The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1923-09-14

that is such an artificial term-that i
was Thomas Paine who wrote the frs
magazine article making the appeal fO
the right of woman to have the fran
chiSe and every other right, civil Of
political, that men enjoy.
Washington is now glorifcd as the
father Of his country. When he frs
began his revolutionary activities hi
was denounced by the Tories, the alis
tOcratic Tories, as a common THE
because he cOnfscated their property
He was denounced by the Tory pres.
as a notorious outlaw; and if they
could have laid their hands upon hin
and they were The ruling class OF
that time-he would have been exc.
cuted as Il fel0n. Thomas jefferson
who wlote the Declaration Of indie.
pendence that Thomas Paine inspired
denounced rs , vicious agitator;
Samuel Adams IS the vicious incen-
diary; Patrick Henry as traitor t.
his country. Not long ago | stood or
the precise spot in the old church at
Richmond where he stood IL the maj
esty and glory of his manhood. anC
hurled his challenge to the king: "Give
me liberty OF give me DEATH" A
traitor! An undesirable citizen They
had no espionage law at that time.
Read history and you will find that
great majority Of the colonists, the
conservative, respectable majority
were loyal to King George; and they
believed that any man or woman who
failed to pay tribute to the king, re-
fused to believe that that king had q
divine right to ,ule over them-that
he OF she was 4 traitor to their coun-
try. There were only a few who be-
lieved that the people hid capacity for
salf-g government: that they didn't need
king. They asked the same question
that the great body of the people are
a-lling today in their ignorance: Glow
could we get along without king ?"
How could government exist without
a king, someone to rule over us? We
are all children; in our mental baby
hood. eW have to have a portector,
a guardian, in the form of titled DO
tentate." Oh, yes! Just as they are
asking now: Chow in the world could
we get along without the capitalist to
give us jobs? How could we live un-
less we had the capitalist to take from
us all we produce? We are so used
TO it, we couldn't get along without
exploitation. You imagine you de-
pend upon the capitalist for Jobs. You
are mistaken. They depend upon you
for jobs You hire them to take what
YOU produce. They never go on strike.
They stick to their task; and they are
perfectly well satisfied to let well
enough alone. John D. Rockefeller
wants no change. If you can endure
this system, think that by strict
economy Mr.. Rockefeller will be able
to make both ends meet. If you don't
change this system, l hardly think he
will: and | don't wonder about that
He has much to lose by the change,
and you have everything to gain; he
understands, and you Go not.
Farther along, history repeated it
self in another great struggle, at a
time when chattel slavery had devel-
0ped to its highest power and con
trolled the president, both branches OF
Congress, the supreme court, and COM
PEELED that high judicial tribunal to an
nOunce the doctrine that the slave had
no hight that his master was bound
to respect. The great body OF the peo-
pie, in their ignorance, supported that
institution; and there were those who
declared that it was God-ordained,
that it was sinful to oppose it. Again
the agitat0rs, the dema-
gOgues, the disturbers of the peace,
the traitors to the country. William
Lloyd Garrison was one of the first
of these and how did he fare? At
tackled by a mob and almost lynched
because he was opposed to the crime
of private property in palpitating
flesh. Wendell Phillips was made to
feel the hatred of the mob.
Harriet Beecher Stowe was threat
ened as she wrote "Uncle Toms Cab
in" l saw some of the letters that
were written by this magnificent
woman. l read of the committee that
called upon her to advise her not to
give that book to the world. They
said "Your friends will desert you,
and you will be ostracized." Had she
been one of the timid, shrinking ones
taht are so numerous in this day; had
she first paused to take the public
pulse and then trimmed her sails to
catch the popular breeze "Uncle Toms
Cabin" would never have enriched the
literature of those days, and you had
never heard of Harriet Beecher Stowe.
Today we are engaged in the might
lest agitation of the ages. Now it Is
the rise of the workers all around the
world; multiplied thousands of them
are beginning to lift their bowed bod
les from the earth, brush the dust of
servitude from their knees, stand erect
and hold up their heads. In all the
nations of the earth these workers are
awakening, and they are bestirring
themselves. That sluggish brain is
to think. They are begin
ming to realize that they are the peo-
Pile; that they are not born to slavery
and degradation; and they are awak-
ening one another. The international
Socialist movement is the greatest
college, the greatest university on
earth; it is a great educational move
ment, the greatest in history, for it is