The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1914-06-26
THE NEW YORK FORUM.
Speakers Of All Sorts Line Broadway
Nightly.

4 New York has no regularly appoint
ed Forum, but Broadway, that crook
eldest, longest street in the world ht'
every demand of that ancient Roman
talk spot. Every night i'm the weel
one may find on Hroauway, between
| Thirty fifth street ana Fitted street
almost every sort II discussion mag
Unable. Socialism. industrial workers
~ the world, anarchists, sunragists
and religious speakers Of various kinds
utilize Broadway nightly 10 spread
their propaganda, says the Springfield
Republican. The uninitiated who have
never attended the dozen or more
street symposiums TO be found on the
great white way every night would be
surprised 20 learn the intelligent people
who take part in them. Thirty fifth
street is the particular place frequent
ed by the socialists. on that street.
just west Of Broadway. there nightly
gather socialist enthusiasts. Some
times they speak from soap boxes and
at other times they mount a cart tail.
Men and women of almost every ma
tionality are among these takers. Con-
slant listeners at these debates are as
tonished at the even temper uniformly
displayed 10y the speakers and their
failure 10 become excited i'm the face
of heckling. There is never a meeting
but there are i'm the audience certain
"a
~ for the purpose Of confusing the
speakers. Perhaps there never was
coined a broader term than socialism.
Its devotees are legion. yet almost ev-
cry one OF them has a different theory
Few OF them agree on the methods by
which their nostrums for the worlds
ills may be worked out. So, when a
socialist speaker mounts his box or
cart at Thirty-iifth street and Broad
way he is sure TO find i'm his audience
one or more men who are there for the
purpose of answering him and inject
ing arguments into the discussion.
But no matter how many persons
speak there i'm one night and no mat
ter how many interrupters there are.
the Thirty NTH street meetings up TO
date have never resulted in any disOr-
der. The socialists there argue heat
eddy and seldom agree. but they never
lose their tempers and never become
boisterOus. To the unbiased listener
that argues well for their sincerity of
purposes. An astonishing thing hap
pened the other night at one of the
s"cialistic street meetings When the |
regular speaker finished and yielded |
his improvised rostrum, it was occu-
pied by young Negro sirl she ex-
planned that she was the daughter of |
A southern eA-slave who had been sent
north, at the expense of the swings Of |
her ased father, that sho might study |
socialism first land. The glrl talked |
'or an hour, and successfully answered |
very question put to her. She WIS
)adgered by dozen men but failed |
absolutely 10 become Efused or 10 |
ose her temper. When the meeting
broke Ip she VS. greeted with st,rm
IF cheers.
Sometimes these street meetingsl
nave their humorous side one night
'ecently rather choleric speaker was
holding forth on socialism. In the
oulse of his argument he assailed the
-nited States government for enslav-
ms the Philippines. Hold on" cried
voice. Have You ever been in the
No" answered the
peaker, but let me get through be-
ore you interrupt" He went ahead
or some l. minutes. and then again
ook up the alleged injustice done the
'llipinos. Say said the same voice.
have you ever been in the Philip
ines? If you have not, do not talk
bout what YOU do not know. / have
zen there, and ! know you are mis-
tating the facts"
My friend retorted the speaker,
II you want these people 10 see how
is fool you are, come up on this box
eside me- And he wondered why the
udiencc laughed so immediately.
Nightly while the socialists hold
nth al Thirty-iifth street the Votes
pr women speakers conduct open
aap-box meeting in Fort fifth street.
II Broadway, and the women speakers
ways are surrounded by eager listen
~ At the same time the Salvation
rmy conducts open-air GATHERINGS at
h.rty-siXth street. and while these
'rnei gatherings are IN progress de-
otoes OF the church Of the social re-
olution may be seen proceeding
Trough Broadway. with its red flag in
he van.