The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-05-04

not to observe the sudden rise to wealth of man formerly in a small way of business. His gains are constantly dis cussed and are exaggerated in discus sion, while the worker feels growing sense of injustice as he comes to under stand that while he must toll every day to earn comparatively small weekly wage, another man, probably originally of the same class as himself, is able either by accident or by sharp practice to accumulate a vast fortune in a few days.
 Naturally this frame of mind to which labor in England is becoming increasingly prone affords temptin g soil for the Bolshevist to work in. B3l- shevism is not congenial to the order ly, rather unenterprising English character, and the number of professed Bolshevists in Great Britain is very small, but they are astonishingiy active. Some are Scotch, some Irish, but the bulk of them are Russian or Polish Jews, some of whom have ac- quired English names in the same way that Bronstein has become Trotsky and Apfelbaum, Zinoview. Knowing that their gospel has at present but little Likelihood of obtaining popular support. they confine themselves 10 evol1ing a general feeling of discon- tent Wherever trade conditions are harsh, wherever men think they pos sess a grievance there the Bolshevist is to be found striving not to effect a settlement but to frustrate one, and inflaming the minds of his dupes so that it becomes almost impossible for , the more moderate trade union leaders to negotiate settlement without fear of being disclaimed by their own foi- lowers. Up to the present there have been three serious strikes, each unrec- ognized by the union concerned, in 1919; and in each of those at Glasgow at Belfast. and in East London it has been foun dthat the strike leader was a Bolshevist Polish Jew. The Bolshe- vists are admirably organized: they are absolutely interruptions, and they appear to be well supplied with money, so that in spite of their small numbers they constitute a serious menace to the state which it is their avowed purpose to overthrow
 Unfortunately, there is a section of the community among whom the Bol- shevists are likely to be able to do q good deal of mischief. It was confi- dently prophesied that when hostilities ceased the return to industry of the demobilized soldier would have a steadying effect on labor unrest, as his sense of discipline would induce
 
 It seems that those who calculated in this manner forgot to allow for that most potent factor-the force of reac- tion The discharged soldier is prov ing by no means a tractable person.; on the contrary, he is more filled with unrest and eager for industrial dis turbance than the man who has been at work throughout the war This 10 not unnatural, for after the compara tive ease (comfortless though it was) of soldiers life, the long, regular, monotonous hours of the workshop seem repellant Often, too, the man has been wounded or bears in his blood the seeds of malaria, or some other disease, and feels that his coun- try owes him something, and this makes for dissatisfaction. But na'- ura1 though it may be. this discontept is dangerous, since such men. trained to arms and habituated to danger are formidable tools if used by Bolshevist brains. If Lloyd Gorge is well advised he will leave no stone unturned to re- dress the disbanded soldiers griev- ances.
 For the moment Bonar Law and the minister of labor, Sir Robert Horne,