New-York tribune., 1919-06-25

y" ing q tremendous, we'll financed and
well organized attempt at prole-
tartan revolution, with the avowed aim Of
hands of the manual workers, and, in fact,
into the hands of that minority of work
ers which is engaged in what the revolu-
tionary leaders define as "key industries"
There can be no mistake about the sweep
Of this movement. From the Great Lakes
west it is winning labor. 1t is being in
dorsed by q four to one vote in all unions
where it has come to a test. 1t has
immense support outside the unions, too,
and it has made infinite trouble and-will
make more. From the head Of the lakes
eastward it has so far been held in check
both by the moro level-headed character Of
the workers and by their confidence in the
tried leaders of the big international
against it, but even there the revolutionary
scheme already has many followers, and
it is making headway
Foreign Propaganda
Inevitably, from its advocacy of "inter-
nationalism," from the fact that its leaders
were chiefly those who fought most
violently against conscription and other
patriotic measures during the war, and
from the fact that the ideas it supports
are based on foreign theories and backed
by foreign propaganda--even If the charge
that the whole movement is in itself
piece of foreign aggression is not true
this movement is closely linked with alien
ism in Canada and depends for much Of
its support on alien men and women. Its
open leaders are mostly of British birth.
but it's rank and file includes practically
the whole alien element Of the Dominion
Against this stands the government
not too warmly supported by any element
in the country-and the capitalists.
Into this situation are being poured four
hundred thousand returned soldiers. They
have been met by double propaganda.
Aliens Enrolled
Winnipeg, like most western Canadian
cities, has big alien element. About
$1,000 enemy aliens are registered out of
population of 100000. They are, of course,
mostly laborers. Few of these had ever
been gathered in by the regular unions,
but after the soviet test was decided on
the radical leaders began enrolling them,
as there could be little hope of a success
full general strike with so large BODY
outside their control. The leaders promised
protection to these aliens against any de-
portation or discrimination by the gov
ernment.
This, of course, risked the friendship Of
the returned soldiers, but they are much
hndVr %ho- A.
radicals justly counted on a certain sun-
port even among the soldiers There are
some who had been union men before the
war, though the opposition of union labor
in Canada to enlistment had kept this
number small; there were those who had
been converted by the red propaganda
which was, if possible, even more active in
Canada than in this country among the
soldiers, and there were the "conscripts."
When Conscripts Are Slockers
This term, as used IN Canada needs
definition for us in the states. Conscrip.
ton did not come in Canada till after
nearly three years Of war and after almost
every man who could be Influenced bv
patriotism had enlisted. So many peopla
IN Canada used "conscript" as synonvmous
with "slacker," and in the army, and now
out OF the army, the greater bulk of tn,
disaffected and unruly are to be found
among the conscripts.
These three classes were with the Winni-
peg strikers from the start. Among tn.
other soldiers there was large number
on the fence, and to these the radical lead
ers went with smooth promises. Thew
declared that they needed the aliens to