The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1931-02-25
By KARL REEVE

THE dues payments of district nine for the
month of January, 924 weekly average (com-
puted on daily basis following steady rise IN
dues payments from 10 in September 1929, is
~ achievement for the Party. TIE rise in dues
payments is accompanied by increased activity
of the sections in mass work, especially the I'M
employment campaign, and a better mobilization
for T.U.UL work. The recruiting drive OF the
Party in district nine last year was a severe
test for the Party. The drive come at time
when the struggle against the Halonen-Love-
stoneites was at its height, a struggle during
which 1856 Party members were either expelled
or dropped out of the Party. The drive came
when the Party apparatus having been almost
completely wrecked in the last stages OF the
faction fight-with few units meeting, no frac-
TONS no section committees, etc, and little mass
work-Was just being rebuilt The Party rose TO
this test in the last recruiting drive, the appa-
ratus was established, dues payments increased
by $50, while the renegade elements were being
sloughed off, sections were established, new
working class elements were brought into the
Party beginning towards mass work made, and
the renegades decisively defeated.
But we must learn from some of the basic
shortcomings of the last recruiting drive. Only
sixty per cent of those taken into the Party in
the last recruiting drive remained in the Party
It is especially necessary for the sections and
units and fractions to pay serious attention to
the directives of the center on retaining and
training new members and distributing Party
work among them. Also a basic weakness of the
last recruiting drive which must be overcome in
this one is the failure to build the Party in the
three basic industrial centers, st. Paul, Minnea-
polls and Duluth, where in the last recruiting
drive these centers were neglected and major
ity of the new Party members lost,
1t is necessary for the section committees and
units to connect the recruiting drive with the
plans of work made up by each section. The
concentration points and campaigns of the Party
unemployed, foreign born etc. must receive the
main attention in the systematic recruiting of
new members We must concentrate on further
lettering the composition of the Party by get
ting in italians and South Savs and Scandina-
VANS, Poles as well as young American elements,
since the majority of members are still Finnish
We must especially concentrate in Ironwood, Ne
gaunee, NIesaba Range and Hancock sections and
in Crosby Ironton Duluth Section) in building
the Party among the metal miners and lumber
workers. as we'll as building the miners union
and lumber union. In Duluth we must con-
centrate on the steel workers and dock and rail-
road workers in the Twin Cities on packing
house flour mill and railroad workers. A vital
task is the establishment Of shop nuclei in the
concentration points in Duluth and the Twin
Cities, where as yet no shop nuclei exist While
some progress has been made in increasing the
membership in the Twin Cities the Party is still
weakest in these two important centers. The
dues payments in st. Paul s1ow-Oct. Is, NOV. 30
Dec Sc dues paying members; for Minneapolis,
Oct %, Nov. 30, Dec 40 dues paying members
This shows an increase, but by no means suffl-
cient and these two sections are by far the small
lest sections in the district Especially is it ne
cessary to get Negro workers into the Party in
the Twin Cities and women workers.
There is no room for dissatisfaction or rest
ing on our ears because Of the increase in dues
paying members. The Party is still tagging be-
hind the mood of the masses to struggle. The
Lerlin Recruiting Drive is the most important
test of how the Party strengthens itself organi-
nationally in its unemployment and other cam
paigns. We must combat theoretically all ten
denotes to feel that the quotas set are the limit
beyond which Party members should not be
taken in We must fight against the feeling
that we can handle only SO many Party mem
bers week. The application card system must
be DICTATED" in the present drive, but this does
not mean that we should "go slow" and adopt
a sectarian attitude. The best elements which
follow the Party III campaigns should be inlIne-
diately brought into the Party and given train
ing The dues payments should reach 1900
average by the end of the Lenin Recruiting Drive.
We must Systematically and theoretically go out
to achieve all quotas. quota which equals
the usual average monthly applications which