Workmen's advocate. (New Haven, Conn.) 1883-1891, 1891-01-10

others to force through this body the
adoption of resolutions prepared in ad-
vance and distasteful to the minority.
Delegate A. Jablinowski, of Cigar
makers No. 80, said that in the opinion
of his union the S. l.. p. should be re-
presented not only in the G l.. F, but in
every central body where they could Oh
tain recognition. Then, and not until
then, shall we have an honest labor
movement, economic and political,
throughout the country.
Delegatr kandler Of the United Up.
holsterers. said that when the American
Section Of the S l.. p. applied for re-
presentation in the c. l.. F., he thought
1t was bad policy and apprehrndrd
that discord might be the result. Since
then, however, he had seen the c. l..
F, grow steadily in numerical strength,
intelligent action and legitimate in
tluenCe, while harmony had never
been so perfect III any other central
body. Such evidences of progress and
of the value Of the services rendered 10y
the delegates Of the American Section
had completely changed his views, and
he would vote for the motion.
Delegates Hecker, BInmeuberg and
others spoke also strongly in favor of
the motion, the two delegates of Typo
graphia No. being the only speakers
against 1t.
VOGT's SPEECH.
Delegate Vogt said that the objection
of the Typographical Union did not hold
water. If the Socialists had an lnClma-
tion to form a Clique III the {. l. F. and
to railroad cut and dried resolutions,
they could do so as We'll if they came as
delegates from Federal Labor Unions or
under some other masks that had been
suggested by the pure trade uuiOnists."
All the other arguments advanced
hitherto were on the ground Of tradi-
ton. The Socialist Labor party should
not be represented now because it never
was represented in a central body In
the first place the premises were false;
the party had been in other central boz
dies; in the second place tradition had
no weight in matter affecting the wei,
fare of the whole movement. The ques.
ton was whether it was n the interest
of the movement to admit the 5. l.. 2.
to representation. And the experience
of the past twenty years had shown that
it was. The absence of close utilization
between the political and the economic
branches Of labor mad led to constant
dissensions. The political branch, the
Socialist Labor party, had at times fal-
n into a dOgmatlC policy and become
eStranged from the economic movement.
The economic branch on the other had
again and again fallen into reaction
ism and become the victim of plutoCratiC
political schemes. 1t had only been after
serious collisions and descriptions that
harmony could be restored for a time
between the two branches Of org nized
labor. When the American 5 ctiOn
sent delegates to the G. l.. F., it was
principally with a view to rendering
such estrangement impossible, with a
view to sound harmony At the begin
ming of the trade-unlon movement it
may have been thought advisable to
exclude politics; it was to gain the pre-
carious harmony of men who were in
their views on public questions
thoroughly divided and ready te fly at
each others throats. As soon as the
unions acquired strength, their harmony
on this point was disturbed, not
by the Socialists, but by the capitalistic
politicians, Aho could not see such large
bodies of voters without attempting to
COdtrOl them. From that moment poll
tics have been a source of discOrd,
which can only be dried up by labor go-
ing into It's own, independent class poll
tics. That was recognized by the Am
eriCan Federation Of Labor Itself, when
in its convention at Columbus in Decem-
ber 1886, it declared BY resolution in
favor of independent political action on
the very ground that politics have been
in the past source of dissensiDn il the
labor movement The men who now
oppose the introduction Of politics into
the organizations of labor are the enc
mes of harmony; they are helping the
schemes of reaCtiOnlsts vino want TO re-
serve the field of organized labor for
their own political mampuiatlOns. Our
three leading opponents at Detroit,
| GOmpers, Geo. X. Foster and George +.
| Mcneil never hesltated to plunge INTO
| politics when their own interests could
be advanced thereby. Fos,er had him
self nominated Lieutenant Governor of
| Massachusetts in 1856 George +. Nc
| Nelll ran in December of the same year
as so-caIled labor candidate for Mayor
in the city of Boston and he endeavored
by every means to drag the Central
LaborU Union of Boston into his campaign,
thereby seriously endangering the har-
mony of that body, because a large por-
tion of its delegates believed the move
ment was IN The interest of theRr rpuOicdn
party. Mr.. GOmpers himself negotiated
with the County Democrats and
Republi ans for Senatorial nomI-
natIon, in clear defiance of the reso
luton Of the very organization OF
which he was President. ~uch and
,imil,r schemes nave weakened and
dtm0ralIz-d lnany lab.r ORGANIZATIONS.