The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1903-07-08
BEDEL, THE SOCIALIST.
PERSONALITY OF GERMANY'S MAN
OF THE HOUR.
FraiI in Physique, But Most Formidable
Debater Who Can Easily EnthraII an
Audience BY His 0ratory.


Audience BY His 0ratory.
August Bebel is the man of the hour
In Germany. He is the leader of the
Social Democrats, who have just cast
a vote of 100000, or third of the
entire vote of the empire, says the New
York World.
He was born in Cologne in 1910, the
son of a sergeant in an infantry regi-
ment. He was apprenticed to turn
er, and when his trade was learned he
tramped through Germany, getting
work wherever he could. He Joined
the Social Democratic party, founded
bY William Liebknecht forty years
eesA Botk he and AebknecAG were
sentenced TO imprisonment In 1877,
serving two years each. In 1856 he
served another sentence of nine
months and has suffered many shorter
terms of Imprisonment for his opin-
IONS sake. OF these imprisonments he
has often spoken with cheerfulness.
Altogether" he once said to an in
terviewer, 81 have been behind the
bars fifty-seven months and each time
for political reasons. My fortress life
1 call my university life, for it was
there | first had the chance to study
in peace" His first and most sue
cessfuI book. Die Frau" was planned
in prison. There, too, he learned the
English language. He has written
many other works, but ode Frau Is
the most widely read of them all. 1t
has had twenty five editions in Ger
many and has been translated into f1f-
teen other languages. 1t deals with
the industrial conditions in which wo-
men have been forced to live. Bebel
IS a stout champion of wOman's equah-
ty before the law and at the ballot
box.
He has at all times shown himself
lion hearted leader. On Bismarcks
eightieth birthday he led the Socialist
members of the reichstag in their re-
fusal to send congratulations to 1.-THE
man Of blood and iron" why" he
asked, should we send greetings to
him? He has prosecuted us, banished
US and urged the emperor to 'yank us
into the street and shoot us down."
But German unity Bebel glories In,
though he does not credit it to Bis
marck.
He has shown bravery again in his
denunciation of the annexation of AL
SAGE and Lorraine. 1T was great
mistake" he says, land is the cause OF
all the ornaments that now burden
Europe" The German and French
people should, he insists, be reconc1led
and disband their great armies.
Believing thoroughly in theoretic so
cialism as taught by Carl Marx, he Is
nevertheless active in the reichstag IN
his efforts to secure immediate Install
ments Of reform. He is now sixty
three years of age, and his physique Is
frail. Yet he is easily the most for
midable debater on the opposition side
of the chamber. He can easily hold an
audience for six hours on end by the
smell of his earnest and effective ora
tory. He is absolutely beloved by the
rank and file of the party which has
lust scored an increase Of 100000 votes
in the empire.
He was the uncompromising foe OF
the new tariff, with it's high duties on
imported food. He bitterly denounced
them as hunger duties" He charac'
terized the German army's exploits in
China as "shamefuP and said they
were marked by "bestiality lower than
among beasts" He blamed the emper'
or for it all because of his order that
no mercy should be shown. He has re-
peatedly criticised and censured Will
liam II. for his public utterances, ana
once he intimated that he thought the
emperor was insane. This was on the
occasion of the latter's speech to young
recruits telling them they must be
ready if needs be to kill their own "a
theirs and mothers