The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-12-15

! in France, each party kept its OBJ
servations concerning methods, pro-
| grams, ETC., to itself. We were the
ones who consented to these con-
cessions regarding criticism in Or
der to carry out united action. Even
before our pact was signed in
France, we maintained public dis
cussion on this question. Very
! quietly, each time that anyone of
the Socialist Party declared: We
can form the united front in France
because the Communists have
changed their policy, we answered.:
No, the Communists have not
changed their policy, but the work
erS, Socialist and Communist, want
the united front. And perhaps be-
cause we have in France a strong
Communist Party, this desire which
we raised was decisive for the real
ization Of the united front.
AS for your reservations regard
ing the future, which occupies you
so much at this moment, it is no
matter of an impromptu unimport-
ant detail. There will evidently take
place a deliberate, ripe understand
ing in which both Internatioals will
participate.
But, before that, Immediately, we
would like to agree on some point.
And 1 am no less serious when I
propose a great international meet
ing. In France, we didn't conclude
the pact all at once; first, there
had to take place many forms of
united action, many unified demon
STATIONS, before we were to con-
clude any pact between our organ
izations. We have feeling that
one of the elements which surely
influenced the decision of our com
rades of the Socialist Party was
the long length of time during
which we succeeded in establishing
and maintaining contact with the
Socialist Federation of Seine. On
the 8th of July when the CroiX de
Feu had just demonstrated in Paris,
before the signing of the pact, we
assembled in the Boise de Vim
cennes, 100000 Paris proletarians,
and this was a decisive element.
And when we held impressive meet
ings in the Butler Arena, the eff
feet Of such demonstrations quite
convinced our Socialist comrades
that their acceptance of the pact
was no longer a question of any
maneuver. Since then, you know,
a certain opposition in the Socialist
Party to the united front rapidly
began to disappear. At our last
committee meeting, a telegram was
sent to us from Montlucon an
nouncing that they we're no longer
hesitant about achieving a pact Of
united action. I do not pretend to
believe that in the last ballot
majority vote was cast for us with
the Socialist Party at Montlucon;
think rather, that they under
stand that fratricidal war could no
longer continue and in face of the
grave danger which menaces us, it
/ is finally necessary to succeed in
cementing united action.
Cachin.-I add a fact. When on
the 14th of July we met with a
delegation of the Socialist Party,
Blum used this same frank Ian
guage which you address to us to-
night. We declared to him that,
for our part, we would very quickly
revise his suspicious of any maneu-
yer. AS it happened, whenever we
met each week, sometimes more
often, what happened? 1t was soon
Maurice Thorez, who, presenting a
resolution, often met with the de-
mand from Leon Blum: do you
| agree?" Such was the practice of
the agreement. There, in concrete
life, is what became of your old
suspicionsl We insist on these facts,
which are in our eyes decisive, be-
cause we feel that the French ex-
perience will be from this time fer
ward fact which can dissipate all
| prejudice.
WE MUST FACE THE FASCIST
DANGER
I do not believe that in single
country in the world the working
class is under any illusions of the
extreme dangers of the present
hour If among us the working class,
which has rather well developed
political sense, threw itself into the
united front, bursting all resistance,
it is because it felt more keenly
the necessity of overthrowing all
objections in order to rally everyone
in face of danger. In face of that
we were full Of courage. We dis
puted, we will continue to dispute,
but now only around the problems
Of offering a front against the ex-
IRENE danger. I do not know what
would happen in France if in six
months you we're to have more
powerful fascist attack, perhaps you
would bitterly regret for having
passed so much time in discussion
while the danger menaced us. Fer,
France fallen, Spanish fascism tri-
umphant, international reaction
might well say: They could not
get together"