The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-04-11

in turn with the additional new fresh forces shown
to have been recruited from the basic industries
in the past year, Is the guarantee for much more
rapid tempo in the realization Of the goal set n
the Open Letter to the Party members: A mass
Party firmly rooted in the basic industries among
the most decisive sections of the American working
GLASS.
The change in the Party be seen by the
examination Of few of the statistics OF the Con-
vention:
Party membership: 7545 in 1880; 1884 in 1888;
245OO in 1884 Note the relatively increased tempo
Of growth during the past year as compared to the
first three years of the crisis! This incidentally
fitting answer 10 those who preniaturely sounded
the death knen Of the Party year ago, following
the frank, penetrating self-criticism Of the Open
Letter.
Convention composition: out of 233 regular dele
gates (he tabuation on the additional 237 fraternal
delegates is not completed 145 were native-born
American workers, SO were foreign-born. There
were Included in the above figures 80 Negro dele
gates and 10 women.
Sixty-four per cent of all the delegates were
members of trade unions 90 were from TU.UL,
unions, 80 from the A. F. Of L., and 1s from inde-
pendent unions.
Most significant, as showing the change in the
Party since the Open Letter is the industrial
position of the delegates; steel IT, metal ST. marine
16 railroad 49, mining II, automobile g. and textile
9-119 Of the delegates directly out of the basic
industries of the country! The percentage could
have been still higher had it not been for the fact
that many workers proposed in the district conven-
tons as delegates could not stay away from work
for so long a period without losing their jobs
In addition, all other sections of the toiling
population were represented, sharecroppers from
the South, poor farmers, workers from the less
basic industries, unemployed workers, professionals
These figures show that the Party during the
past year has definitely embarked the road
charted by the Open Letter, The job now is to
drive forward on that road at a greatly increased
tempo.
THE convention brought out no signs Of salts
faction with the beginnings that had been made
toward a decisive turn in the Partys work On the
contrary, the work in the factories in the trade
unions, among the unemployed, in the struggle for
Negro rights, in the rural districts was thoroughly
examined with the aim of searching out the mis-
takes and shortcomings, with the aim of finding
out every fault in our work that hampered or
slowed up our struggle to win the majority of the
working class Tor the revolutionary struggle for
power under the leadership Of the Communist
Party.
The convention mapped a course for the i'm
stressing the need for the main concentration of
attention, energies and resources on the Chicago
Detroit, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and New York dis
trictS, and the STEEL metal COAL auto marine
railroad and textile industries
Particular stress was placed on increased work
in the A. F. of L. unions the setting up of organ
lied opposition groups there of the militant workers.
and on the establishment of independent Commu-
mist leadership in the struggle of these workers for
IF af
the strikebFeaking policies of the A. F. Of L. bureau
cracy.
The many problems raised and discussed at the
convention will be brought to the Party members
and the readers of the Daily Worker in special
articles each day. We urge every worker every
comrade to follow these articles closely Take them
up in every Party unit, in every Party committee
in every fraction. Discuss concretely how these
decisions can best be carried out how Party mem
bers can be modified, how the masses can be rallied
for the line Of the Party. The Party discussion is
now closed The convention has settled the most basic
problems before the Party. Now Is the time to con-
centrate all energies on the carrying out Of all the
tasks set by the convention.
The convention showed that the Party has moved
forward. The report of Comrade Browder. the
examination of our experiences by the delegates
and finally the decisions of the convention lay the
basis for the overcoming of our weaknesses and
shortcomings.
Armed with the powerful weapons given us by
our Cleveland convention, the whole Party as one
united force must now move forward on all fronts
The goal of a revolutionary mass Party of the
toiling masses is within our reach!
Study and theoretically apply the convention
decisions
Forward to improved mass work, particularly
in the factories and the trade unions!