The St. Lucie County tribune. (Fort Pierce, St. Lucie County, Fla.) 1905-1920, 1907-11-15
SOCIALISM IN
ANC|ENTROME
Struggles Of Organized Labor
Under the GraCChi.
MUCH THE SAMEASNOW
Methods of the Ancient PatriCian Re-
sembie Closely Those Of The Modern
Captain OF Finance.
White City, Fla, Nov. 9, 1907

Editor TRIBUNE:
Resuming the history Of the labor
movement in Rome under the Gracchi
Caius is next in order. He was sory-
ing the army in Spain when his brother
Tiberius was assassinated. "The no.
bes seeing his great abilities, and fear
ing his influence with the people, en-
deavored to keep him as long as possi-
BILE in foreign service" 1t Is said he
felt as though the spirit of Tiberius
was urging him to carry on the work
in behalf of the poor working people.
He returned to Rome and stood for the
trib uneship 1913 B. c. and was elected.
"After bringing forward some meas
ures to take vengence on his brothers
murderers, he set himself to carry out
the agrarian law which had by the
Vaccinations of the mobiles been kept in
allegiance. The two great aimes of his
ambition viz, to improve the cond-
tons of the poor and to curtail the
power of the senate Ga capitalist legis-
lative body and the mobiles were now
prosecuted with the utmost vigor, and
with unhnchng steadiness of purpose.
In planning for the workers his wis
dom was conspicuous in benefits to the
commonwealth in road building and
other public works. But he was hated
by the capitalists, because they lost
the power to exploit the laborers in
their private jobs, and in specializing
on the government work. but more
especially in that the working class rose
in dignity and power.
Would that our country today pos
sessed such noble statesmen as the
Gracchi. with the peoples tribuneship
at their back That would mean an
industrial democracy. The work Of the
Gracchi has been depicted as "desper-
ate and revolutionary attempts to pre-
vent the social ruin of the state, by
breaking down the powers of the SEN
ate, rediStributing the domain lands.
reorganizng the administration, and
partially restoring the legislative au-
thority of the popular assemblies. ~
Just such reforms are demanded by
conditions in the United States of
America, only substituting legislative
authority of the industries, for that of
popular assemblies" The senate of
Rome at that time stood for the aristo-
cratic government of wealth.
The decline of Rome after the mar
tyrdom of the Gracchi brothers was
rapid. Mommsen, 40 years ago, said
that the nations of Christend0m had
become as corrupt as Rome before her
fall. Today it is much more 50 rs
result of capitalism.
Drusus, one of his colleagues was
bribed by the arstocrats to undermine
Caius Gracious. Violence was en-
poyed against him and his party, in
which 1000 men persisted. Caius joined
his brother on the other shore.
Historians are pfacClcally aSreeu tha'
they were martyrs murdered by a plot
of their capitalist enemies 1.-THE arls-
tocratic party, whose vengence could
only be satisfied with the assassination
of Gracious and his brother (as ren-
dered by Chambers Enc.)
No parallel may be found in modern
times 80 far as the greatness of men,
suffering for the cause of industrial
freedom, is concerned, but the same
methods employed by the capitalist
class for the accomplishment of wage
slavery, are in vogue now under reg
ular system designated "Gun-men.
+. Y. X. FRlPP,
White City, Fla, Nov. 8, 1907.