The evening world., 1889-08-02
GERMANY'S MOTIVE
Socialists Say the Insurance Bill Is to
Set Back Socialism.
II Was Done to Take the Wind Out
of Their Sails.
The Pension from the Old Age Fund
Benefits Only Those Over Seventy
Years Old.

1cdTS Olus
10 learn what the Socialists think of the
new German measure of state insurance for
the wOrkmen, a reporter called on Mr.. w. l..
Rosenberg. the editor of Der Socialist. n
Socialist weekly journal. whose ofic is No.
20 East Fourth street. Mr.. Rosenberg is IL
young-looking man in spectacles. He studied
at the University of Berlin. spent five years
in st. Petersburg, and was formerly a teacher
Of Greek and Latin. When asked what he
thought Of the new measure, he said;
The Socialists i'll Germany are not against
it in principle. They oppose it because 1t in
too limited in scope. Tho lav provides ro-
lief for German workmen who reach the age
of seventy ears. Bat the average duration
of the lite of q German workman is between
forty and fifty years. SO. YOU see, only II
few German wOrkmen will ever live to enjoy
the old age fund.
THE Socialists had their great fight in Tho
Rcichstag against the old age clause. They
tried t. lower the n@e therein specified to
siXty-tive years. but they were unable to DO so.
Here IL where the ridiculous part of -
comes i'll. a wun who has contributed thirty
years IN the first class gels on reaching the
age Of seventy years l06 marks or about S26 IA
y'ar, n little moro rhan ~ II month. a man
III We NCtblIl tllSS HtIS lDt lllNThA, ABOUT Foo
a year. 1t would te impossible Tor a man tp
keep alive Oh that in Germany. In the third
class he gets 1872 marks, or about $40 q year
and i'll the fourth class he gets 10l marks or
about 547 n year. Think how paltry thes,
suns are and that a man has to be seventy
years Old, besides beng II steady contributor
for thirty years. 10 get them.
THE first class viii he made up of common
labOrcrs, mechanics. apprentices and SER
wants: the second class, OF officers on public
works and railways. of clerks and appren-
tees in commercial houses, apothtcaries eX.
cepted, having Nh income of less than 1000
marks II years; the third. of employees on
YES, els. and the fourth. of small employers
who have not regularly one employee. There
is n fifth class made up Of manufacturer at
home who have moe thon one employee
Insurance for the first three classes is cont
pulsorv, for the last two classes it is optional.
The motive og the Government in pa, s.
ing the measure was to stop the progress of
TIE Socialists, 10 take the wind out Of The
sail of Socialism.
at is rather II singular thing that at the
time tlmt law was passed 100. 100 miners struck
in Westphalla, showing that the workmeu
did not care for the hill.
Bismarck has taken up Socialistic ideas,
especially those of Lasallc. who was his
friend. When he gave general suffrage to
Germany he WIS following Lasalie's ideas.
He is the first statesman who has widened
the horizon of the duties aud functions of
the State. lie has decided that the State
should interfere for the welfare of its people.
and to improve the condition of the millions
of the poor.
Bismarck is q champion of monarchy.
What he hates is not Socialism, but the
Democratic idea in Socialism. Some day
monarchlcal Socialism may be arrayed
against Dem cratic Socialism. All the at
empts Bismarck has made to organize q
Christian Socialist party i'll Germany have
been in vain. Christian Socialism meant
not anything Christian, but monarchical
Socialism.
''Vho uev. mooSnre will be of M heuett IN
the German wurkmen. It's value is entirely
in its acknowledgment of the justice of tho
principle of Socialism. The nobility and the
other conservatives supported the measure.
1t was the bourgeoisie. the manu-. acturers and
wine-GrOwcrs who opposed 1t.
1t is u great step towards Socialism.
Despite the cOnciliatOrv intention of the law
the Socialist party in Germany will hence
forth be larger than ever. Tho strike in
We.tphalia dId II great deal for the Socialist
cause. Socialism Is now a general public
movement III Germany"
Mr.. Albert jonas. the amiable Socialist
who edits the ToMs Zeitung, said
The measure is OF no importance, eX-
cept that it establishes q principle. II is in
tended to neutrallZe the SOcinlistic plans. to
take the wind out of the sails of the Socialists.
The money amount to be paid is small.
THE workman has to be seventy years old
before he can gel anything from the o!d-age
und and he must have contributed n part of
it. Seldom the German workman lives so
long. TIE life of the officers in the German
army is longer than that of the German
workmen.
Nevertheless the measure is very impor-
tant in acknowledging the principle that the
S ate has to take care of its people i'll old age
and III cases of lines and accident.
1.-The measure passed by a very small ma
ior1ty, because the Government wanted to
conciliate the growing discomfort in Ger
many. Most of the Conservatives voted for it
though some of them stayed away and did not
vote at all.
1.-THE lower middle class, representing the
Manchester School of Political Economy,
voted against il.
The Socialists voted ng linst it because it
didn't 90 far enough. because IL was merely o
bone'lhrown TO the workmen. Whe law never
would have passed, nor Bismarck proposed
il, if it had not been tor the Socialist move
ment."