Workmen's advocate., 1890-05-03

Crowded Audiences Applaud his
 Courage and Receive his Teach
 ings-His Address to the Boston
 Section, $. L. P.-"Proiit.sharing
 a Capitalistic Dodge to Reduce
 Wages"
 Comrade Rev. W. D. F. Bliss, the Christian Socialist, who was lately "driven from his pulpit by the Pharisees of his church. for daring to preach the doctrines of the Carpenter of Nazareth, ie. Socialism, addressed large audience at Brunswick Hall, Sunday evening, April 20, on Scientific vs. Sentimental Socialism, Throughout his address he was interrupted by frequent applause and at it's conclusion an organizations was formed to advance the interests of Socialism. George E. McNeill was chosen it's president.
 Later in the evening Comrade Bliss delivered an address under the same caption but slightly modified before the American Section at G. A. R. Hall.
 The speaker said in substance:
 "Nationalism and Christian Socialism will accomplish much good by reaching certain classes. But when you wish to come down to good effective fighting you must depend upon the $. l.. F., since 1t does not deal with sentiment but with science and hard facts.
 'ldeallsm has had its part to play. Owen and Fourier were idealsts and if it were not for idealism we should never have had Marx, Lassale and other scientific students of politics and econ omics ldealism has it's place but senti- mtntalism no place in furlhering the cause of the downtrodden masses. ldeallsm is necessity, but to dwell m the ideal is the mistake of the senti mentalist. He mistakes the ideal for the actual"
 The speaker divided sentimental social. ists into three classes
 l. Revolutionary Socialists.
 II. Socialists with one idea.
 III. Socialists with no idea
 l. The revolutionary socialist is senti- mentalist, He forgets that we must 70 through certain preliminary stages be fore we reach our ideal. He would have capitalistic in1ividualsm on Monday morning, an insurgent uprising of the proletariat Monday afternoon, and so- aiulisn futl Nwrnu hy TpoaJn,, .x,x... ing. Socialism must come slowly. IL is only by abiding the time that little acorn becomes a giant oak that gives pleasure to the eye of the beholder by the symmetry of it's form.
 Il. The socialist with one idea has some pet scheme for the saving of society. The disciples of profit sharing, single. tax, elght-hours or trade-unions belong to this class. Profit sharing is but capi- talistic dodge to reduce wages. Under It's influence workmen are induced to make greater efforts and work longer hours to increase the profits of their em- ployers. Single'tax alone would do more harm than good. If land was taxed to it's full value we might derive some ad. vantage from 1t. But what would hinder Astor with his great accumuIations of money and his many houses from be. coming the Duke of Westminster of New York and dictating who and under what conditions the people of that city should occupy his tenements?
 l believe in eight hours. Aye. six. four and two! But eight hours alone will do little to alleviate the hardships of the producers Invention would soon cause a surplus in the labor market and we would have, virtually, the same con- ditions again. l believe in these strikes Tor eight hours. Successful or unsucccss 1 ful they do good in bringing the people into politics.
 Naturalization of railroads alone would not accomplish much The state must give the unemployed something to io before we can take great strides in this reform.
 III. The third class of sentimental SO. ,iallsts are dreamers and propose nothing practical. They denounce the present md dream of future ideal state of love and brotherhood, but they do not tell us now 1t may be realized
 The natlonallsts talk of nationalizinp industries but they give Us no way of it. They talk of the standardization of railroads, but when he opportunity comes they are not 'eady. All this sentiment will accom- ,lish nothing. We must come down to actual facts before we can accomplish anything.
 Scientific Socialism will accomplish because, like science. it is based upon facts and accurate observa ions.
 Whenever we come down to the hard acts of economics we arrive at Social sm. Booth, the English lndividualist.