The Washington herald., 1919-01-19
BRITISH BOLSEIEVISTS TRIED
REVOLUTION LAST WINTER

CONTINUED FROM PAGE -FOUR.
ing conditions, but, Kealey announced,
''to smash up the whole social sys-
tenn" 1t was found impossible to
united the mass of the workers at
that time under the flag of revolu-
ton. for the British workman is pa
triotic, and the leaders bided their
time.
McManus and Cohorts Meet.
In Glasgow on January 26 OF this
year there met in secret conclaye the
leaders OF North and South. McManus
and his cohorts from the Clyde. where
the shop stewards movement had
prospered, and Watson from London
representing his followers spread
throughout the South of England. The
conference lasted through the next
day, and it was agreed to form a COM
mittee to take over the government
| of the country" The collapse of the
| social system and Of the war was TO
| be brought about by means of gen.
, eral strike.
ne dWdit VI NIlt
gerous situation in Glasgow, where
| workers committees had openly an
nounced they would oppose the new
man-power bill, sent Sir Auckland
Geddes, minister in charge of recruit
ing, TO address the Clyde workers. and
the Bolshevists. as was not reported
in the newspapers at the time. cap
tured the meeting. 1t was held on
10 NV ha a
conference. of which the government
at the time did not know. had just ad-
! journed. and its leaders attended the
| Geddes speech and carried a demand
| that the allies should accept the Boil
! shevik peace terms and join the Brest-
| Litovsk conference under the penalty
| of general strike in ten days. The
man who rose to propose this resolu-
tion was McManus, chief OF the Ma
| tional Workers Committee. who, his
| followers declare, aspires to be the
| British Lenin.
| The revolutionary council had de-
cided that February 13 was TO be "the
| day" A general strike to end the war
and bring about the BOlshevik revolu-
! tiOn was to be ordered. The Bolshe-
! viks of the North We're enthusiastic
! but it was realized that the co-opera
| ton of the red brotherhood all over
! the country was necessary IL the re-
volt was to succeed. Watson, chief oi
| the Southern Bolsheviks, had agreed
at the Glasgow conference TO the rev.
Olutionary strike. and went back "a
! London, full of zeal. to persuade his
! followers TO down tools.
Opposition Develops.
! He did not succeed. A meeting OF
shop stewards was called in London
where the former organization o!
representative Of trades unions ha:
now given away, as in the North, tC
| avowedly Bolshevik and independent
! bodies formed in the plants. Opposi'
! tion developed to Watson's plans
How much of this was due to patri-
otic feeling and how much to a belief
! that the time was not ripe | am un-
J able to say. Watson's eloquence was
| unavaiIing; il was decided that before
! the strike could be called a ballot must
! be taken among the workers. Bolshe-
viks do not like ballots, and Watson
I strenuously objected. 1t was pointed
out that an attempt to sound the whole
! body OF workmen could not be kept
secret, and the government would
learn of the conspiracy and be ready
TO suppress it. Accordingly. the South
! decided not to STRAIT the revolution, and
| the North reluctantly was compelled
, 70 acquiesce.
! Now for proofs of the sensationa
statements made above. Watson
president of the London Workers
| Committee. wrote on April 6. less thar
| two months after the failure OF the
conspiracy: AT that time Gn Febru
ary) the Bolsheviks were appealing tC
+, the democracies of Europe to rise II
revolt against the CHASTITY slaughter
and the German and Austrian worker:
responded by extensive strikes. Som'
of us in Britain endeavored TO follow
suit" He wrote the same day: lie
us build up a British Soviet anC
added a damning phrase: 1T was I
remarkable coincidence that the Ger
mans subsequently reported that ther'
were peace riots in England on Feb
ruary T."
In point of fact, no such riots tool
place This remark of Watson's bring
up the question of what cooperation
If any. existed between the German
and the Sim Feiners and the British
Bolsheviks. On this point / have NJ
evidence. But II seems far from al
sons own words to draw the infer
ence that the Germans were infOrne'
that there was to be an outbreak o
the workers in Britain on February L
and that they did not learn in time t
refrain from comment on the da!
named that the revolutionary strik
had been put of indefinitely.
Plans MysrerIous
At present the plans of the Nationa
Workers Committee are sOmewha
mysterious. 1t is said in some quar-
ters that an attempt at revolution
may occur at any time. Other oh
servers who profess to know wha
Is in the minds of the BOlsheviks de
clare that they will wait until griev
ances have been developed against tn
new government and until they cal
get control of organizations of dis
I Oh