or no
excuse would exist for government."
The November 8, 1919, report of the Senate Committee on Education and
Labor, in its investigation of the nation-wide steel strike, commented
as follows on Foster:
"Such men are dangerous to the country and they are dangerous to
the cause of union labor. It is unfair to men who may be struggling
for their rights to be represented by such leaders. It prevents
them from securing proper hearing for their cause. If Mr. Foster
has the real interest of the laboring man at heart he should remove
himself from any leadership. His leadership injures instead of
helping. If he will not remove himself from leadership the American
Federation of Labor should purge itself of such leadership in order
to sustain the confidence which the country has had in it under the
leadership of Mr. Gompers."