Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-01-28
LEADER IN SOCIALISM
Wisconsin Woman Who is High
in Party Councils.
HAS UNIQUE DISTINCTION
State Secretary and Head Of Publish
ing House.
PROMOTION CAME RAPIDLY
Story Of a Quaker Girl Who Left Hull
House to Enter the Ranks
Of Socialists.
CAME RAPIDLY

special DSpatch to Tue StAf
MILWAUKEE,. Wis. January 28-From
a demure Quaker. reared in a country
town. to the state secretary and organiser
of a political party. president Of Its pub
fishing company. and editor Of a maya
zine devoted to Its principles Is q far cry
for any one. When accomplished by
woman. the achievement is more than
unique. 1t Is one Of many things which
mark as extraordinary the position held
by Miss Elizabeth H. Thomas Of this city.
Miss Thomas Is state secretary of the
social democratic party In Wisconsin. and
has been since the creation Of the posi-
ton six years ago. She is also private
secretary to Victor Berger. founder OF
the national social democratic party.
president Of the Social Democratic Pub
fishing Company and editor OF the Van
guard. a monthly magazine. As state
secretary she has charge of all the corre-
spondence Of the party. supervision OF the
organization work throughout the state.
and arrangement Of the lecture tours for
all speakers appearing for the party IN
Wisconsin.
All the secrets of the party. state and
national. are in Miss Thomas keeping.
She was secretary Of the New York cam
paign committee in 1893; she took an ac-
tive part the same year in the campaign
at Haverhill. Mass. which resulted In
social democratic victory, and in the
went to Chicago as assistant secretary OF
the national campaign committee during
the first campaign for the presidency
made by Eugene V. Debs The chicago
field was familiar to Miss Thomas. she
having been a resident of Hull House Tor
two years prior to her active work as
socialist It was her work during the
Debs campaign which attracted the at
tention Of Victor Berger. and he. know
ing that she was not entirely satisfied
with working conditions IN any OF the
cities where she had been Identified with
the movement invited her to come to
Milwaukee.
Rapid Promotion.
She came in February. 1901. serving
first as secretary of the organizing COM
mittee, and in the following August be-
ing elected state secretary with the crea-
ton of the position. She has seen the
work grow from thirty-cight branches
in the state to 40, and the organization
of many of the branches was due directly
to her efforts Recently an organization
bureau has been established. but the cor
respondence part of the work is still IN
her hands. She regards the touring of
campaign speakers as the most difficult
of her duties. but says with a trace of
justifable pride~that since she has had
charge of the work there has never been
a speaker without an audience nor an
audience without a speaker, boast
| which the older parties could not always
Miss Thomas is not in the work for per-
sonal gain. That fact is beyond dispute.
for she does not receive one cent OF COM
pensation. not only giving her services
every working day of the year. but deny
ing herself the home which her sisters urge
her to share with them in Union Springs.
N. Y. AS one Of the four daughters. MISS
Thomas inherited a modest little fortune
from her father, which enables her to live
in a plain way with a few of the luxuries
which are necessity to the cultured Wom-
A1, fv,ln ord0
| keeps her office hours at the publishing
house and party headquarters with as
much faithfulness as though she were
salaried.
Quakers, but she comes Of a long line OF
Quaker ancestry dating back to colonial
days in Pennsylvania. Her father was
John J. Thomas. the first editor OF the
Country Gentleman, an agricultural weekly
She was brought up in strictly rehslous
atmosphere, and it is claimed for her that
she can quote entire books OF the Blple
practically knowing it from cover TO cover
Educated in the east. she Is a deep student
especially along scientific lines. She Is not
at all the aggressive type Of woman which
| her position and the WORK she mas oo, ZONE
| trary is a modest and plain little person.
| retiring and inconspicuous In the once,
Iecturtng sometimes, but not often. ana
speaking with the greatest difhdence
Valued Party Counselor.
Her power lies in her pen, in her ability
| for organization, in her talent for looking
after detail, and, above all. in the clear
headed and logical thinking which makes
her an invaluable aid in the high councils
of the party. She is plain in appearance
plain in dress and past the follies OF frivo-
| lous girlhood, but to those who know her
she is a woman of unusual charm. attrac-
| tiveness and interesting personality. A
10 nsrvht hn r.
$5-a-wcek stenograrher or clerk rather
| than president of the publishing company
which was made possible by her purchase
\ of $1,000 worth OF stock. q purchase re.
gift to the cause. A few minutes con-
versation and there could be no poss1billty
| Of such an error. 1t Is with the greatest
difficulty that she can be persuaded TO tax
Of herself, however.
why, yes, It happens that I am the
| only woman holding q position In the or
ganization OF political party. put tnat
| larly wonderful" she finally said In re-
Spouse to repeated attempts to learn some
thing Of her work. My holding the place
the policies of the party. in which the wom-
en- members have exactly the same voice
| and the same rights as the men. as Tar as
| the laws of the state and nation allow.
Yes, indeed, there are women In our
branches, and we have one branch entirely
composed of women. 1t Is the South Side
Wcrnan's Branch, the first Of the four
wotnens social democratic clubs which l
have organized in Milwaukee and the only
one which Is AFFILIATED with the party. al
though all the clubs are doing aggressive
work and are prospecting.
women ought to be the best socialists.
! They have all the reasons that men have.
and then some additional ones, for they
bear the greater part of the burden of
our economic conditions. It Is harder for
| woman to get into industry than 1t is for
man, and after getting in 1t is harder for
her to get just compensation for labor.
Our workingmen are Overworked and
underpaid, but our working women suffer
even more from the injustice of the present
economic system. 1t Is more difficult to
| interest women in socialism than men. fer
woman is used to being imposed upon and
the workingwoman is easily cowed. 1t
| is hard to wake her from her apathy and
| to awaken in her the fighting spirit.
Ancestor in the Stocks.
"Yes, 1 suppose it does seem strange at
| first for a Quaker to become socialist.
but 1t really Is the result in a measure OF
an inherited tendency. My own mother
circulated a petition against slavery. Sc
curing thousands of signatures, and sent 1t
| to Congress. There is tradition in our
family that back in colonial days one OF
NV ancestors Zoeth Howard. was put in