New-York tribune., 1878-04-27


hunters stalk a deer; following closely, watching
the wind, but bent upon bringing him down at last
The result proves what good huntsmen they were.
They have bagged theiI game-and the wonder OF it
is that the game does not know ii has been bagged
This makes the business more interesting than ever
1t becomes a curious study.
VII.
The year after the meeting of the first 1nterna-
ti0nal Congress in Geneva-tbat is in 1S67-two
"Sections of the International Society were estab-
lshed in the United States, and the General COun-
Gil of the International acknowledged them as aux
ilaues
This was the entering wedge.
There was no Trade Union affiliation, as such.
with the international at this time. Far from 1t.
The International was too we'll trained to show its
hand so early in the game. Slow approaches.
wariness specious pretences, appeals TO the gull
bilty of human nature, were the first maneuvres-
parallels to speak, zigzagGing up toward the baS-
! tiOns that were to be captured. A coup de man
would have been q failure-and the International
lists knew it. They preferred to dig, sap and mine;
aud they performed all these processes to such pur-
pose that We are forced TO stop and ponder how the
! explosion shall be prevented
But let MS follow the thread of the narrative and
! the argument.
! On the 10Th of August. 1867 the American soce-
1
Congress in Chicago. In tins Congress-the first
one held in tins Countrywide supremacy OF the
foreign International Society was fully recognized,
and absolute crcdcnce was given to the theories and
| plans put forth by the parent body. Vds The
| Chicago and Ncw-lofk journals of August and sep
! tembcr 1SG7D The formation of " Sections,
or auxlliaries to the foreign international
Society, went on steadily after this date,
until. in September, 1871. the Ncw-iork
correspondent of The cologne gazette was able to an
nounce cxulhncly in of his letters to that jour
nal, that although the International had "only
! lately obtained foOthod in the States" 1t had ="
powerful organization in several parts OF the conn-
try :" and then proceeded to give the following list
! of the American Sections ten in NUMBER, Which
were at that time in direct and acknowledged afll-
alton with the parent body, viz:
l. German Workingmen's Society, Nev-iork.
| 2. French Section, No. /, New-Yo1k.
! 3. Czechian Workingmcn'S Society, Ncw-York.
1. Social Political Workinrnen's Society, No. /,
! Chicago
3. Social Political Worllingmcns Society, No. 2,
| Chicago.
g. Social Democratic WorknGmen's Society New
York.
2. Irish Section of the Irish Workingmcn's Asso-
citation, New-YOrk.
s. Social Democratic Society, Williamsburg, y. y.
O. American Section of the Workingmen's AsSoc-
| alton, New-York
10 French Section No. ., of the Workingmens
Association, New-York.
1t will be observed that New-YOrk City and Chi
cago were the centres OF these early movements;
and also that the French ard German elements in
this country came uppermost in this business, six
years ago. This latter fact illustrates the power
! that foreign demaGogues can exert when they are
! so minded. The Cologne Gd:ciiCS list copied
into the English papers, and so found It's way back
TO Ncw-Yorl creating great JOY among the
Communists, who had quietly occupied the interval
! from the end Of 1867 to the beginning of 1871
| in slrewd preparation OF our workinPmens minds
! TO receive their new Gospel Of Labor. IhenccfOuh
the mask thrown of, and the aims and purposes
of the international were not only openly avOwed,
but il was also given ont that il intended 10 assume
control of American politics through the Organza-
tion of a WorkinCmen's party. the fundamental doe
trincs of which should be thoee set forth by the
Geneva Congress of 1867.
A few weeks later December 81, 1S71), one Of the
leaders of the International Society in the City Of
New-York published in one of our morning journals
a bold and ingenious defence Of that organization,
together with a statement of the alleged grievances
of which its members complained. The tyranny of
capital and the evils produced by great mOnopolies
were dwelt upon with peculiar emphasis and al
though the writer was unskilled in the rules of logic
OF the forms of graceful rhetoric, his impassioned
plea attracted the attention of the public and pro-
voked sharp comment by the press.
Manifcstly, the international had begun TO see its
way in America i'll 1871.
VIII
The Summer Of 1871 brought the Trade-UniOnists
to the front in the attitude of politicians. in July,
a call was issued for Labor Congress- TO be held
III ST. Louis on thc 9TH OfAugust following. Ostcnsi-
bly, the object of this gathering the discussion
of the laws which should govern Trade organize
tions and the definition of the true relations between
| the employer and the employed In reality, it was
intended to establish the programme of general
opposition to organized government: Ambitious
leaders appeared at ST. Louis the appointed day.
| They sounded the depths and the shadows Of the
| delegates who represented the Trade UniOns-dcle
/ gates who were in the main honest and simple
| minded men, anxious only to do the best they could
do for their own protcctIon and not in the slightest
! degree sympathizers with Communism. Let them
| have that credit. The leaders found the time
not quite ripe. Large bodies move slowly, and
! honest men are not transformed into r0gues IN
day. The leaders, recognizing these facts deter
mined TO adjourn the meeting until a more fitting
time but before doing so they introduced the draft
of platform" the main points Of which were
these: First demand for the expansion Of the
paper currency; second, the abolition of the gold
basis third, the destruction Of the National Banks
fourth the establishment of an eight-hour system;
fifth the exclusion of Chinese labor. The delegates
listened to all this, dazed. They offered Objec-
tons. They were in the hands of skillful manpu-
latOrs. The document was put forth, apparently
as the expression Of the sentiments of the st.
Louis Trade Congress. Tradc-Unionism had taken
its first step in politics, and the International had
scored another point
Scored pOint-hOwi Let the records tell.
loll Ill L..