The Northwest worker. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1915-1917, 1917-03-08
NONPARTISAN SOCIALISM

MARKHAM Socialism is enough pub
lie ownership Go abolish unoarncd in
comes and waste
Many people are opposed to UNI
earned incomes. but unless such a
one proposes to abolish woancd in
comes 10y means pC public ownership,
he is not MARKHAM Socialist Many
people arc trying to abolish moarucd
incomes Ivy means Of regulation.
That is not the MARKHAM way.
On the other hand, many people
trv to include in the Socialist prop
uganda things that are not essential.
Many Socialists used to tell me that
no farmer could be n Socialist that
"A man must be without property he
fore he could he Socialist. That
sounds odd today-tor the world is
moving.
The party treason" provision in
the party constitution is not an es-
sential part of MARKHAM Socialism.
This provision excludes many who
would otherwise be active members.
l will not here argue as to its wisdom.
| merely call attention to the fact
that it is tactics, and not an essential
part of Socialism.
Effective Non Partisan Work
What | wish to call especial atten-
ton to is that the non bipartisan meth
cd may be just ms we'll organized and
vastly more effective than the parti-
san method.
First: Non partisans should be
we'll organized. Some people are non
partisans simply because they are too
lazy-hazy to do effective work Others
Of us are -partisans because we
recognize that most people prefer to
have course of action suggested
to them. We do the suggesting-and
they furnish the votes, which is n
fair division of labor.
What | propose is that we Social
lists get thoroughly organized; have
a definite dues-paying membership;
do precisely what the party did last
year, up to the time of filing for nom
nations: then let our men and women,
thus selected. file for nomination at
Al. -. AF hA MT
Then we would not be "voting for
good men" in name only, but would
have candidates of our own selection.
We can, with this plan, have 20 to 40
members in the next state legisla-
ture.
In this legislative district we could
very easily select, say Hon. c. w.
Woodbridge, an excellent Socialist,
and once a member of the state legis-
lature. A thousand republicans in
this district would vote for him at
the Republican primaries, who would
not vote for him at the Socialist
primaries.
Indeed, I think it very probable that
we could elect majority of Social
lists to county offices, could dominate
the Republican party here as they
did in North Dakota if we would only
adopt the North Dakota plan of Sc
| lecting our own candidates at an
early, pre-primary (within-the-leag-
| ue) election, precisely as we did in
! this state last year; and as the farm
ers did in North Dakota, for the two
plans were as nearly identical as they
could be when ours was more thor
ough-going Chat is we had no con-
vention, but did all nominating by
direct vote). But in North Dakota
the selected men and women filed or
any ticket the candidate chose.
Wisely, only one filed on the Demo
cratic ticket, and he was defeated by
200 votes. None filed on the Socialist
ticket, although many We're active
Socialists. All but one filed for nom.
ination at the Republican primarie;
and all these were elected.
If the Socialists who were nomin.
ated by the North Dakota Non parti.
san League, had filed on the Social
list ticket, none would have beer
elected, for the Socialist vote was
much less than the Democratic vote
and the one candidate who filed fol
nomination on the Democratic ticket