Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1903-08-29


cialism are.
The party under consideration is
the socialist party. If it is going to
carry out such program requiring
such superhuman wisdom and integ-
rity, it will need leaders who are at
least above the petty jea]ousies and
chickering's so often found in all par
ties. 1t seems, however, that the men
at present at the head of the socialist
party are not superior to the common
breed of politicians. In this connec-
tion the following clipping from the
Cleburne (Texas) Watchman an may be
of interest:
A SOCIALISTS OPINION.
One of the leading socialists, who
for q long time was editor of the Com
Ing Nation, writes this opinion of the
socialists which the Advance prints
without comment:
The fact that the party socialists of
the United States are q wrangling,
dishonest, bankrupt gang of trouble
makers is shown by their last annual
report. This report, made by Leon
Greenbaum, national secretary of the
socialist party, was not supposed to
be seen by any one outside of the
party. It is long report and filed
with the evidence of the socialist
party's incompetence to manage even
their own little aft airs, not to speak
of the affairs of the nation. The fol-
lowing twenty points are admitted in
the report and shown to BIZ true by the
secretary himself:
l. fractional fight in Utah.
2. fractional fight in North Da-
kota.
g. fractional fight in Nebraska.
4. Dishonest appropriation of
S115 dues by Illinois socialists.
5. Dishonest appropriation of
800 dues by New York socialists.
6. Fourteen state committees can't
or won't pay dues.
7. Kansas socialists repudiate
dues and refuse payment.
8. Fight between Illinois social
lists and headquarters.
9. Official reports suppressed by
Illinois and New York socialists.
10. Wisconsin socialists rebel
against headquarters.
ii. Membership has fallen off in
fifteen states.
II. Half of the local organizations
pay no dues.
i3. Debt of 1910 repudiatea by
eastern socialists.
II. Debt of 1884 repudiated by So
cialist state committees.
Is. Net debt of socialists head
quarters. 81, 1856 81,
Is. Only 10000 dues paying men,
bers in the whole party.
II. Headquarters makes q capital
istic profit Of 10 per cent on supplies.
18. Pennsylvania socialists tried
to break up coal miners' strike.
10. Socialists tried to smash A. F.
of L.
20. Tried to smash trade union
political movement in San Francisco.
When this report was issued, the
head bosses of the socialist party at
once made charges against the secre-
tarY who was honest enough to- tell
the facts, and he was dismissed, to-
gether with four other officials who
agreed with him.
One of the four officials, Mr.. J. S.
Roche, of st. Louis, sent me q copy
of the report, so that what I say is
not second hand evidence. If any
party socialist denies these facts, ask
him to produce the annual report of
his party for 1902.
The fact is that so far as it has had
power, the socialist party has been
quite as corrupt q lot of wire pullers
as the republican or democratic par
ties. 1t has shown less competence
a In ~ ~
fairs, and it has been more boss rid.
den than any party in existence.
From first to last, it has done moth
ing except to bring the principles of
socialism into discredit with all INTEL
ligent people. Its bigotry and fanati-
cism have been worthy of the middle
ages, and it's boss rule has put Tam
many hall in the shade, even in the
worst days of Tweed and Croker.
HERBERT N. CAssoN.
Now as TO Thompson's answers to
my objections to socialism.
In reading them I was reminded OF
an experience I often had on the farm
in my boyhood days. The gophers
were quite pest out on the prairie
and 1t was q part of my work to send
as many of them as possible to the
happy hunting grounds. One of my
methods of procedure was to chase q
gopher into his hole and then drown
him out. It often happened, however,
that after ''toting'' water for q long
distance and pouring it down hole I
would see my intended victim get up
out of another hole, get up on his hind
legs and survey me with . saucy
glance as much as to say, ''Never
touched me-" and then scamper off.
Mr. Thompson advocated the single
tax theory, and when I went for that
and showed why the farmer and
laborer would object to having the
whole burden OF taxation laid upon
]. leontinued On pase ...' u. i.