Denver labor bulletin., 1918-10-12

iHeHnper ol Tue IiiSsioh seuL dDiodu
by the Social-Democratic League
composed of loyal American Social
ists), has given the New York Times
complete survey of his observations.
Mr.. Russell warns against premature
peace talk and declares that at the
present rate of progress Germany will
be beaten to her knees, a suppliant
for peace on the terms of democracy,
within nine months.
The following extracts are taken
from Mr.. Russel's lengthy interview
in the Times:
UNFORTUNATELY pacifsm and defeat
ism are not yet entirely dead. But
in none of the countries do the paci-
fists and defeatists constitute any
longer the serious menace that they
did in the days of continued allied
reverses.
while the pacifists and defeatists
no longer have the power to menace
the allied cause, their movements can
not be exactly ignored. In trying to
understand who they are and what
they stand for, we must remember
that we have in the European coun-
tries, as in this country, an order of
mind that is steel-clad against facts,
that is swept away by prejudice and
preconceived notions, that judges the
facts of this war from the standpoint
of these preconceived notions.
at is one of the extraordinary
revelations of the war to find how
widespread this order of mind is.
Among those who have it are appar-
emily able and intelligent people who
are, nevertheless, able to close their
minds with the greatest ease to facts
which they don't like or don't care
I. 81
rope, for years and years before the
war, was composed of minds which
reveled in certain impossible, utopian
conceptions Of society, in which a
more or less nebulous element called
the working classes was to conduct
the government of the world in a man
ner that would make such things as
wars, strife and malevolence abso-
lutely impossible.
They dreamed of sort of New
Jerusalem and felt themselves con-
stantly on the verge of its achieve
ment. That element, with the great
est possible sincerity, still follows this
will-o'-the-wisp, manifesting itself at
the present time in demand that now
is the time to bring the war to an
end by negotiation. This demand is
accompanied always by considerable
clamor. and would seem serious if it
were not for the fact that it ema-
mates. not from the great majority
of the peoples who are suffering. and
willing to suffer to the end, but from
minority.
That element. tho we don't hear
about il very much, is considerable in
France, even greater in England, and
greatest of all in Italy. In each coun-
try, however. it constitutes n minor
ity, and is in no position to menace
the governments of the allied coun-
tries, or to block the achievement of
the allied aims.
Here, for instance, is a condition
under which pacifism and defeatism
might become dangerous: Being OBJ
sessed with a notion that immediate
peace is both desirable and possible,
that element is always ready TO well
come Germany's peace overtures, no
matter how false or insincere they
may be. Hence, If Germany, realiz-
ing that she is defeated, should with
extraordinary cunning put forth n
plausible and adroitly planned pro-
gram for peace-as she is likely to
do within the next few weeks-the
pacifists and defeatists, joined by a
certain number of wabbly, weakened
and sentimental people, will imme-
diately make loud outcry to end the
war. Under certain conditions, of
course. that might be the means of
infiicting upon the cause of the allies
greater defeat than it has ever re-
ceived on the battle field.
"One would naturally say that pa
cifist and defeatist elements of this
character would be powerless at a
time when the allies are pushing for
ward every day to a decisive victory.
One would think that under such con-
ditions the defeatists would be si-
fenced. On the contrary, with extra
ordinary adroitness they can use VIC
tory as an argument for peace as
much as they could use defeat. Just
as in the dark days of allied reversals
the defeatists would cry that there
the war, and that settlement had
better be reached by immediate ne
gotiations, so now, in the days of al
lied victory, they cry that Germany is
already defeated, that there is no use
in going on with war and wasting hu-
man life, that the allies can now
achieve by immediate negotiations all
that they could possibly achieve by
fighting.
"Superfcially, that is highly at
tractive line of argument. 1t can be
used by the pacifists on proper oc-
casion with great force, and it tends
to strengthen their position-and their
numbers. After all, it is very easy
for people who are blind to the deeper
significance of the war to succumb to
such an argumcnt-more so in time
of victory than in time of defeat. Not
realizing the definite conditions under
which a desirable peace can be ac-
lcomplished, they readily throw up their
hands, and cry: The Germans are
licked-why not talk peace ut once
why go on with the slaughter