The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1918-09-07
little PAC|FISM
ON OTHER Side,
REPORTS SPARC0
American Socialist Lecture and
Writer Enthused Over War
Conditions in Europe.

1.-THE present labor difficulties in
England and the Socialist congress
resolutions in France should not be
interpreted in America as Indicating
that there is any material amount
of pacifism or defeatisrn on this side
of the Atlantic. Winning the war
is before everything else, and the dis
cordant note to the contrary in either
country comes from group so small
as to be negligible" says John Spargo
in an interview cabled to the New
York Times from Paris and copy
righted by that newspaper. Mr.
Spargo is a member of loyal Sicial-
list mission now in France. The mis-
sion spent three weeks in England.
I'm England not one local labor
union has even considered the adop-
ton of an anti-war resolution. No
candidate coming up in the general
parliamentary election in England
who was lukewarm in support of the
war can have labor backing"
They Are to Win.
~ have not found either in Eng
much afraid I would find when I left
America" he said. when I arrived
in England a month ago I was appre-
hensive of finding a growing senti-
ment of pacifsm and defeatism.
found nothing of the sort.
'Whatever may be the trouble
there was no material amount Of lie
featism or pacifism there. What there
is of anti-war sentiment is confined
to the Independent Labor party of
Snowden and Ramsay Macdonald,
and to the British Socialism party.
The SnoWden group has a men,
bership of $4,000. The British So
cialist party has a membership of
10000. These two groups in their
attitude toward the war correspond
to the Hillquit and Berger Socialists
in America. Both together they pro-
duce toal of fewer than $4,000, as
against more than 100000 members
of the English labor party absolutely
determined to win the war.
''The Independent Labor party is
not dominated by workingmen, but
by astute politicians, whom the French
"ou1u Scll1 Cd1 eeI4Slo, dlu NY non
resident Quakers.
People Are in Earnest.
These people are wealthy and are
spending enough money to enable
them to kick up a great racket. Fur
thermore, the tail has succeeded in
Wagging the dog to this extent
SnoWden's group, simply by greater
earlier activity, has succeeded in
naming rs per cent of the candi-
dates of the whole Labor party COM
ing up for election. That is only
another way Of saying that the La
Dor party is going to be defeated be-
cause it's members will not vote for
| candidates forced upon them.
" A general election must COME be-
! fore January. I think it will come
| in November. If sentiment then is
| as it is now, not five constituencies
! in the whole country will send to
parliament men opposed to war or
| lukeWarm in support of it. That is
the estimate I got from all groups.
IF Lloyd George should join the
eight labor ministers of his govern
placing the winning of the war as
the paramount necessity and adding
promise of some comprehensive
program Of domestic improvements,
he would sweep the country as it
was never swept before.
"Concerning France, also, you may
report to the American people that
there is no real sentiment of defeat
ism or pacifsn1, according to what I