The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1871-02-18

I'VE do not hold Ourselves responsible for any opt
On expressed BY our Correspondents
FROk LEIPZIG.
LEIPZIG, Jan. 81, 1871

LEIPZIG, Jan. II, 1871.
10 the Editor OF the woRKIEoKAss ADVOCATE.
AS / promised in my last letter. l
shall give you to-day short sketch OF
our organizations. If we were as free
to found societies and to meet, as you
are, the question of organization would
not have occupied the Eisenach Con-
gress for more than half an hour. We
should simply have declared ourselves
the German Branch of the lnterna-
tional Workingmen's Association, and
should, without losing many words,
have adopted the system OF sections,
councils, etc., prevailing in Belgium
and Switzerland, where the right OF
meeting is unfettered. But this way
was barred to MS by our laws, which
forbid the UNISON and connexson Of pOlits-
cal societies. Political societies may
exist (of course under the restrictions
thought necessary by the powers that
be), but il they try to acquire practical
infuen~ by combining their activity,
if they enter into correspondence with
one another, they are at once dissolved
and the luckless members found, may
be sent to prison.
TIE evade this fundamental difficulty
several societies, for instance, Las
salIe's Universal German Workingmen's
Society, were formed, which, instead
Of being purely local, that is, confined
to certain town or village, were dis
persed all over Germany, and could
have their members everywhere with
out having separate branch societies
anywhere. Everywhere the members
belonged to the same society, which,
for forms sake, to satisfy the require
ments of the law, had it's seat and was
chartered in some town of the minor
States, where the law is either not so
severe or not so severely handled rs in
Prussia.
Laasslle's society had its seat in
, Leipzig. However, the Prussian Gov.
: eminent ordered the police to proceed
against one of the societies so organ
lied, and the highest tribunal Of the
! country decided that such an organi-
! cation was only an evasion OF the law,
and that societies organized on this
principle were illegal. This decision,
against which there was no appeal, had
been published q few months before
the EIsenach Congress, and forced us
to devise another scheme. The prob
; lem to be solved was now no more
How can it be avoided to constitute
unconnected local societies, and there
f by to divide our party into many scat
+, tered pieces (real, disjected membra)
: having no common life. The problem
was How can single local societies be
constituted, without en- the one hand
Remembering the party, and on the
: other infringing the law? 1t was
, solved in the following manner: The
, members of the social Democratic par
ty, which, as such, forms no tangible
body III the eyes of the law, either con
; stitute in their respective places OF
:, abode, distinct societies which, as such,
have separate and independent exist
D fence, and no relation whatever with
similar societies i'll other places or,
sttbey meet privately, in such = way as
! not to be entangled in the meshes OF
the law. In every place, the members
of the party, whether they have chosen
the@fOrmer or the latter method. an
: point privately one of their number,
who in his turn has privately to keep
, up the necessary correspondence with
the Central Executive Committee, and
to transmit to it the money contribu-
r lions collected from the members to
defray the expenses of the party.
The Executive Committee (Aur.
scharr) is elected every year by the
Annual Congress Indirectly, by fixing
the town, the members residing in
which hrve out Of their midst to choose
the Executive, an arrangement that
saves much time and completely an.
swers the purpose). 1t consists Of FIVE
members, and has the direction and adj
mInlstratlon OF the party; 10 control
1t, to audit the accounts, TO mediate in
cases Of Misunderstanding or disagre
ment between the Executive and mem.
bers of the party, a Commission of
Control is annually elected in the same
manner as the Executive.
No member of either of these bodies
is allowed to be editor Of the news
paper founded by the party, and its
property. This organ has TO defend
and develop the social Democratic
principles, has to publish the reports
and correspondence sent by members
OF the party, and, being the focus into
which the whole activity and thinking
Of the party radiate, it is in truth the
centre, the real executive of the party,
and it's principal instrument of social
and political propaganda. The editor,
n whose hands great power is given,
has to act in full harmony with the Ex-
ecutive and the Controlling Commits
sion, and is, like all other function
aries OF the party, responsible to the
Congress. You see, at all events, our
organization has a thoroughly Demo-
cratic character, and effective safe
guards against abuse and mismanage-
msnt are not waning. 1t has worked
we'll in every respect. Since it has been
in force, our party has gained in
strength, extension and unity. No Sc
rious quarrel has arisen, and as to our
position with regard to the law, I have
only to state that, though the Govern
ments are doing their best to crush us,
yet they have not been able to break
our organization. Here and there one
Of our societies was dissolved, but then