The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1924-09-27

the weapons with which the working
class could emancipate itself and
taught the proletariat how to use the
weapons. Marx and Engels lived
during the period while the bour-
geoise was still performing its histor.
ical task Of preparing society for the
birth of a new social order. Lenin
was more fortunate or rather the
workers were fortunate in that the
greatest leader that the revolutionary
working class movement ever pro-
duced had matured as scientific rev
olutionary mechanic at a time when
the capitalist system had passed the
zenith of its power and was as a
world historical system starting on
the decline.
Karl Marx, the inspiration of the
First International or the Interna.
tional Workingmen's Association, the
father of modern scientific socialism,
was no mere analyst of the mechan-
ism of the bourgeois system of produc-
ton and distribution. He was first
and foremost revolutionist, and if
Lenin had accomplished nothing else,
but the rescue of Marx from the
clutches of the social reformers who
would make of him a harmless OBJ
server Of social phenomena, he would
have deserved well OF the working
class movement. But Lenin did more
than that. He not alone rescued
Marx from the Kautskys and the
other agents of the capitalist class but
he proceeded to translate Marxism
into action. Lenin was the founder
of the first proletarian state.
The name of Marx is honored by
millions of workers the world over
1t is equally hated by the bourgeoisie
tho the name of Lenin now more than
shares honors with that of Marx in
this respect. The proletarian class
struggle existed before Marks day,
but Marx was the first to bring the
revolutionary movement down from
the clouds of utopia and place it on a
solid scientific footing.
Hitherto the workers had dreams of
salvation but they were not sure that
the system of exploitation would be
abolished. Marx put the movement
for the emancipation of the workers
on a theoretical basis and showed
that thru the continuous development
of perfection of technique capitalism
would reach the point where it could
no longer function and must neces-
sarily give way to the new order, So
cialism. But Marx never failed to in
sist that the new system of produc-
ton could only be established by the
struggle Of the proletariat against the
capitalists, who strive to uphold the
present social order.
The theoretical formulation of the
class struggle and the revelation of
the secret of capitalist production
thru surplus value gave the working
class a new and powerful weapon.
They were no longer in doubt as to
the final result of the struggle. Marx
gave them the goal and the weapons
with which to bring about their own
emancipation. Workers of all Coun-
tries Unite; you have nothing to lose
but your chains. you have a world to
gain" This was the slogan raised for
the first time that cut across national
boundaries and joined the class con-
scious workers of all countries where |
the labor movement had planted its
feet, into an army pledged to carry
on the struggle against capitalism un-
til the robber system was overthrow.
Marx completely swept away the
old theory that socialism would be
brot about thru the agency of intel |
ligent and benevolent people. He
showed that its coming did not rest |
on the shifting sands OF justice and !
morality, but on the efforts OF the
class whose interests demand a
change in the system OF production,