The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1925-02-25
AS WE SEE 1T
BY r. }. o'FLAHERTY.
(Continued nom page 1l

'n0 nuls@n'
I"EoRGET that class conscious
| stuff" said McKaig, Of Idaho. A
delegate from the north side Of the
city Of Columbus, Ohio, warned the
socialists that unless that party dis
appeared from human ken, the people
living on the north side of Columbus
would have nothing to do with it and
without the northsiders, the thing
would not go. This delegate had no
particular objection to labor but he
wanted party for independent AM
orleans" He was tired of listening
to Hillquit's internationalism he said
which consisted Of painting the rela-
tions between Ramsay Macdonald
and King George in glowing terms.
80
THERE were many twitching lips
and itching palms in the audience
at the thot Of kissing some royal anat-
omy as the millionaire socialist law
yer dwelt on the rise to Office and
governmental honors of the British Ia
Dor leaders. "B. & o. Bill" was not in
a very happy position. Motions, points
Of order, questions Of parliamentary
inquiry few around him. Sometimes
he harpooned them, but they usually
went by him. Several motions were
lost and the delegates were too busy
trying to get the floor to bother about
them.
THE way Johnston was treated by
1 the body won the sympathy of
Leo Harkins of Philadelphia, who
used to be a leftwinger a few years
ago. He made a spirited speech
which was not listened to, while the
delegates were leaving the hall, urg-
ing them to be nice to "B. & o. Bill"
when they met on the following day.
bill" did lot of thinking while he
was seated behind the presiding
table. Some observers thot he knew
what he wanted. Others thot that he
was in a daze. He was very much
alone anyway. Asfew Of the lesser
lights in the sixteen standard railway
organizations were there to keep the
home fires burning. Their main OBJ
ject was to see that nothing tangible
came out of the convention. They
succeeded admirably.
ABOR was conspicuous by its alb
L. sence there. If the sentiment
for the formation Of a labor party can
be measured by the representation
from the workers and farmers at that
convention, it must be placed at zero.
The only organized! element that fav-
ored labor party in the slightest de-
gree were the socialists and they
used 1t only as a trading point. After
the convention whatsoever delegates
shook their heads when asked for
their opinion of thee chances Of the
new and nameless party. Old and sin.
cere veterans in the socialist move
ment who have looked on helplessly
at the way the party travelled from its
original moorings were disguised.
The shyster lawyers, shoddy intellec-
tuals and homeless political wander
ers, found themselves no worse off
than when they came.
-
CHEPPARD of the conductors has
- wholesome respect for money.
He must be disciple of Napoleon
Bonaparte. NAP" according to Shep-
hard, once said that there were three
essentials to success. The first was
money and so were the other two. He
charged the delegates with an indec-
ent exhibition Of poverty when the
chairman appealed for a collection to
pay the deficit. The brotherhoods
would no longer play the role of rich
uncle to this bunch of deadbeats. Yet
there was at least one millionaire
among them, brother, or Mr., but not
once Comrade Hillquit.
1T was good convention, the most
l entertaining ever attended. One
delegate from the needle trades ad-
mitted unof'lcially that it was the big
gest collection Of renegade socialists
that ever gathered together. But
they were more intent on spiking the
plans OF the socialist party than ac-
complishing anything of value. 1t
was a splendid victory for political
hygiene; two rotten political organiza-
tions were buried in one day.