The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1902-11-30

WRITTEN FOR THE SUNDAY REPUBLIC.
1 ave only a short while to live, but be-
fore l die l should like to oay q few words
to you, the wOrkingmen, to tell you what
l think Of your present condition. and give
you my advice as to the best means for
your delivery from 1t.
Perhaps something that I rave thought
and still ~think-and I have thought very
much of you-may be Of some use to you.
1 naturally address the Russian laborers.
among whom 1 have spent my life and
many. Of whom I know. but I am in tbs
hope that my thoughts may possible be OF
some value to those Of other countries.
The fact that o w~orkingmen and la
borers are forced to pass your dife In pow
erty, not to say misery; that you are con-
demned to the hardest kind Of work, that
does not benefit. while other people who
do not work reap all the profits Of your
work-the fact tat many Of you are prac-
tically slaves of these people, n the fact
that this is unjust, must be clear to any
one VINO has a heart and eyes to see with.
But what is to be done to change this?
The first means, the most natural means.
which offers itself to you n always has
done SO. Is to use force to deprive these
people of what they v no right Ito
possess.
In olden days: It was attempted by the
peasants in Germany and France In medf-
aeval times. and it has repeatedly been
tried by peasants and laborers In all coun-
tries in modern time.
Though this seems to be the means that
has always presented itself first. It has
never helped anywhere. and far from bet
tering the condition Of the laborer, It has
always made his position worse.
A thousand years ago when the govern
ments were not as strong as they are now.
there was still some hope Of accomplishing
something. but to-day when the govern
ments that always defend those who do not
work are in possession Of immense amounts
of money. when they control the railr- as,
and the armies. all such attempts at forci-
Bile revolt must always end fatally for the
laboring classes. and the power Of the nom
producing class will grow stronger with
every unsuccessful attempt.
When you laborers try to throw OF your
letters by force you act like a man bound
with strong ropes who tries to break them,
but only succeeds In pulling the knots
tighter instead Of untying them.
The labor problem can never be solved
by force.
This fact. that the laborer gains nothing
by attempting revolution, but only makes
his condition worse, Is evident to all. and,
therefore,. the men who are interested or
pretend to be interested In the welfare Of
the workinsman have thought of other
means to free him from slavery.
This means is based upon the doctrine
that when all laboring men shall have been
deprived Of the ground that they possess,
when they shall al, have become factory
hands (Which time, according to this the
ory, is bound to Gomez, when they shall
have formed first unions, then cooperative
concerns: when they shall nave sent their
Representatives into Legislature. then the
time will come when they shall gradually
improve their condition and finally they
shall own in part, or maybe even in full,
all the factories and all the land, and be
absolutely free and independent.
Though this doctrine is evidently vague,
full of arbitrary propositions, contradic-