The Labor enquirer., 1888-03-24
THE LEAGUE.
An Interesting Meeting Despite the
storm.

An Interesting Meeting Despite the
The furious wind and snow
storm which ragged on Sunday
night did not prevent the social
lists from holding a very interest
ing meeting at Meets hall. After
a song by the League, Comrade
Isenberg gave an interesting
twenty-minute address. in the
course of which he detailed his
experience in evoluting from a
notwithstanding democrat into a
politician-hating socialist. The
speaker said he had always voted
the old reliable democrat ticket
until a few years ago-after the
Gar6eld-Hancock campaign-and
that very simple question by his
little child had set him thinking
and started him on the socialistic
road of investigation. He said
that his little boy had, with child
ish curiosity, asked him, why are
you a democrat, pa1" and the
question asked in childish SIM
plicity had started him on seri-
Gus line of thought which he had
followed with the result that it
had led him into socialism. If
men will throw off the shackles of
party-shackles born Of ignorance.
stupidity and a slavish desire to
follow at the heels of cunning and
unscrupulous politicians--then
they will begin to think and rea-
son, ask questions and become So
cialists. The comrades address
contained many good points which
are necessarily left untouched
owing to lack of space.
Comrade Leahy took for his
subject the march Of radical ideas
and incidentally mentioned in
proof of his assertion that the
presence cf his audience on
night of such a severely stormy
character proved the people we're
in earnest.
The comrade detailed some ex-
perience had by him in the res
ervoir convention during the week,
and how even amongst gathering
of boodlers, board of trade gam
blers and real estate sharks the
march of radical ideas was having
its influence. How the advocates
of the state ownership idea con-
cerning bitches and reservoirs had
forced their socialistic ideas for
ward and compelled recognition
thereof even from men who profit
by the very abuses which the So
cialistic idea antagonizes. The
speaker said he was especially
pleased to note, in the reservoir
convention, the radical tendency
of many of what are generally
termed conservative old farmers.
Many of the most suggestingly
radical speeches made in the con-
vention were made by farmers.
Comrade Davis followed with a
we'll written essay on "The Objects
of the League" in the course of
which he made many good points.
The object of the league was to
agitate and educate. Everybody,
almost, nowadays was willing to
admit that there is something
wrong" in our social and industrial
system when men by thousands
tramp from one side Of our coun-
| try to the other in the vain search
for employment; when in close
proximity to the bursting grana-
ries children cry for bread; when
within the very shadows Of our
magnificent piles Of brick, stone,
marble and stained glass, called
Christian churches. there exists
vice, misery. degradation. crime
and pauperism as chronic as it ex-
lists in the lowest slums of Europe.
Ask the fashionable minister the
cause of those conditions and he
will tell you it's the improvident
habits Of the poor; they drink too
much whisky; the "agitators"s are
to blame; and there is plenty of
work il the lazy, discontented ras-
Gals of workingmen would 60 and
find it; and if the workingmen got
more money they would buy more
F..