The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1905-08-07
SOCIALISTS FOR
PEACE In SWEDEN
Continued from First Page.

holm the party has built great bust
ness building, called Folketshus, or
the Peoples House. It stands on val.
liable ground in the business district,
and cost over million kronor. !
mean to give you some facts about it in
later letter, and I mention. it now
because it is the home: Of all the vari-
Demokrat,- the daily paper owned and
maintained by the socialists. There
are also socialist dailies similarly or
ganized in Goteberg and Malmo. The
editor Of the Stockholm organ, as [
have said, is Hialmar Branting, a pop
nlar leader of the party, and perhaps
its foremost man.
Herr Branting is a man of birth and
education. He fell heir to good in
heritance, but he has spent every ore
Of it, it is said, for the good of the
cause He has left Of it all only a
house which he could not contribute be-
cause it was entailed. He has fine uni
versity education, having received de-
gree. from Upsala, where he showed a
pursuance of this study he went to the
famous observatory of Pultowa, Rus
STA, and here it was that he imbibed
his first ideas of socialism. He returned
to Sweden and resolved to devote not
merely his fortune, but his life to the
I found Herr Bfanting in his office
at the Folketshus today and he re:
ceived me very cordially. He talked
freely of the aims and aspirations of
the socialists, who, he declared; had had
an organization in Sweden for eighty
years, based On the English model
Ih ere are n9w ON n al %
Of whom are in Stockholm. Yet there
: are among all these men from 10000
to 10000 voters the total varying &C
cording to the interest aroused in the
election issues. If man pays taxes
: on his income of 800 kronor or over
, he may vote. If he fails to pay, he
cannot vote until he does pay them, to
l gether with all arrearages. Thus the
vote varies according to how fierce thu
!, campaign may be.
: Aims Of Socialists. 49,.
"What are your aimsa" said I t.
: Herr Branting.
t "First of aIl,'' said he, "we adhere
. of course, to the international pro
9 gram of the socialists. That is vel
known. Then we have very close rela
tions with the socialists Of Denmar]
and Norway. Our interests are com
mon, and we have agreed to work to
gether for these common interests. Tn
y organizations Of the three Scandinav
ian countries send delegates to a coun
Gil which considers these things Of ger
q eral concern
~ .fBut what is your program in Swe
:, den?' -:
s eve ask for legislation that sha
> provide insurance for the aged. .Thj
o. plan is similar to that pushed by tn
German socialists. But our principe
= concern is the effectuation Of legisls
y, tion that shall protect the rights, an
in+o fo of t1o 1oh
y happens we have had more difficult
IS fighting the demands Of the capitalist
<, element than in proposing new legisl;
e tion, We have, for example, bee
obliged to wage bitter war against
proposal to take from all railroad me
le the right to strike. This would max
n slaves Of railroad employees and woul
s, utterly prevent their getting Justice
1t other matters Of difference with tt
le, state and private roads. The conserv
h.; tiyes have even demanded the passas
1t of a law making all strikes illegal. Til
is 50 bureaucratic and altogether u,
As q matter of fact, while we hay
many strikes most of them are success
full. Moreover, arbitration is fast gro1
h ing in favor and more and more lab
IS disputes are settled in that .way.'
q: .--- Attitude Toward Norway.
Z s"What is the attitude of the social
toward the n crisis IS with fsho No Or
n that we. have been accused of being II
N patriotic. But we can see nothing
s. Is gained by war, especially for tt
: common people. It would take from
: our. sons, it would raise the cost of o,
living, already too high, it would il
+ poverish the country and thus increa
+, our already, high rate of taxation. Al
- all this to. cause the blood Of our No
= wegian brothers to fow9 They are 6
n ready much better off than we. The
IN have the right to vote and out of tt
or 100000 voters in Norway, no less thu
OF 10000 are. socialists. We have a vel
90 good understanding with the No
or wegian social democrats and we shall (
# everything in our power to prevent W;
%: and to bring about permanent peace
. Scandinavia. Our idea is that the fir
= thing to do is to recognize the new go
1t eminent Of Norway. Then treaties CO
T, be made that will retain for all Scano
Mt navia the strength against aggressit
that came from the old union. No