Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-05-08
MORRIS H|LQU|T IN
TALKT0S SOCIALISTS
SCORES PRESIDENT
In Address Before National
Convention Declares Party
Is 1000, 900 Strong.
By thu Associated Press.

By tho Associated Press.
NEW YORK, May s.-An attack on
the administration of President Will
son and a prediction that the socialist
party would poll more than two mil
lion votes in the presidential cam
paign were made today >by Merria
Hllquit, temporary chairman of thu
eps,ast opsnins session aa@nfa hers seas1 sas
that the party would survive the con-
certe6 attack Congratulated N Zero
ciousnese and lawlessness" made on
It in the last year by "all the powers
Of darkness and oppression in tho
country"
He declared that the last three years
had furnished the most striking ana
abhorrent proof Of the fallacy OF the
good man" theory in politics.
"If there remained any large sec.
tions of workers who put their trust
In old party Messiah. ne sa.a;vs1x sa,a; MoSe Do.
stroyed their naive faith. For be 1t
remembered that in 1915 Woodrow
Wilson ran as a radical
"He promised socialism through the
short cut of the democratic party ano
thousands Of radicals througnoue tne
throw away their votes on the nope.
less candidates of the socialist party.
Reign Of Moral Terrorism.
Hillquitt said in the course OF his
SWilson, tho idealist and humani.;
tartan. has inaugurated g. reign OF
intellectual obscurantfsm. moral ter
rorism and political reaction. the like
of which this country hao never
chology which he has helped to
create has produced such atavistic
political types as Palmer. Rurleson
Sweet and Luek It has advanced to
places Of honor political mounteoanks
like Ole Hanson. but has put into
types Of American manhood. persons
like Eugene ". Debs. and many OF his
less conspicuous fellow prisoners
The pitiful collapse Of Wilson's
liberalism was nothing accidental"
The party opened the Gonveneion tyI VIZ !,
"rhe Marcellaise'' and ''The Hymn Of
Free Russia" Otto Branstetter OF Chi
caeo. national executive secretary. then
called the convention to order. The
delegates. with number OF lraternal
tSnnei labor bodies, were assembled in
the Finnish Workers Educational Asso-
Today's organization program called
for "keynote" address and appoint
menC OF vote IclcAS nAAo S~0oNoe - 90
eeant-at-arms. convention secretary
and minor officials
Debs VIII Head Ticket.
Formulation Of the party's platform.
In which there is exceptionally keen
intsrest this year. will be begun next
week. The nominations for President
and Vice President. 1t 10 expected. will
NOT he made until near the close of the
convention. possibly next Friday. but
it appears to be virtually the unani-
nous opinion Of party leaders that
Eu9ene ". Debs. now serving q ten
year term in tho federal prison at At
Ianta. Ca. for violation OF tho -es-
MONACO act, will be named to head the
ticket.
toned for the naminAtion for Vice
President are those Of Seymour Sted-
man Of Chicago, general counsel for
the party: Scott Nearing, formerly
nrofessor Of economics at the Uniyer-
sity OF Pennsylvania and the Univer-
sity of Toledo and Mrs. Kate Richards
OiIare of Kansas City. who. like
Of the espionage act. She is confined
at the federal prison at Jefferson City.
Mo.
In addition to the 200 delegates at
tending the convention. q number of
fraternal delegates are present rep
resenting sympathetic international
labor bodies. The latter will be per-
mitted to participate in the debates,
but will have no vote in the conven-
tion.