The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1928-02-10

they often did. The class struggle in the fuedal
period took at times extremely acute forms
which led to the weakening of the burdens laid oy
the lords upon the serfs and also to the complete
emancipation of the peasants from serfdOm.
In later period of the development of feudal
society, with the rise of the cities and the artisan
class IN them the class struggle is transferred 10
the ely and takes place between the artisans on
the one hand and the landowners on the other
Thus at the head of the economic organization
of feudal society stood the landlord. who subordin
ated to himself all other classes. dominating them
economically The manor was the center of the
whole economic life of the village In it were
concentrated all the economic institutions serving
the peasants farms: the mills. the bakeries, the
coolers, the cattle, etc.; it was also the center of
de1ense against outside attack The manors at
flrst lad their impress on the life of the cities
also. Inc handlcrafts and trades were at first
part OF the economic system of the manor. At this
stage of the existence of the feudal system its
economic life was almost completely submerged in
the life of the manor house
However, as the handicrafts separate out from
agriculture, they begin to gain special position
in feudal society. The landlord begins to need
more and more the labor of the artisan, the pro-
ducts of industry, both for his own economy and
for exchange. The artisans acquire a certain de-
gree OF freedom retaining only material depend
ence upon the lord, e., paying him fee. Gradu-
ally, out OF the village communities arise the urban
settlements, which are filled chiefly by an artisan
and trading population. Separating from the
landlords, buying themselves off by means of pay
ments, the artisans begin to realize the possibility
of getting along without their help, especially when
with the development of trade the cities grew
stronger. Striving for emancipation, the artisans
organize themselves into corporations forming to-
gether with merchants an independent class get
ting further and further away from the relation
ships of natural economy and tving up their exist
ence with the development OF operations of ex-
change. The city classes thus gradually throw
OH their economic dependence upon the landlords
At first the handicraft guilds were homogeneous
But as the cities grew and became richer the guilds
began to become privileged class organizations
exploiting the labor of the journeymen placing the
latter In complete dependence uopn them. The i'm
\ poverlshment Of the peasant farms, the attempts
TO deliver themselves. from the oppression of the
fudal landlords, attract the peasants to the cite!
where they, becoming free, fall into dependence
upon the already consolidated class of artisans
part of which already possessed considerabl,
means Whereas in early times, the guilds gladl!
accepted newcomers into their midst. striving t,
''ANAA SAe'oSS
veloped position of the handicrafts, they try t.
deliver themselves from competition and use thei
economic and political power so as to make entr
INTO handicraft work difficult for new, particularly
village arrivals.
Some artisans became so rich that they were al
: ready able to keep journeymen, whose number
grew continually greater. The joumeymen in thei
turn according they increase, form unions, at
tempting to struggle with the artisans But thi
struggle does not attain any considerable develop
ment and does not bear a revolutionary character
as result of the insufficient qualification of tn
d artisan class, the narrow craft spirit with whc
the unions of journeymen were imbued, and thei
: attempts to fence themselves off from the hire
workers-proletarians of fuedal society, recruite
chiefly from those of the village population-wh
: nad loSt their connection with the land Ocean
S proetarianized).