Plentywood herald. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1908-current, 1932-12-08
CONTINUED from last week.
Part Two
THE GREAT GOD MOB

om what L nave TeaQ IN Th
various organs of the Communis
party have learned very litti
about the principles of true Commu
nism- They are seldom so much q
mentioned. But / have read an
heard a great deal about a strang
new animal, called the DICTATORSHIP
OF the %proietariat. such q greal
deal In fact. that / have come {,
the conclusion that it must be th,
thing In which u self-styled com
munists are chiefly interested.
1t has been represented to u,
tina this thing called q DICTATORSHIP
OF the proletariat is the open dool
TO the millennium; that through thu
medium of its beneficient opera.
lions we will all suddenly become
tall and strong and happy and very
sIniess; that the only way In which
we can become our own masters Is
to let the proletariat dictate to us.
| do not recall ever having heard
OF anything more absurd.
In the first place, it Is an imnos~
sibnify.-a contradiction In terms.
a dictator is a person who ~exereis-
es supreme authority. His word Is
Iinal, his commands must be obey-
ed-He must know what he wants.
The proIetariat is the poorest and
lowest class In a commonwealth.
those who have no property or cap
Itai, and depend for a living ON what
Ii they HSn carr hxr ha,rx rtIu-
pies drudges. American farmers are
not ~pr0lefarians, since most of them
own property and are inclined to be
fairly snobbish about it. But sup
pose we let that pass. We are imme-
d!ately faced by the fact that no
group OF proletarians, no group of
FARMERS, has ever been able to ag-
rec long enough to dictate the in
gradients OF to-morrow's breakfast.
TO say nothing OF deciding the pol
itlcal policies of d nation or OF the
world.
No, the proletariat cannot dictate.
Inc g 8 1t can do Is to choose one
man and invest him with dietatorial
powers,-whereupon, il he is like
the overwhelming majority of pro- |
ietar.ans the world over, he win
promptly FORGET the source OF his
power, and proceed to dictate for his
own benefit. Being absolute master
ne cannot be removed except by
armed force, and the end OF the
matter Is that his country has q
new fyrant In the seat OF the old
This, | gather, is what has happen
ed in Russia.
And ii we suppose, for the sake
OF argument. that the proletariat
can dictate, the result will be even
more depressing.
have lived all my life among
prolefarians. among the commonest
OF the common people. n + have
learned TO despise them for the hon
oriess, humoriess, stupid, brutal and
coWardiy that they are.
| have no patience with
the insane doctrine that any man
can guide a plow can also
guide the ship Of state. / do not he
ley that there is any sort OF mystic
superiority In being inferior. stub
gornly deny that a mule driver il a
Deter type OF human being than q
poet or a manufacturer or even. a
And, to borrow a phrase !
from al Smith, II will take OFF nv |
roaf and vest, and fight to the end,
against any man who Dos to !
my country on the depressing !
level.
In 9 notion that the mob Ia m
and idealistic is too silly. Az !
! matter of record. mankind has :
never taken a step forward excent
the instance of superior men. and !
against the violent opposition OF the !
mob Therefor, If true socialism ever
becomes a reality. 1t will find its |
worst enemies among the ~proletar- !
aI, and Its defenders among the in
and spiritual a~ristocrats. /
Inere Is moi the slightest reason for !
Issuming that 1t will be otherwise. !
+ a self perpefuating and sufficient /
y strong proletarian dictatorship /
e ever. set up in our world 1t
you'd make true socialism, or any |
orm OF human progress, forever i'm |
'oss BILE at present our proletarian I
reds yell for communism, not be- /
ause 1t would be better for all class
but because they fancy hat It
rill give their own class an advan-
age over all other classes. / feel
ure 1t has not even occurred to J
hem that communism would abol-
n classes They see only their own
dvantage and would instantly lose
ii they realized that the
ame thing would be an advantage
, others. They are jusl as greedy
ten thousand times ais ignorant
! u present masters, and that is
explanation OF what they slur
rer the real principles Of socialism.
nd insist on a dictatorship of the
Their u%nfitness to dictate is easily
by the fact that when they
given an opportunity to say who
1all rule them they instinctiyely
.ject the best men, and select some
~hypr0crite with a special talent