The Labor enquirer., 1886-03-13
The LIGHT SPREADS
A Western Lawyer Tells Of
His Conversion to State
Socialism.
Wonderful Growth Of the Move
ment in the Puget Sound
Country. 8
An Interesting Description Of Co
Operative Colony Society in
the Northwest.
Editor Labor Enquirer.

the Northwest.
| Editor Labor Enquirer.
SEATTLE, w. T., Feb. 2S.-Having been
an eager and constant reader of your val
liable paper for the past three months,
my growing interest in it prompts me
to drop you few lines.
I belong to that profession which the
wage faborer Is warning against next to
the corporations, and which the Knights
of Labor class with saloon keepers and
gamblers, and this feeling against the
legal profession. in my opinion, is
founded in Justice, for the law and its
practice has now reached that ptsphys-
ical, uncertain and immoral state Is to
be situated towards society analogous to
the position of the sophists towards the
philosophers in classic, Greece in their
speculations upon criterions of truth
am recent convert to const tructiye
Socialism and when its lights first broke
in upon my mind and revealed to me its
wonderful remedial secrets for the great,
growing and dangerous evils which now
shake society and state from center to
circumference, I was anna zed that 1 had
to wait until became citizen of this
far western world, beyond even its at.
mosphere, to catch its first lights, and
more amazed that current thinkers
writers, statesmen and politicians In all
their speculations for remedial measures
and principles to avert the great dangers
ahead; to relieve the nation and the
masses from the extortions and rob.
berries of centralized wealth, do not seem
to have an inkling of this new philoso
ply.
By the light of this new social econ
omy, principles of political econ omy
which before appeared to me as Utopiar
speculations, now reveal their truths to
me as clear as the light of day, and an
given a hope for the future of mankind,
of society and state if you please, which
before was dark dependency. The fact
that these new principles furnish keys
to unlock hitherto unrevealed or misun'
derstood principles of political economy
and cardinal doctrines of human rights
which before seemed only "a sound, .
song of fancy, breath a wag of the
tongue" is one test of their correctness
another lies in the rapidity with which
the light spreads where it gets start.
am surprised at the advanced position o
your people in this new light and sup
pose that your paper has helped the caus'
to the greatest extent. Six months ago
T am told, there were but three know
Socialists on Puget Sound. Thre'
months ago I had never heard of it here
Now there are several hundred ii
Seattle, many more in Tacoma and it il
spreading throughout the Sound countr,
rapidly. The main obstacle to it's sprea'
among the middle and so-called uppe
classes, is the bad repute attached to The
name SOCIALISM," from its association
with Nihilism, Communism, Revolution
and Dynamite, but worst of all, will
Anarchy. These associations cause man
intelligent people to spurn all readinl
matter tainted with Socialism, and q
course they cannot be taught
To my mind MANY Socialists pursue
suicidal course. It appears to- me tina
dynamite and Nihilistic talk and Anarch
istic principles are only limitations c
European features which have no appli
cation as vet to circumstances in thi
country. To my mind dynamite ha
effected nothing anywhere, aud the Nj
hilists of Russia have discovered tina
fact, for the death of hundred czar
would leave Russian tyranny intact
But in America, where free discussion
allowed and public opinion for grea
events can be made all-powerful, dyna
mite and all such enemies to order ar
worse than follies. they amount Il
almost criminal hardihood, under tn
most trying expressions. Socialism
bound to make its way, but much more
rapidly and surely will it prevail il
power and in fact ifit is allowed th
moral force of free and open discussiol
and then will it surely and rapidl
mount its throne of power bv that nat
uraI evolution which alone will adius
itself to the new condition of things, bu
as or organisms must grow, the unnatura
forcing or planting of 1t will greatly en-
dangyr if not su ely crush out its grea
! promises, and the history of the Frenc
Revolution furnishes lesson for it.
| Nevertheless, a Revolution, and
bloody Revolution, may be the t:avail G
the birth of the new order, but the grea
danger lies IN forcing it before its timt
or in casting SO much disgrace upon it
coming as to lose it the moral support o
the civilized world, which would fight il
not so much from selfinterest as from
fear of anarchy and the destruction
again Of all the hopes Of civilization.
4 But commenced this letter with an
other view, viz, of informing your pee
pie of our colony project We have com
menced the organisation on the plan o
A <. OWENS aCredit Foncier' and some
twhaf Iike the ssCredit Unionsp of 4a1