Evening journal., 1921-06-27
SOCIALISTS KILL
RADICALS MOVES
~Proletariat Dictatorship"
Branded by Opponents
as "Red Terror
HILLQUlT LEADS
FIGHT WITH BERGER

DETROIT, Jan. 27.-seized with
what Morris Hnlquit described as a
''homicidal mania" the Socialist Ma
tional Convention yesterday killed
three resolutions which sought. in
varying terms, TO define dictatorship
by the proietariat" as a part OF So
cialist policy, and then overwhelmed
two others which asserted the dicta-
torship is not at this time an issue
A session which lasted for three
: and a half hours IN a sweltering hall
ended with all reference 70 working
class dfctation barred from the party
policy.
The fight against inclusion of the
Dictatorship was waged by Morris
Hnlquit. Victor Berger. Agernon Lee
and Cameron King. of Califor-
mia. They branded It as inseparably
linked in American minds with the
red terror in Russia, and declared II
TO- was useless to FIX a policy which
never would be called into play un-
less, in some distant future, So
= cialist revolution takes place.
why dictate in 1921 what our
grandchildren shall do in 1880" Ber-
: ger asked, while King declared "the
new terror is inseparable from dicta-
torship Of the proletariat You have
got TO have the terror to put 1t over.
J. Louis Engdahl and William f.
Kruse. left wing communists from
Chicago. offered two resolutions as
serting the rights of the working
classes 10 set up a dictatorship Ia
insure the success OF a Socialist revo-
luton and the duty not TO permit
anything to stand in the way OF
their being the ruling class" one
resolution received only four votes
and the second eight.
Hillquit offered a substitute which
defined the dictatorship as the poll
tical rule Of the working class in the
period OF transition from the capital
list system 10 the Socialist order" and
added: 1T Is not necessarily asso'
ciated with a restraint Of the politi-
cal rights Of opponents or with vio-
lence OF terror"
The New York delegation split
and Delegates orr and Solomon bott
urged the death OF all the propo
sails. I'VE have tried TO pour hol,
water over the term dictatorship o'
the proletariat." Orr said. I'VE have
tried 10 make It kosher. The Sovieu
will laugh at us II we adopt this reso
luton. The Communists will laugh
We viii be the laughing stock Of the
world" The Hillquit plan was de
feated. is to 20.
j. W. Richman, Of Washington, u
C.. said the spectacle OF ian inagnih
cant bunch Of 10000 Socialists talk
ing about the dictatorship Of the pro
letariat is silly" and offered a coun
ter resolution which declared tina
1--WE do not consider the question o
sufficient importance at this time q
go on record for or against H."
Cameron King offered a motioi
declaring "the movement in tn
United States is not sufficiently ad
vanced at this time 10 make a deci
sion" He got two votes for It
The fight was enlivened whel
Victor Berger attacked the Commun
lists within the party. and both Krus
and Engdahl replied.
The Communists issued circular
in Milwaukee last April. advising tn
workers not 20 vote because tha revo
luton was coming May J." Berge
said '@rhey were going 20 rise II
all their grandeur and overthrow
the existing order. And on May
Il rainedl So they postponed thei
revolution and set the date for Ma,
6. And on May 6 a policeman ar
rested two of them for throwin
handbills on the street in violation
Of a city ordinance. and the revolu
ton never has taken place.
: "Engdahl and Kruse, the expo
nents Of communism. do not belon
to the proletariat. They are in tn
'salariat.' living off the money re
ceived from the Socialist party. Eng
dahl has fastened himself on ou
party. where he does not belong.
am willing for him TO have a Com
munist party and write all the mic
red articles he wants 10. but do no
want him to sabotage our party fror
within, and that Is what he is tryin
to do"
In an imf assioned reply Engdah
20 declared the Two and a Hair IN
ternationale of Vienna, which ha
been held up as a model OF conser
: walton OF socialism, had adopted die
tatorship OF the proletariat as par
Of its policy" II you are afraid q
the Two and a Half,' he SAID
"then adopt tho King motion, forr
q new second internationale an
build up another organization tina
will betray socialism when tn
: crisis comes.
"As for the Communists, we wi
fight for our rights. we win tight 10
: worSing-class rule. we viii fight 10
tho freedom OF our prisoners. but W
will not fight for them as 100 pc
cent. Americans. We will fight 10
them only under the red flag Of In
ternationale socialism.
Tomorrow the convention wi
take up the question of political an
general strikes and the attitude q
the party toward organized labor.
Swedish Baptist Sunday scho,