The Northwest worker. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1915-1917, 1917-05-03
STATE SECRETARY FLIRTS
WITH COMMERCIAL CLUB


Emil Herman, the state secretary
of the Socialist Party Of Washington,
attempts in this weeks issue to be-
little the idea of Cooperation. We
claim that Socialists should band
themselves together in any way that
they cay and offset-even though it
be but to very small degree, the
exploitation of the workers by the
capitalists or petty business men.
The Cooperative movement is
great educational movement and the
recent revolution in Russia was large
~ the result of the work Of 10000
GOO co-operatorS. The revolution may
not have been the kind that the So
cialiSts desired, but it is a step that
had to be taken, and it was certainly
n big step for Russia to take and
the final result is still in the balance
Comrade Herman does not believe
in Cooperation and he does not at
tempt to practice it and of that we
aAG wei iNdACs Last NNAl We NP0N
the side of the workers in Everett
against the Everett Commercial Club
and the club members have been try
ing to suppress the Northwest
Worker ever since Last November,
the printers who We're printing the
paper were told by the bankers and
millowners to cease printing the pa
per and we We're uncerimoniously told
to get our paper printed elsewhere
We got it printed elsewhere and all
the big printers of the city then tried
to buy the press and boycott the firm
who We're doing our work. The state
secretary knew this and we tried to
get him to take his work away from
the printers who had thrown out the
paper and then tried to drive US out
of town. But no, the state secre-
tary has continuously refused and to-
day he is spending the Party money
to the extent of $50 to $40, a month
with the firm who acts in conjunc-
ton with the deputies. 1t is not
matter of expense for he can get the
work done by the firm who is now
printing the paper for practically the
same as those who are doing it now
And even if it did cost more he ought
to be Socialist enough to pay the
difference out of his wages. His
wages are $50 a month and mine
are $50 and we both put in the same
amount of time for the Socialist
Party. He is married and l am
single, but he can stand a few dol
lars less a month for the further
ance of Socialism when it comes out
of the pockets of Socialists. The
money | get comes mostly from the
pockets of business men who adver-
tise in the paper and | am willing
to put every cent of it to the further
ance of Socialism and the Co-opera-
tive principles witch it teaches.
Every red blooded Socialist ought
to get behind this paper instead of
behind the Commercial Club and if,
our state secretary was to practice a
little more Cooperation with the
cause of Socialism it might be better
for all of US.
Perhaps he does not like The
Northwest Worker but his Cooper
alton was asked last year by Local
No. l of the Socialist Party Of Ev-
erett. This local maintains a large
headquarters, said by national speak
ers to be one of the finest in the
country. 1t has hall which seats
300 people, a large dining hall, a
kitchen and six rooms. Some of these
rooms are used free Of charge as an
office for The Northwest Worker
and last year the state secretary was
asked to move his headquarters to
this building and help pay the rent
This he refused to do although we
offered him two rooms for less than
he was paying for one room in an
office block.
That is the kind Of Cooperation we
get from the state office. 1t might
just as well be the headquarters for
the Commercial Club as a state head
quarters. Seeing the spirit that the
state secretary has it is no wonder
that his idea of Cooperation are
somewhat twisted.
DON'T TALK