The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1911-01-26
DAN
GER AHEAD
Warning is Issued by E.
V. Debs to Socialists
of the Country.

The large increase in the Socialist
vote in the late national and state cleo
tions Is quite naturally hailed with ella,
ton and rejoicing by party members
pnt feel prompted to remark, in the
iSht OF some personal observations dur
ing the campaign, that it is not entire
~ matter for jubilation. 1 am mot
gwen to Pessimism, or captions criticism.
ana vet cannot, but feel that some
OF the votes placed to our credit tb;,
year were obtained by methods not con.
! sistent with the principles of revob,.
tiohary party, and in the long run will
do more harm, than good.
yield to no one in my desire to seo
tue party grow and the vote increase
but in my zeal 1 do not lose sight of
the inct that healthy growth and a sub.
stantlal vote depend upon efficient orann.
ization, the self-education and self.di..
ciplinc of the membership. and tbot
where these arc lacking, an inflated vote,
secured by compromising methods, can
only be hurtful to the movement.
Inc danger see ahead il that the So.
ciaiist party at this stage, and under ok.
ist'ng conditions, is apt to attract elc
'hehts which 1t cannot nssimilatc, and
that 1t may be either weighed down. or
torn asunder with internal strife or
that 1T may become permeatcd and cor.
rupted with the spirit of bourgeois re.
form to an extent that will practically
destroy its rirility and efficiency as n
revolutionary organization.
10 my mind the working class char.
acter and the revolutionary integrity of
the Socialist party are of first impor.
tance- All the votes of the people wouId
DO us no good if our party ceased to be
revolutionary party, or only inciden.
tally SO, while yielding more and more
10 the pressure to modify the principles
and program of the party for the sake of
swelling the vote and Fastening the dav
of its expected triumph
1t is precisely this policy and the
alluring promise it holds out to new
members with more zeal than knowledg,.
of working class economies that con.
stitutcs the danger we should guard
against in preparing for the next cam
paign. The truth is that we have not n
few members who regard votc.pettinp
as OF supreme Importance, no matter bv
what method the votes may be secured.
and this leads them to hold out induce
ments and make representations which
are not at all compatible with the stern
and incorporating principles of
roy Inf
the socialist propaganda so attractive
eliminating whatever may give ofrense to
bourgeois sensibilities--that it serves as
bait for votes rather than as n mean.
OF education, and votes thus secured do
not properly belong to us and do in
justice to our party we'll as to those
who cast them
these votes do not express socialism
and in the next ensuing election are
quite as apt to he turned against US,
and it is better that they be not cast
for the Socialist party, registering
degree of progress the party is not en-
titled to and indicating a political posi-
tion the party is unable to sustain
Socialism is matter of growth, of
evolution, which can be advanced by wise
methods, but never by obtaining for it n
fictitious vote. We should seek only to
register the actual vote of socialism, no
more and no less. In our propaganda we
should state our principles clearly, speak
the truth fearlessly, seeking neither to
fatter nor to offend, but only to con.
vince those who should be with us and
win them to our cause through an in
telligent understanding of it's mission.
There is also disposition on the part
of some to join hands with reactionary
trade unionists in local emergencies and
in certain temporary situations to effect
some specific purpose, which MAJ OF may