Montana news. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1904-191?, 1906-10-18


party. We have been treated to an am
pie supply OF how to become efficient
book agents, and how much we can
wiring from the public either by hard
luck stories or pulling their leg by some
hypnotic performances. But when it is
all done, where is the organizationl The
organization of the Socialist party is a
a shell, and there is not one organizer
in the field that is fit to mount the soap
box, if he or she is honest, but what will
admit this statement to be true. / am
in the habit of dealing in facts, after
examining all the subject at close range.
We often hear comrades sneer at the
trades union movement, but there is no
room for their sneers. L have invariably
found that such comrades have little or
no conception of how to get the work.
ing class into the movement. 1 will ad-
init they ofttimes treat us to a long
harangue as To what should be done
but howl That is the rub. What have
we been doing, and how have We bein
doing itY We have dispatched orators
and organizers out by the scores; some
with big compensation for a short time,
! other root hog or die" The ones that
are self-supporting are the ones TO be
most constantly on the road This is to
be expected. and will lie so long as we
have shell. And we will have a shell
as long as this is continued. When a
speaker has TO use a third of her or his
time on the street to get collection or
sell books one cannot expect much or
ganization work from that source.
know of what speak. Books are simply
seed. Oratcry is simply seed. But or
ganization is harvest. There is no farm
er who haryests grain with the drill,
neither do they drill in grain with the
reaper II is true there are few COM
bined along that line. Some of the best
organizers ] have known in the union
movement could not make a two min
utes' speech; and some that could talk
for hours could not get two people to
agree to anything. They are simply fine
takers. The orator is the one to rally
for a final charge. The organizer is
the one who makes the charge posi-
BILE by having something to charge with.
In n few cases these are combined. but
in more they are separate and should be
50 used We have put round plugs into
square holes, then wondered why they
do not fit. Simply because we can
Jump the box. plow the air, beat the
heavens. talk learnedly to the workers
about the way their grandfathers made
a railroad. we are great people; and the
average workingman thinks so at the
time. and will remark. What a memory
that fellow has got" but he sees nothing
in it for him at present We need TO get
down off om high horse. right among
the workers. into the mines. mills, fac
tories. woods. and ranches. talk to the
fives as well as the FIVE hundreds. II
the workers cannot do this, il il racks
their nerves. or knocks their nights dis.
course out of them. if they can't pick up
material every day for the soap box at
night they are not the organizers we
need at present Orators with set ideas
are the seed sewers. and should be kept
at their proper calling.
Organizers should he directed by prac-
tical officials. II is one thing to route
speakers in organized districts. but an.
other thing to route organizers through
unorganized country. An organizers ter
ritory should be laid out two months
ahead. with names of parties given as
far ~ possible. so that they could be
corresponded with: but dates should he
left open unless the officer has specific
knowledge of how much can be accom-
plishcd and what time il will take. Many
times an organizer is put into a place
for two on -four days. and the time is
wasted. and at other points for a day
where he should stop a week. This is
both time and money wasted. An or
ganizcr needs to be able to change his or
her tactics without compromising his
principles, utilize everything that is
Legitimate to bring grist to the mill.
Even drunken man in an audience can
be used with good effect without making
the impertinent man feel angry.
The organizer wants to make the
workers feel that he is one Of them. and
not above them. He wants TO be quick
in answering questions. use Judgment
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