The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1925-06-02
2 IlI[ .; kA5l IL

the class struggle. But there exist
nevertheless also a development of
socialism from utopia to science!"
And thus Beer is right when he des-
cribes as Communism those efforts
and systems of thought in economic
epochs in which the struggle Of mo-
dern Communism could not be con-
ceived of, but in which nevertheless
new society" was demanded in
which the common property or the So
cial control over the necessities of life
should ensure the we'll being of all
Modern Communism.
NOMRADE BEER has been most sue
" cessful in the history of socialism
since the dawn of modern times. We
are given in bold outline the first
great German revolution from 1916
to 1885, in which Beer sets forth the
reformation, the movement for nation
al unity, the peasant wars and the
Anabaptist movement. That the fine
sense of Beer for the economic and
moral history of England would en-
sure him success in those chapters
dealing with the history of socialism
in England was obvious (see the chap
tiers dealing with the English utopians
and the English social critics etc..
Beers studies also draw other per-
sons and movements into the history
of socialism in an original manner.
We do not agree with Beer who
stamp the historian of the Babeuf
conspiracy Buonarotti as the leading
spirit of the movement, so that final
ly it is somewhat unintelligible why
| the chapter is still entitled THE Con-
spiracy of Babeuf and Comrades
page 342). Beer is however right
when he unearths the leader of the
German enlightenment movement,
Professor Weisshaupt (174S-1SS0), and
also the social criticism Of the Rhine
lander Gall in the year 1926, and other
similar material. Thus for instance,
amongst the older French socialists,
Pecqueruer receives a detailed valua-
ton. Pecqueuer, like the German
Moses Hess, is often unjustly ignored.
We then come to the presentation
of the socialism of modern times (up
to 1920. Beer gives us in an ex-
emplary manner, always upon the bas-
is of historical and economic sketch.
the history of ideas and the political
movements. A great amount of ma
terial and reflection is presented in
4 the smallest space. Everything is
clearly and correctly dealt with in
the light of the materialist conception
of history. Only upon one point must
we take up a definite attitude against
Beer, and that is in his judgment of
Engels page 240). Beer should do
justice to the significance and unique
spirit of Engels precisely because OF
the extraordinary modesty with w,dch
Engels always placed himself behind
Marx. The original form of the Eng
els foreword to the class struggles
and many letters show clearly that
Engels cannot be counted among the
'reformists." For the rest, Beer pre-
sents the gradual victory OF reformism
in the German working class move
ment and the progress Of the Ger
man S. ID. p. towards a petty-bour-
geois party very well.
"THE Second International could not
l. stand the great test; nationalism
and revisionism bound 1t to the exist
ing order and dragged II into the vor-
tex Of war" page 514.)
And of the period following the war
Beer says just as succinctly and ap-
propriately: "rhe socialist party of
Germany ruled, but militarism, bu-
reaucracy and capitalism were domi-
nant.' Beer shows the internal dis.
solution OF the socialist party OF Ger.
many, how II paved the way for the
reaction" unfortunately, however he
pays too little attention to the build
ing up of the new Communist move.
ment In the Communist international.
Let us hope that Beer will stu deal
in detail with this most important Der.
iod in the history Of socialism,