New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-06-21
At THE GERMAN CAPITAL.
Development IF SociaEism-Talk Of
Successor Of Chancellor
Berlin, June =

=
are =, q crucial stage in their Gevelop,,ant a.
ser,-e. nsNerfheless. some elucidatio, IA -
Be Ihat they viii also enlist the attant;o,, &c =
intelligent American public because for 90,
thing, 'here Is rather strong parallel tba,
4nich be drawn. That part % II bovra,,ar -
be left ,he reader.
L IS 70" almost twelvenonth since the
gocialst party in the empire achieved a 60.
ing victory IN The general Reichstag elections
Increasing its vote by about $4,000 lfror
2,11oceO 10 something over 3yOoOOoO and e..
membership in the national Parliament from, ca
&c - The chief reason for this enormous
growth OF Socialist strength was to be fo,,nd 4,
the general dissatisfaction Of the working classes
with prevailing political and social conditions
Tie tact OF THIS great accession to the ranks Of
the Socialists, however, sufficed for nol,tioo,
writer's outside Of Germany-everyvvber q, +ba
United States just as much as I'm F,pe1ard
France and even in Italy and Australia pre
dict the rapid metamorphosing of the er,nirs
into Socialistic commonwealth And ON tba
face OF II such prophecy seemed not unreason-
able. But for man on the ground ~ ba o,1
used impartial observation and some common
sense such a deduction appeared folly Il ;s
scarcely 100 much 10 say that the general cleo
uon iast summer marked the high tide of Ger
man socialism. and that in all lilelfhood-un-
less lhHeed' enormous blunders are made bv
the Kaiser and his goVernment-this party. as a
political factor VIII never again demonstrate
The same amount OF strength. The phenomenal
success was bound TO bring on a reaction Since
last summer. indeed the motto has been given
out for al the on-SociaIst parties To conso,i
date and present united front on all occasions
where racing the Socialist cohorts This move
neit, though not invariably successful nor as
systematically organized might be- has been
steaaly gathering momentum, and the results
thus far achieved are evident
OWNS 10 death. resignation or other cir,-urn
stances, eight Of the eighty-three Socialist seats
IN the Reichstag became vacant in the last six
months or the by-elections thus made naces-
slrE The Socialists have lost five. reducing their
delegation in the present Reichstag session 70
seveiJS-eight. Three OF these defeats were
brought about in towns recently considered So
>'iaist strongholds. Again at other bv-elec-
tons m electoral districts where the Socialist
vote heretofore was large enough TO make 4
fight worth while the Socialists were not only
Defeated. but in every instance showed a great
loss IN votes when compared with former years
The opposition TO socialism has moreover
spread 10 every political party, including every
faction Of the Liberal party; even the most rad
ioal OF these, the Freisinnige VereinIgung of
which Dr. Theodore Barth is the leader ana
The South German democratic Volkspartei. have
n their majority become outspokenly auti-So-
ciallst though formerly there was much frater-
rlzauon between them. DR.. Barth and several
other leading Liberals. seeing the dangerous
trend IN this, have vainly striven TO counteract
this movement by attempted temporary or per
nanent utilization with the Socialists. Under
fae panic fear Of ultimate Socialist domination
al the liberal factions-the National Liberals
shs Volkspartei and the two organizations under
tie leadership Of Eugene Richter and Dr. I3arth
ia
most formidable enemies. the Conservative and
shs Centre Tor Ultramontane) parties. often in
cases where 10 do so meant the negation of their
Own party platforms. This feature OF the mat
Ter Is regrettabe, for it means the complete sub
merging Of Liberalism within the empire and the
Eredominance OF the big reactionary and agra
f1an interests Never in the history of the re-
united empire has reactionism been as strong
as il is to-day. and this is true not only Of
Prussia, but of the whole country. "A striking
proof Of this may be found in the adoption by
large majority Of the so-called School Com
promise resolution IN the Prussian Diet meas
ure so frankly retrogressive in public education
that ten years ago II would have seemed i'm
possible in Germany. BY IT the public school
system in Prussia has once more passed bound
haLd ana foot under the control of the TWO
state churches the Evangelical and the Cath
Ole according 10 the district in which each
school is located. And as in Prussia the thing
has been accomplished in Bavaria and Saxony
as well, 10 the complete satisfaction of obscUr-
entism.
Another remarkable feature Of this anti-So-
cialistic reaction is the Rumbe" Of organizations
';hst have sprung UP Of late in every part Of the
country one Of them. styled Reichsverband
gegen die SoZialGemokratie Imperial Anti-So-
clalist Association). within two months after its
inception has attained membership OF near
y half million. And among its organizers is
the Tice-presdent Of the Reichstag, DR.. Paaschs.
as Tel. many other leaders OF Liberalism.
STRIFE AMONG SOCIALISTS.
Ta.s, hoeever. is not all More dangerous for
socialism is the internal strife that IS raging
IN its ranks. There is no longer any har-
mony between the various parts-differing ma
terially ia creed-of the Socialist party in Ger
many OF course. there has always been more
or less Of this. But lately these differences have
become bitter as have led to complete
arrangement between various factions. The
war between the old" and the young, be-
tween the irDeconconcilab es of the type OF Bebel
ana Singer and the moderates OF the type
q Bernstein and Auer, has been waged for
many years past. II has regularly come TO a
locus ~ every national Socialist convention, but
heretofore il always ended in a compromise.
Now. however the Bebel faction. at the national
convention held at Dresden. has triumphed over
the Zoe. Edward Bernstein. the greatest intel
lectuol leader the German SOCIALISTS have had
since the days Of Marx and LassaIie, has been
sguelched. apparently for good. When he came
Up Cor election his own party defeated him and
helped elect a Conservative. Now. Bernstein had
done more within the last ten years 20 wean