Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-01-24
BY LINCOLN STEFFENS.

Labor is quietly but very deeply in
terested just now in two developments
which may throw labor politics into ap-
parent confusion and real clearness. One
is the growing feeling for and against
Samuel Gompers. the president Of the
American Federation of Labor. The other
is the election of William Haywood to
the national executive committee of the
socialist party. Conflicts are sure to
arise. 1t is impossible to foretell the form
they will take, but there will be passion
and there may be scandal. The feelings
involved are intense, the interests inn
portant and the policies essential. For
labor is not a unit. Not even the Or
ganizations of labor are units. Labor is
too much in earnest to be united yet
In other words. labor also is a house
divided against itself. Like capital or re-
ligion, like politics, sciences, art or any
other human interest labor cannot be
Jumped and understood. The workers
are as human as humanity. Agreed as
to objective, they differ as to method.
United upon the desire. which they share
with mankind, for a better and better
living, they are divided, like the rest Of
US, by the question of how to go about
getting it. And these divisions are so
natural that you can trace the lines Of
them in any country. and they are so
deep-rooted that, IL it were not for the
pressure from without the house of labor
would not only fall it would never he
built at all.
ITO h with the local labor party
said a labor leader in Los Angeles, when
the loss Of the election was cited as an
objection to the Mcnamara settlement.
Its socialist ticket, and I hope it is
defeated"
And some Of the socialists. returned the
compliment. 1T will defeat the socialist
party here said one for a sample. but
the local party is not a straight socialist
party. It's a nongrel combination OF
labor and socialism. and if the McNama-
ra pleas force a reorganization of Or
ganized labor and knock out the labor
leaders who are now in control, our de-
feat here will be cheap price to pay
Not Personal Spite.
These expressions are not of personal
spite. The men quoted do not know each
other. Ill will often enters into such diff
ferences of opinion, and there's lot that
is personal in all the big and little con-
troversies raging in the ranks of labor.
A union picket may have ain old shop
grudge against the "scab'' he beats up !;
that is a common cause Of strike out
RACES. A lTcc-iOsc du1ICHISL may tdhC
personal satisfaction In a socialists do
nestle troubles. So the parties forming
back of Sam Gompers. and in front Of
him. are revealing the hatreds and graft
tudes Of many years Of labor politics.
And the deeds and misdeeds of Bill Hay
wood are likely to be thrown into the
contest within the socialist organization
over his position there. All these incl
dents and personalities may confuse the
real issues, but they should not They
are to be compared only with the scan
dalS and personalities of campaigns be-
tween democrats and republicans, for ex-
ample, or the controversies among re-
1igious denominations. They are partisan
They are but useful manifestations of
differences which, at bottom, are real
and important.
Gompers stands for the present or
ganizatiOn and strategy of the Ameri-
can Federation of Labor. His opponents
want reorganization. not Tor not alone)
to change the personnel Of the leader
ship, but to modify radically the lines
wood Is revolutionary socialist, and, in
g. broad sense, a direct actionist his
party has been under the control Of evo-
luuonary socialists, who are against d.
rect action both philosophically and tenn
pe1amentally. Something must happen
as result Of his election to the execu-
tive committee and something is prepar-
ing for Gompers. In both cases the
something is apt to be just such q re-
alignment of labor parties as we see go
ing on In our political parties. It will
be Illuminating to watch these and other
such developments; 1t will be a chance