Wheeling majority. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1907-192?, 1912-12-26
THE GENERAL STRIKE
Nv ROBERT HUNTER

most violently Revolutionary un-
iOnS.s
Trade union halls were built by the
cities; funds were voted for their up
keep; and these trade union headquar-
ters were turned over to the use of
the unions. Despite the fact that the
government placed its agents in these
halls to watch and report upon the
union movement, the anarchists found
these government halls an acceptable
and inexpensive arena for their action.
The various halls we're soon consoli-
dated into national federation. A
brilliant young anarchist, Polloutier,
became the secretary Of this organiza-
ton. With the help of the unions in
this federation of the anarchists in
control of other organizations, and of
a few other radicals opposed to poll
teal action, BRAND won complete
victory over the older trade union lead
ers.
The Trade Union Congress at Nantes
was the final battle-ground, and those
who believed in political action we're
there defeated deeisively, and they
withdrew from the hall. Divided thus
into two factions, the Older unions
were soon overwhelmed by the Gen
eral Federation of Labor, which was
organized at Limoges in 1895, The
new organization was made up of
union of the Federation of Trade I'm
ion Halls, and a new organization COM
posed of trade unionists, anarchists.
and professional men.
| From this moment on political &C
ton was spurned by the unions. The
General Strike, direct action, and
sabotage became the raTlying cries OF
the new organization. The Socialist
leaders were practically annihilated
and all efforts to capture the new or
ganization have thus far been futile.
| Nor, indeed, is this rule of the anar-
chists soon to be overturned. Certain.
| ly not until the French trade unions
| adopt different method of voting.
For instance, the Miners Union with
over 100000 members, has exactly the
same number of votes in the congress
as a small group of Paris anarchists
with thirty or forty members. This
system of voting allows the forming OF
little groups all of which can be aft
lated with the trade union movement.
These little groups can each send a
|
the same power, whether he represents
dozen or a million workers.
The philosophy and the organiza-
! ton of French syndicalism Grade I'M
ionism) is the subject of another story.
Let it suffice here to say that the Gen
eral Strikes in the late '70's and SOS
in America gave birth to this idea in
France, and that the partisans of the
General Strike were so bitterly and
so unanimously combatted by those
who believed in political action that
the latter were literally forced out of
I leadership in the French trade union
movement.
This history has this Importance.
The General Strike as panacca is not
| of Socialist origin nor is it of trade
union origin 1t is certainly not from
Marx or Engels, as some have claim
ed. In fact, nearly every trade union
Ind Socialist leader outside of France
| looks upon the advocacy of the Gen
aral Strike as a menace to the Social
| list movement, and as dangerous
| fancy for the trade union movement
We shall take up in later articles
the views of the chief Socialists and
trade unionists. Just now we are
dealing with the history of the Gen
eral Strike, as a panacea, and the
credit for that belongs wholly to the
anarchists of France, to the renegade
"reyolutionist," .Aristides BRAND, and
to the subsidies which the French
cities voted in their effort to divorce
the trade union movemen of France
from working class, political action.
An idea which comes into the world
with such questionable parentage may
be a good one, but it should be forced
to undergo the most rigid and search
| ing examination.