The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1906-12-08
TRADE UNION POLICY
AND SOCIALIST PLAN

Continued from mage .1.)
so 1t has been ever since, an unbrOken
series of compromises, effected by the
two great historic Republican and
Democratic parties, all the other So
called third parties, such as the Free
Soil,. Anti-Slavery, Abolition, Anti
Masonic, know Nothing" Greenback,
Labor parties, etc., have each had
their brief day and passed away, and
whatever good may have been in them
was eventually absorbed by the two
great dominant parties, and by them
enacted. Now it is not contended here
that because this has always been so,
It will likewise be so in the future,
but it is perfectly correct to say that
the advocates Of third parties Of to-
day, such as the Populist, Prohibition
ist, and Socialist cannot draw any
hope or comfort out of the past history
examine a few figures representing one
of the present day third parties,
namely the Socialist party.
In 1904 the total vote cast for
President Of the United States was
13,51S,399, Of which Mr.. Debs receiv-
ed 40S,230, Mr.. Corrigan (the De
Leon Socialist candidate) received 3d.
249, making total Of 439,479 for both
factions. OF this total, 100000 votes
came from the seven great mining
and manufacturing states Of Califor-
MI hi
sylvania, Wisconsin and Massa-
chusetts, or considerably over one-half
Of the total vote cast for Mr.. Debs,
the simon pure Socialist candidate,
leaving but $4,000 for the other thir-
ty-eight states of the American
Union. In the seven states named
there is a large foreign born popula-
ton congested in the large centers OF
industry, and which in measure ex-
plains the disproportion of the vote
cast therein, compared with the rest
of the thirty eight states, in the
agricultural sections of the country
the Socialist propaganda has barely
scratched the surface. Let it be we'll
understood that before the Socialist
can get the majority, he must have
large proportion of the agricultural
population with him. In the United
States, the purely Industrial and ag-
ricultural forces are about evenly d.
vided, and when the professional and
other classes, having no affinity with
either, are considered, the necessity
of the Socialist to make inroads on
the farmers becomes all the greater,
nor is this disparity confined to this
country. In Germany, the birthplace e
Of modern militant socialism, the
same disparity of the socialist vote
between the purely agricultural and
industrial sections Of the population
is visible and that, too, in spite of the
fact that in that country the Socialists
have the most compact and successful
organization in the world, and it is
safe to say that they have reached
high water mark or very nearly so,
the reason for this is not far to seek.
The agrarian or farm worker has no
affinity with the worker in factory,
mine, or mill. He is chiefly and Who'll
ly interested in getting the largest
possible price for the products Of the
soil, out Of the industrialist or factory
worker. He lives the simple life, and
so long as nature smiles kindly on
him, is the most Independent creature
in the human organism. 1t is some
what different with the industrial
worker, he leads complex life, or
wants to. His interest calls for the
farmers product at the lowest possible
price, and is the most helpless crea-
ture in the world when the tiller of
the soil fails him. Thus we see Why
the Socialist propaganda has barely
touched the agricultural sections of
Germany Or the United States. But
to resume our figures, in addition to
the votes as enumerated above, the
total dues paying membership of the
Socialist party, as published by it's
secretary, Mr.. Barnes, in the work
err of October 10 last, was in round
figures 29,40O, or only about one in
every fourteen Of their voters is an
active member Of the organization.
This poor showing of the party mem
bership is partly explained by the
fact that many men, including the
writer, voted for Mr.. Debs as a rebuke
to the Democratic party for it's re-
creancy in forsaking the standard rails
ed by Mr.. Bryan, and not for any
love of Socialist principles. This as
sert1on is proved by the heavy falling
off Of the Socialist vote in succeed
ing municipal elections. A more
reasonable estimate would place the
figure Of the bona fide Socialist vote
at 100000. Compare this with the
present voting population in round
figures, 15,000,000, one quarter million
votes for Socialist collectivism after
twenty-five years Of active persist
ent agitation and propaganda. When
we digest these salient facts, the
Socialist party reminds us very much
Of Falstaf and his seven men in
Buckram. When in the name of COM
mon sense can we ever expect them
to get even. a bare majority, to say
nothing Of a three-fourths vote neces-
sary to institute Socialist COLLECTIVE
ism, by peaceful constitutional meth