The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1903-03-16
THE VOICE OF THE PEOPLE.
Continued on page Four.

a wage on which he slowly starves; can
kill with overwork and yet lose nothing.
That man who sees another stanc
ready To take his place dare not assert
himself: the master has hHn in his power
and knows II. and power is but the provo
cation of the bully. Masters he may
change, but a master he must serve and
never until there are no masters VIII the
slave be truly free.
Present society consists OF capitalist
class of less than nine per cent or the
people. owning three-fourths OF the
wealth of the nation; middle class OF
30 per cent or less, owning ~ per cent: a
wage working class OF 60 per cent or
more. owning not more than five per cent
OF this country's wealth,
The capitalist class Is slowly but surely
absorbing the middle class wealth, whiie
the proletariat Is absorbing the mlduie
class people. Under Socialism there would
be but one class. the class of useful work
ers, and but one interest. the interest OF
that class. IL any will not work, neither
shall they eat.
ownership OF the land and tools In place
Of private ownership Then by each WORK
ing "A few hours "A day there coulu pe
enough produced for every one without
making slaves OF anyone, and involun,
tary want and the fear OF want would
vanish from the earth. Under this mon
strous system of capitalism. with It's ever
slavery. with an ever larger number OF
serfs. there are millions who live in des-
titution from the cradle to the grave and
az many more whom "A few weeks or ldle-
ness reduces TO pauperism.
No matter how much the workers have
produced stoppage or work means star
walton. Al present wealth IS the pro1mc,et c,sd
workers produce the loafers appropriate
the product The class struggle is the
struggle between those who have and
flF. n "A
those who take; those who exploit and
those who resist exploitation. those who
produce and those who do not produce;
between the capitalist class that must
continue to exploit the wage workin5
class in order to live in idleness and lux
ury and the wage working class that
must put an end to all exploitation by
revolutioniZing in the interest of that
class the entire structure OF Industrial
society.
A great many confound the taking over
OF public utilities by government with So
cialism; state or municipal Socialism they
call IL. when In fact II Is not Socialism
al all. nor does il lead TO IL; II Is not
step at time as is so often claimed for
IL toward Socialism.
When capitalist governments buy an IN
dustry making IL government monopoly
they have nationalized IL with the object
that the capitalist class will receive tho
profits which as dividends went to pri-
vate stockholders. With those profts
they will reduce the taxes which they
have TO pay, will reduce the price OF gas
for in those private penitentiaries labelled
work shop mill and mine owned by
them: also the price Of coal large guam
titles OF which they consume, and lessen
the freight rates for transportation OF
their goods sent away and raw material
which they have brought to their works.
The workers viii not he benefited by
government ownership II they get cheap
er gas, coal CT street car fare. Their en-
ployer Will see TO IL that they receive
less wages. Again cheap gas. electric
light, coal or car fare means cheap labor
TO be exploited. whether the Industries
are nationalized or are In private hands.
The electric and gas plants In this city
days a week. IL the city should buy
them at any price they would sell for and
reduce the hours Of the workers to what
is called reasonable hours how could the
price Of lieht be reduced To consumers
and the same applies To street cars, coal
mines and railroads.
Socialism. which is represented In this
country by the Socialist Labor party,
which has been I'm existence 13 years.
seeks to educate the wage workers OF
the land that they may with their ballot
elect their own class To ill the political
Offices from that OF president TO the
smallest in the town. who will change the
laws so there will be no longer private
owned means of production.
The law makers Will make no provision
for buying the industries I'm the posses
sion OF the bandit class. but will say the
greatest good to the greatest number de-
mands that the land and ell the means
of production shall be taken from in
dividuals who do not rightfuly own Il and
placed In the hands Of society from whom
10 he's bcen stolen.
Ard there viii be no mention Of In
dcmnty any more thon there was when
King GeofG was told 20 give these COL
onies 60 the rightful owners.
Neither did the owner pf the chattel
slave receive any indemnity when those
slaves were declared chattels no longer
The public welfare demands that cap
italism shall give place 10 socialism, but
the outraged wage workers are not yet
sufficiently educated as 10 their class in
terests: but the time is not far distant
when they will be and then they will make
the change on election day with that class