Evening star., 1948-06-20

ownership IcIluS W lilliAt ltocA "
properties of such magnitude OF
character that private possession
might endanger common welfare
Acquisition of power brought sober
ing responsibilities. Socialist gov
ernments ruling Scandinavia and
the Low Countries are regarded as
yielding little in conservatism to
the Republican Party of the United
States. The British Labor Party,
which follows the line of the So
cialist International, recently voted
for a return to free initiative.
One of the most enlightened
champions of socialism is Leon
Blum, the first and only Jewish
Premier of France. He has never
failed to stress a paradox-that the
masses are political sovereigns but
economic vassals. The French Rev.
olution, he said, brought to the
workers political liberty, equality
and fraternity. Socialism would
complete the process by conferring
the same blessings in the economic
area.
Blum's View of Reds
During battle of Is years with
the French Communist Party after
World War I, Blum was compelled
to re-examine the foundations of
his creed. He concluded that
socialism came not to destroy but
to fulfill western culture, derived
from Greece, Rome and Judea. It's
methods would be peaceful. 1t
would seek progress through evolu-
ton and not revolution. The par
liamentary system would be re-
tanned. Resort would be to ballots
instead of bullets. And socialism
would never take orders from Mos
COW.
Since the essential program OF
socialism is economic, 1t was op-
posed by the Vatican as material
istic." Christian socialism was Or
ganized, under religious leaders, as
q rival Of secular socialism. with
the object of weakening its in
f1uence in political parties and
labor unions. A spiritual basis was
sought in love Of mankind and the
fatherhood of God. Recently the
Holy See has established working
arrangement with moderate, right
wing socialism. In many respects
their economic teachings have
grown similar.
To scholar like Blum COM
munism is a "heresy" Of socialism.
He has compared it to the revolt of
Islam against Catholic civilization.
It was founded in a manifesto pub
lished during 1848 by Karl Marx
and Friedrich Engels. In despair
of persuading the owners Of wealth
to despoil themselves voluntarily
the authors called upon the workers
of the world to rise, strike of their
fetters and range themselves for
a war of class against class.
What is known today as COM
munism was born in the Bolshevik
revolution of October, 1917, under
the leadership of Nikolai Lenin. He
had learned from Marx to believe
in the class struggle, with violence
as It's implement. Marx had con-
vinced him also that history Is
determined exclusively by material
causes.
Czarist Traits Retained
With religious and spiritual fac
tors barred, Lenin gave to COM
munism its Machiavellian cast-its
justification Of means by ends and
its scorn Of moral principles as so
many signs of bourgeois degenera-
tion." Lenin's personal contribution
was q revolutionary technique,
which enabled him to seize the vast
Russian Empire with no more than
10000 disciplined zealots at his
back.
Because Of the accident that
communism won its first sovereignty
In Russia, two czarist traits were
imposed on the gospel of Karl Marx.
He had taught that under COM
munism governments would grad