Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1915-11-30

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for atheism. Karl Marx and Fred
erick iEngals, the, two men who did
most to launch the movement, may
have been atheists, they could u be
more accurately described as mater
ialists, but that has absolutely moth
\ ing to do with their economic teach
;ings. Bob Ingersoll was an agnos-
tic but also "a good Republican.
Thomas Jefferson was an infidel but
also q good Democrat. Abraham
Lincoln was a Universalist but that
has nothing to do with his political
affiliations. The truth of the mat
tier is that Socialism is saturated
with religious passion and probably
numbers. as. many Christians in its
ranks as any other political party.
At the indianapolis national conyen-
tionI more than sixty preachers were
among the delegates. A great many
OF; the lecturers are preachers or ex-
preachers. The two most popular
books, written by Socialists in this
country are Massachusetts Chris
,Itianity and the Social Crisis and
Bouch Whites "Call of the Carpen-
tier" Rauschenbusch is a profess
sor of church history in the Bap-
fists theological school at Roches-
tier. while White was an Episcop-
allan minister. One of the most
widely circulated Socialist papers
is the christian Socialist" edited
by a preacher and it is probable that
a majority of the ministers in the
Church Of England belong to the
movement. It as also worthy Of note
that the Methodist church placed
Christianity and the Social Crisis"
on its preachers reading list;
whether it is still there or not do
mot now. AS matter of fact there
lis so much religious passion in the
movement one well known English
economist said that it was too much
lof religious organization to per-
form the functions of o political
lparty. f
1t is also supposed by some that
Socialists scheme tor divide every
thing up equally and force us to
wear uniforms and live in barracks.
This is not Socialism, it Is Commun-
ism, and the two things are as wide
sundered as the poles. Whatever
else is true about the movement this
lis most certainly true. Socialists
are not trying to divide up equally.
They want the man who earns fifty
cents day to receive fifty cents
and no more; they want. the man
who earns fifty dollars day to re-
ceive fifty dollars and no less. ITO
each according to his services"
Again. there are many who look
upon the Socialist proposition as a
Utopian plan, engendered in the
imagination, which they hope to
buckle upon society as one puts a
set Of harness on a. horse, and do it
whether society wants it or not. AS
we turn to explain just what Social
ism is that miseonception will be
exposed.
Socialism consists of two facts
and "a theory.
The first fact is that wealth is
piling up at one end Of the social
scale and the number of men is in
|creasing at the other end who are
obliged to become wage earners.
The more the small group on top
lean possess the fewer can own their
own farms, stores or factories. II
the reader is curious to study this
let him turn to the book written on
this by Louis Brandeis.
The other fact.is that man will
vote according to his own interest.
This is all there is to the much
talked about theory of Economic
determinism which has been called
"atheism." If one wishes to learn
whether or not people do vote ac-
cording to their own financial in
terests let him ask the next con-
gresham he meets.
The theory with which the Social
list ties these two facts together is
this: All this interesting number
of men now becoming dependent on
wages are going to see sooner or lat
err that it is to their financial adj
vantage to own the land they work
on and the tools they work with.
If one says to the Socialist, "How
can this be? Machinery is now so
big and so complicated one work
man can't afford to own the ma
chine he works with? How can
an engineer afford to own his en-
gine?" The Socialist will immedi-
ately reply, 'The workmen cannot
own their tools individually but
they can own them collectively.
That's what / advocate. The coll