The San Francisco call., 1896-03-03
GORPS CLASSY GLARE,
1t Is Turned Relentlessly Upon
the Lega Socialista
Italiana.
A Meeting at Apollo Hall Which De.
veloped Some Bitter Express.
sionS of Antagonism.

The Italian socialists of this City were
among the most fervid OF Pietro Gori's ad-
mirers when that noted anarchist first be-
gan his propaganda here. For nearly a
month Gori and the Lega Socialista
1taliana dwelt together in harmony, but
now the friendship has given place to
mutterings of wrath and the glad hand
has been exchanged for the CLASSY eye. In
fact feud has arisen which nothing can
quench but great mass-meeting.
Gori says that socialists are greater
enemies to freedom than is the Car of all
the Russias. The socialists say that Gori
is dangerous, seditious person, against
whom all true lovers of freedom should be
warned, and the strife has waxed so high
that arrangements are being made to hold
a grand debate in Metropolitan Temple
next Monday, at which the socialists and
the anarchists will argue out their differ
cnces in English and Italian.
The first rift within the lutte occurred
last Sunday afternoon, when the Italian
Socialists (La Lega SociaEsta Italiana)
held meeting in Apollo Hall, presided
over by Griseri DALI Obrico. Pietro Gori
had been invited to be present. in order
that those seeking knowledge in the ways
of anarchy could question him and have
their curiosity gratified. It was arranged
that discussions should be limited to five
minutes, and all was going swimmingly
when Arturo Cont took the floor, and to
use colloquialism ''sailed into" the an
archists in way that made Gori and his
partisans almost doubt their ears, for till
that time they had fondly believed that
Mr.. Cont had taken them under his wing.
In the course of his remarks Arturo
Cont explained how he had been led to
preside at some of Gori's lectures and
afterward found it his painful duty to con-
denim all he taught. For the first two
lectures l believed Pietro Gori to be good
socialist, but his later lectures revealed
him in his true character. He is the friend
of capital, for he advises his followers to
abstain from voting, and is not that play
ing into the hands of the capitalists" ?"
After making a number of remarks
about anarchists, which were entirely the
reverse of f1attering, Signor Cont sat
down and Signor Gori took the floor, pre-
pared to combat with all his eloquence for
the principles of anarchy. He was told
that he must observe the five minutes
rule, which filled the cup of his wrath
against the socialists full to the brim.
"Ak! you socialists you do not know
what liberty isl" he cried tiercely. "You
strangle the words back in my throat with
your fve-minute- regulations. Is man
not to have freedom OF speechp l scorn to
answer you now. but will hold a meeting
of anarchists, to which | will invite you.
There / will speak and you tyrants shall
have five hours-days, years. centuries, if
you like-in which to answer me. will
show you what the future base of society
is to be-"
And protesting indignantly, Pietro Gori
dashed out of the hail, followed by about
third of the audience, which took this
opportunity of showing that it had enlisted
itself under the anarchist banner.
When the footsteps of the departing
anarchists had died away in the distance
Il. Bettini and Alvin Appel successfully
took the floor and said what they thought
of tEat kind of people.
l.. Nathan, who spoke next, said that,
for his part, he would have liked to COM
pare socialism with anarchy face to face
with Gori, and he considered it an act of
cowardice on the part of the anarchists to
abandon the hall.
This taunt at the departed one was
more than some of the socialists who were
wavering little in their allegiance could
stand. A. Barlotti jumped to his feet and
called upon Mr.. Nathan TO either retract
the word coward" or leave the platform.
The latter said that the word escaped his
Ups Oe1Ore ne was aware Oh IL, Dut UOIl
friends in the audience were not satisfied.
They demanded public discussion, in
which the anarchist could take his own
part without being tied by any five-min-
ute time limit, and finally it was decided
that public discussion should be held.
Yesterday Arturo Cont agreed to take
the meeting in charge. Nathan speaks no
Italian and Gori very little English, but it
was decided that an interpreter should be
present to translate Gori's words into Eng
lish and Nathans into Italian. The mass
meeting that is the outcome of the diff
culties between the socialists and an
archists will probably take place next
Monday in Metropolitan Temple.