The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1933-03-13

and steal the Equity thunder they
stood a good chance Of turning their
little Socialist trick without the farm
ers knowing that the thing they pro-
posed to organize was not the one
Lotus had threatened to start.
The thing was tremendous sue
cess from the start. The farmers vir-
tually fell over themselves to join
the League. It was so beautifully
camouflaged the unsuspecting farm
ers never knew, and some do not
know to this day that they were
joining the most daring adventure to
socialize state that was ever
launched in all history.
Socialists all over the world became
keenly interested in the political az
fairs OF North Dakota and outside aid
came into the state. The battle
strategy was entirely different from
that of 1904. Instead of a thin picket
line thrown out across the face of
the whole nation, these artful pro-
moters conceived the idea that
massed attack on the relatively short
battle front of one agricultural state
carried more promise of success than
a mere picket attack on a national
front.
With one state completely captured
they fancied the contagion would
spread like wildfire and sweeping
over the neighboring commonwealth
gather the whole nation into the
hands OF Socialism, but the enthusiast
| tic promoters made a grave mistake.
They encompassed little too much.
They reached little too far. and en-
gendered suspicion in other states and
the epidemic never made much head
way beyond the North Dakota state
limits.
Time went on. The Socialist lead
ers lost their grip on the organization
and having drawn most Of its sup
port from the progressive wing of the
Republican party the League grad
ually settled back into the hands Of
that faction, leaving Socialism prac-
tically where 1t was before the great
adventure.
In 1928 the Socialist party polled
the smallest vote it had pOlled for
years. but one would think that the
campaign of 1882, with the whole
world seething in revolutions and dis
cord and misery presented the best
opportunity to make bid for power
that was ever open to Socialism in all
its fitful existence. Naturally the
party, by all the processes of logical
reasoning. should have polled a
mighty vote but with the ascendancy
of Norman Thomas to leadership OF
the party. man of fine moral char
acter, keen intelligence and unques-
toned political integrity, new kind
of doctrine was presented, new kind
Of Socialism made its appeal to the
people of America. Socialism for
once was appealing to reason and not
to hatred and reprisal. It was not
preaching a doctrine of envy and
sabotage and destruction but a sane
constructive policy. In fact it was
too sane and constructive to catch
the fancy of the hate-ridden voters
of the nation. There was far more
wrath and destruction and repriSal in
the policies of the Republican party
than in the Socialist party. thus the
Democrats got the calamity vote and
socialism 1allcQ again.
No one would think for moment
that the radical element in the So
cialist party would accept the Thomas
stamp of Socialism nor Is it possible
for that red element to turn the party
back into its former station of secrecy
and wonderment. now that its doc
trines are well defined and its aims
open to the scrutiny of the public.
Once brought out of its state of mys-
terry it can not, as such, recoil back
into that former station. If it is to
regain that position Of mystery and
secrecy it must disassociate its claims
and activities from its former self and
appear perfectly camouflaged as
something new and different.
Now, please link these facts with
the records of Howard Scott and his
weird philosophy Of displacing money
with energy certificates and you have
perfect picture of the creed Of the
Industrial Workers of the World. AS
the use of mechanical energy in
creases the common pay gets bigger.
In other words as human labor hours
get shorter and the work gets lighter
the wage gets better. That is beyond
a doubt the happy state of affairs
dreamed Of by the I. w. w. only
stated in complicated scientific terms
to make 1t appear new and profound.
| Sherman Hickle.