The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1879-01-27
A SOCIALIST HIMSELF.
Correspondence of the Pail Mall Gazette

Correspondence of the Pail Mall Gazette.
1t is mistake to regard Bismarck an enemy of
socialism itself. Bismarck is himself a socialism,
my opinion socialist of the most dangerous kind.
For he is absolutist socialist who dreams of
crushing liberal ideas and liberal movements by
carrying out in absolutst manner great part of
the economic programme of the social democrats.
Bismarck, therefore, may be an enemy Of demo-
cratic socialism; but he is no opponent of social
ism ITSELF On the contrary. he sees in socialism
q means of more firmly establishing absolute gov
eminent in Prussia and Germany. In 1S4S. when he
was still an almost unknown Junker. Bismarck made
a speech in the Prussian Chamber. which he said
that liberalism only to be put down by social
ism. l suppose you know of his relations with
Lassae at the time Of his conflict with the liberal
party in Prussia As he conquered the liberal party
without Lassalle by the of 1866 those relations
fell to the background but were not broken
off till the socialist movement in passing into
national and democratic. Meanwhile Bismarck
had need of socialism. He succeeded in attaching
the liberal party to himself in two ways-in the first
place. by the Kulturkampf against the clerical party
BY taking up the liberal struggle against clerical as
tendency he made a double success. He
succeeded in attaching to himself majority
which ready to forget all other points of the lib
eral programme whenever it seemed possible that
he might make peace with the cercas. As long as
Bismarck would fight against Rome the lib
erals ready to postpone all the political
postuates of their programme Next Bismarck
their principles freedom after the other; mas
much az he led them to deny those very principles
a. the clericals appealed to them in support
of their own claims In this way Bismarck has
struck heavy blow against the liberals The other
way in which Bismarck attached the liberal party to
himself was through the idea Of German nationality.
The liberal party is also the national party
in Germany; and Bismarck strengthened aud
extended his power immensely in making
use of the national feeling of the liber-
ais He asked perpetually for some fresh
extension of the sphere Of the German imperial
tensions would weaken the power OF particularsm
and of the little German governments granted all he
asked. They did not perceive that their work went
beyond their wishes and strengthened the power
OF absolutism. The most dangerous measure yet
voted by the liberal party is authority to buy up
all German railways for the German Empire. The
liberal party did not the absolutist ocialist
tendency of that measure. With all the
railways in his hands the Reichskanzler will
of course have the highways of under
establishments or to coerce their propretors. by
tariffs and the like, to sell those establishments to
the empire. In this way the dream of absolutist
Socialism may be realized. As to their material well
fare the workmen may be little better off than
now, for Bismarck must attach them to his cause;
but politically the whole German nation will be in
subsection to absolutism. There will be no more in
dependence anywhere; all Germans will be employees
of the State. This is what / by saying
that Bismarck Is not foe to socialism.
He has only man9uvred SO adroity that the
liberals have voted their own destruction; and he is
not now prosecuting socialism, but democracy in
prosecuting social democrats You have evidence of
this in the that the Christian socialists of Hof
prediger Stocker in Berlin are unroublcd not the
democratic socialists.
From my views of the state of German politics, it
follows that what Germany needs is the strengthen
ing of individualism. 1t is not with with you
in England In England ndividualism is too strong;
in England because that country has nothing to fear
from absolutism; with us the contrary is the