The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1926-06-05

tINHEN his voice became harder. Flrmer. The
tall figure Of the speaker became more tense.
"What shall we do? Shall we continue to starve!
Shall we wait until we have collapsed There is
only one thingw His voice swelled. 1--WE must
help ourselvesw 1
He trumpeted it over their heads like a fanfare
and it flowed into these people like hot stream.
All sensed it on their flesh 1t ran like a touch
of ague over all their thin, famished bodies All
were burned by its contact. They covered before
it, but they also found that it lifted them up
again. .s 5f
The man spoke on. "Isnt that our rightY'
doomed his voice now care we not human beings
so that we can help ourselves? And who will
hinder us? Those who have locked us out? Those
who sit on the money? Those who close their
shops to us? Those who have tPampeled on us
our whole life long!" His form grew. 1--WE are
the people today! We are almostthe entire city p
He shouted that with more heat and like threat.
Mother Mellicher was ibewildered by it. 1t
alarmed her. She repeated it softly. Was not
that sedition? Was it not even more? Did not
that mean that they should revolt? Perhaps
march through the streets. Strike! Shoot She
shook herself She wanted to cast it off again.
She shivered.
And did it not make the others SILVER, too?
She looked around. Did they not rise up against
these words? Did they not revolt against them?
She was startled. They even cheered those words.
their hands They repeated his words They
shouted them to each other. They shaped them
into screams. They threw them back again and
mingled with their thunderous applause.
MOTHER Mellicher shivered still more. But
what should she do? Now these words we're
even embracing her, too. Now they were thunder
ing APPLAUSE around her. Now they tried to force
their way into her. And was not that that force
which came upon her with the applause, which
she had already sensed on the march, the force
of hundreds yes, of those thousands who were
bearing their misery and their hunger. And these
thousands Strengthened up, They were inspired
They were in revolt ! nat sh6hld they do? She
tried to repeat the words They should help them
selves
1t bowed her deeply. What was that? Could
they do that? Was not that sinful? And who
had spoken it? Was it person at all who had
said it? One of them. One of the poor. She looked
towards the cart. There the man still stood Five
steps in front of her. Tall Haggard like herself
One hand stretched to the sky. The sign to be
still. All were still again, for a woman stood
beside him.
Mother Mellichers pupils widened She knew
the woman. She reflected. She had merely walk
ed beside hre. 1t was the stopped, hunchbacked
one who had no bread or potatoes any more. Only
she looked larger The cart lifted her up. Her
face also appeared changed to her.
The woman began more softly than the man.
eyes," she repeated, "today we are all. We are
almost the entire city. What do we want? We
want work. We want bread! We want to be able
to livew She paused and drew breath into her
lungs. "Is that too much? We ought to want
much morew
"Yes~ she cried further, "what is our life?
Poverty! What do we have? What do we do?
We work. We grudgel We overburden ourselves
until we collapse! Is that life?' She bent for
ward and her head become pointed. 1--WE ought
to want much more!" she cried once more 'For
once, rest! house! A garden! Joy!! And why
not? Are there two kinds of people? Are we
created unequal? Why do we have nothing and
the others everything? Why are we starving, and
the others eat their fill? Why are we sitting in
the shade and the others in the sun? Is the sun
too small ?" She bent her arms backward in a bow
at is largew she screamed as loud as she could