Montana news. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1904-191?, 1908-12-03
THE HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN
SOCIALIST PARTY

nrssre; Fred Heath. Victor l. Berger,
! 6corg" Mo"rsChrl, Jake Hunger, w.
q. Kuhn and Oscar Lorbcl OF wiscon-
slH. and :. Levin OF New Jersey
Several delegates who We're absent
tMothcr Jones among thcm) declared
later on they would join the Social
Drmoci attic Party movement
Tho only r"prot of this convention,
which appeared In print az that time,
was published I'm the official organ of
the Brewery Workers international
Union In It's issu" Of June Is, 1898.
From that report We quote:
Anarchist radicals, democratic
hr"lcrs, r"publican ward politicians,
( labor exchange patriots and various
other clements had used the colonial
ton scheme as a door through which
they cropt into the SoCial-Dumocracy
for no other purposr than to prevent
thg straight Socialist political action of
labor. Several dcmo-populist politi-
clans OF Kansas and California had al
So come to Chicago 70 ''s"e 10 Il that
IN" Social Democracy would not enter
politics ms an independent party"
However, the 80 or moro Socialist
pioneers present w'r. ever on the
lookout FOR these fellows and gave
them clearly 10 understand that the
hour Of dtv0rc. between tho true So
cialists and tn" anarchist-populist-
drmoCratic-r"pu "publiCun-Coluuy cle-
ments bad com" and they acted ac-
cordingly.
II hgy" never witnessed more en-
thusastic gathering than the delegates
representing the new Social Demo-
cratic Party OF AmtriCa-an deter
mined To- make this movement spread
lik" wlldiir" all over the country.
"on" word In honor OF or brave
Comrade D"bs. When the hour of
decisive action had come, he cut
loose from friends whom he stilI holds
TO br honest and good, and chrered the
new Social-Democratic Party as the
hope uf thu American people.
"On Saturday afternoon a scene was
witnessed in little room at the Revere
hOusH which all those present will.
never forget. There lay our brave
Conrad" D"hs on his bed, still very-
sick ana weak. Tn" next moment the
door opened and in came the New
York and New England comrades to
lid their friend and leader good bye
and congratulat" him on his brave and
ana courageous action for lnterna-
tionul Socialism.
"Ou" Of the New York delegates.
with his strong arms raised Comrade
Debs M in his bed, embraced and
kissed him liE' child; all the rest of
the delegates thrunEcd tn the sick
mans h'dsid". embracing him and
kissing him and urging him 20 take
care uf himself 30 h. may be spared TO
our glorious movement TOR many Years
To come. Tears were flowing from
tn" eyes uf all men and women present
ana all Of them f'lt that the truc So
cialist Is something more, something
better and nobl"r than soullpss ma
chine that may ut any time hr put in
motion or stopped by any hcartless,
Reckless individual who happens to get
control of part OF the party machine.
This seen" in Debs' little room re-
il"ct"d tn" noble spirit underlying the
new movement of the Social Demo-
cratic Party of America"
Resolutions in memory Of Edward
B"llamy, the author OF Looking
Backward and Equality" and Paul
Grottkau, IN" German Comrade and
agitator who died in Milwaukee, were
adopted; also resolutions coudemning
the murd"ruus work of the Italian
government during the hunger revolt
in Milan and resolutions sending con-
gratulations To the SociaI-Dcmocratic
Party of Germany.
The following temporary executive
committe" was elected T. V. Debs.
seymour Steadman, Victor Berger.
Jesse Cox and Fred Heath