New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-09-02
BY William English Walling

meeting more secure. We must under
stand that all international SOCIALIST
Gatherings have admitted labor unions
on equal terms with the SOCIALIST par,
ties But the French, British ano
American labor unions are overwhelm-
/ inqlv against any kind Of German
pegcc. Therefore with one slight eN-
/ ception) the representation OF ianor
unions has been discontinued for the
coming congress. This stroke has cut
any possibility of strong pro-Entente
delegation in half. The American,
British and French unions might not
consent TO attend, but the congress
then ceases 10 be an international So
cialist and labor congress, as all us
predecessors have been, and II can
make no further claim whatever to rep
resent the working class Of the
world.
Exception Made for United States
An exception is made for the United
States, where four delegates are gwen
20 labor unions and sixteen TO the so
cialist parties. Yet even with the new
influx of Germans and pro-Germans the
/ Socialist parties in the United states
! do not have 100000 members, while the
u
70 Russia we find that the Peasant So
cialists, or Labor party, Of which ke-
rensky Is tie leader, iC not gwen any
representation, yet kerensky'S social
I ism has never been challenged, while
| his party was admitted to the Inter
/ Parliamentary Socialist Congress IN
London in 1908.
This party undoubtedly represents
81, .+e oil n
/ cialist parties of Russia put together.
/ The recent elections have shown that
/ the next most powerful party Is the
/ Social Revolutionists, which had more
votes in the recent Moscow elections
/ than all other parties put together.
| The Stockholm conference proposed to
give the Social Revolutionists only
seven votes and the Socialist Demo
cratic party and Jewish Buud thirteen
votes!
/ Next, when we turn to England, we
/ find that the Socialist parties, wltb
/ approximately one hundred thousand
members, are given ten votes, while the
1 Labor party, with two and a half mil
, lion members, is given only ten votes.
/ These Socialist parties, which are dom
! mated by Quakers, Tolstoyans and
/ conscientious obiectors"- and which
/ consist largely of middle class mem
/ bers arc given twenty-five times the
/ representation of the British Labor
| party, which has been admitted to all
! Socialist congresses and is composed
! exclusively of the working people. IA"
labor unions. hitherto given half the
| British delegation, are no., excluded
! entirely.
! When we turn TO Italy we find no
| provision whatever made for any Of
/ the Socialist parties nor for The labor
unions, yet the Official party in that
I country has expelled so many members
in the last five years that there can DO
| no question that there are more So
cialsts outside the party than within;
moreover, the outsiders are organized
, in the Bissolati party, and the inter
national Socialist congresses have al
ways admitted all Socialist parties.
Neutral Votes Padded
Next, we find an amazing pading of
the votes Of all the neutral countries
which Germany expects 20 control.
While the great powers are given only
twenty votes each, Hungary is given
eight-which provides Austria-Hur-
gary with a total of twenty-cight.
While Italy has only ten, Sweden 80
given twelve votes, more than italy,
while Denmark obtains ten, Finland
eight and Norway six. In view of tire
small population of these countries and
the relatively small number of work
ingmen, this representation is prepos-
ferrous, vet these are the very countries
where pro-Germanism is strongest. Or
the other hand, country like Spain,
where the Socialists are Dro-Entente, is
given only two votes, and Canada is
given only two votes! 1t is probable
that in both Of these countries the
working class" is more numerous than
in Sweden
No convention was ever called by
Tammany Hall or any corrupt and
abandoned political organization in the
world on a more corrupt and shame
lessly partisan basis. If we note the
terms of the call for the meeting, we
find an equally aggressive pro-Ger-
man bias. The delegates are all pledged
in advance to the German Socialist
formula, later adopted by the Rus
slams; no annexations, no indemnjtieS,
and the right of all nations 10 self-de-
termination.
This expression translates somewhat
differently in all the languages, aid
there are therefore many versions, but
the version accepted by the overwheln-
ing majority Of the delegates ut this
conference will be the German Ian
guage version. where the last phrase
appears as follows: "Selbstbe stim-
mungsrecht der Voelker." In Germany
this means that Alsace- Lorraine is TO
have more or less autonomy.-undert the
Kaiser. After this example, which is
I Of ka ykr -,
| its German meaning, we do not need
TO seek further examples 10 show its
purely German character
II has been said that the phrase "no
indemnities" is better translated as mo
contributions" and means only that ma
ITEMS are not TO endeavor TO make the
enemy pay their war expenses, but that
IL does not mean that Germany may
not have 10 pay for damage actually
done This Interpretation Is not justl-
fed If we turn 20 the Official organ
Of the Russian Council of Workmen
and Soldiers Deputies, which is calling
the conference we find that this phrase
means that Germany is not 10 make
any special payment "to indemnify
the losses she has inflicted on other
countries" but that the Entente, which
has ,endeavored 10 defend the countries
destroyed, shall pay the larger share
Of the expenses Of restoration,
Has No Interest for Public
The Stockholm Conference can there
fore have no interest whatever for the
general public. Whether IL occurs in
September. October or not AZ all, .
can have no interest for the World'S
dcmocracicS or for any honas. inter
nationalist democrat or Socialist rs
decision IS made in advance, its