Montana news. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1904-191?, 1909-01-28
Working Class Active
Among The Finns
Montana Organizations Display Great
Solidarity and Aggressiveness---
Attempts to Organize the Eng
lish Speaking Socialists

The Finnish locals of Montana are
forming a solid, substantial part of
the movement that is destined in time
10 have a most essential effect on the
state party. The Socialist thought is
part OF the earnest life and effort
OF the Firms. II is a real cause,
which affords in their eyes the most
desirable OF purposes to strive for.
They give of their time, money and
cause. They have brought it into
their social life. and made 1t a basis
of their enjoyments In the coal
camps where large numbers of Films
are employed they have their own
halls, their libraries, regular weekly
meetings with dances, lunch and en-
tertainment. They organize bands
and have music for both diversion
and education. They take to all the
demands for progress and human lib
cray like a duck TO water. IL was
nothing less than marvellous that in
realms of the bloody ear the Firms
should have wrenched the right of
sufrrange from the hand of the des-
pot And that Immediately on its at
tainment, )n their first election, they
should have thrown almost hundred
Socialists into their parliament. And
they did not ask this progress for the
male alone. Their demand was for
universal suffrage, which included
women, and nineteen women were
thrown into that first wonderful par
lament.
Here in America the Films have
looked in surprise upon the dilletante
character OF American socialism; its
superficiality. its sentimental, abstract
theorizing, with a most monumental
Indifference TO the practical prob
lens OF the working class that are at
our door But they have girded up
their sincws and gone forward to es-
tablish Socialist movement here in
the land Of their adoption, and wor,.
for the final emancipation of labor
through the only possible program,
the abolition of the private-owned In
dustry Their Ignorance of foreign
tongue might have proved an insur-
uountable barrier to natures less de-
termined. But they established a
Finnish translator in the national
headquarters of the Socialist party,
and pay him s100 a month. They
have now three weekly papers in the
country and one in Canada. They
have a Socialist school at Duluth
Minnesota. This school is now car
rying on the inevitable fight with cap
italist influences which every Social
list activity struggles under sooner or
later. and which has been making
such herculean efforts to ruin the
News The money which they had in
the bank, about 5000, has been at.
tached for some Indebtedness, and II
Will take an immaculate usSlSIahSN VI
$500 to save the hard work OF the
past few years.
The Finnish Socialists stand for all
that Is best, most uplifting and most
practical for the working class. They
are most strenuous advocates OF tenn
perance because they see the havoc
that drunkenness works, It's brutaliz-
ing influences and its disaster to the
intelligent progress OF the working
class. They share this position with
that OF the European Socialist move
ment generally.
This demand for the recognition oil
the temperance principle became
most aggressive in Minnesota, and re-
suited in the Firms handing an ulti-
matum TO the American Socialists at
at their convention that they should
either insert temperance plank In
their platform or the Firms would
bolt in a body and carry their own