The Daily Worker Newspaper, September 2, 1929, Page 6

. UTR Py een a "DAILY WORKER, NEW YORK, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 1929 Daily Bas. Central Organ of fhe Communist Party ef the U: 8. A. Under What Slogans Will the New, Imperialist World War Be Waged? The class war in Palestine proceeds between the expro- priated and exploited Arabs on the one side and, on the other side, British imperialism supported by and using. the instru- ment of Zionism. Unconditionally this signifies the flaming of colonial revolt at the foundations of the Brjtish colonial empire. If the present crisis of British imperialism were to lead directly into the second world cataclysm in sucha way that the capitalist ruling class may be able to call the Palestine events the “cause” of the world war, what would be the slogans with which the capitalist governments of the United States, Great Britain, etc., would attgmpt to lead: the masses into the struggle as willing cannon-fodder? In the first imperialist world war it was-the slogan of “war for democracy,” “war to end war.” : What would be the nature of the slogans for the second imperialist world war if-it should follow right now upon the heels of the Palestine events? Already we are able to see a whole consistent. series of slogans ready at hand—of a “fresh” sort calculated best to deceive even workers whose eyes were opened to the now shop-worn lies of the “war to make the world safe for democ- racy.” This new set of possible slogans is easy to pick out in the speeches of several orators at the big New York mass meeting last Thursday night. For instance: Stop pogroms! Protect a weak minority from aggression! Defend the Jewish victims of age-long persecution! Compell the heartless British imperialists to do their duty! f] Down with the incompetence of the British government of Palestine! Or (another variation): The British government is now under the great and good “socialist” or “labor”? premier, the representative of the workers; uphold this “pacifist” states- man against the war-making Arabs! Or still another: Demand that the United States defend its most humble citizens against racial persecution! (Hoo- ver in his message to the mass meeting used the terms: “Protection of the lives of American citizens” and “protec- tion” of the “homeland” of the Jews.) And: “Peace and order in the Holy Land!” Defend men and women “devoted to the service of God!” Yet every one of #he above slogans would be a reaction- ary lie in the present case of the Palestine affair—a counter- revolutionary, imperialist slogan (in effect) no better in this case than the worst that Woodrow Wilson used. A little reflection would bring any class-conscious worker to see that any support of the Zionist movement against the native Arab population of Palestine is nothing more than support of imperialism in a war of subjugation against colo- nial subjects. For two thousand years this so-called “Holy Land” has not been populated by Jews. For the better part of a thousand years it has been the native homeland of the present Arabian people. A part of imperialist England’s plans of conquest during and after the world war consisted of the seizure of this country and the subjugation of the Arabs to British rule. A typical policy of British imperialism led to introducing into the heart of the country an alien population as an agency for holding the country for British exploitation and military use. The reactionary fetishism of Jewish Zionism furnished the best means of eementing such an alien population there. The country is not the “homeland” of the Jews; it is the homeland of the Arabs. There is no more basis for the Zion- ist “homeland” claims than there would be for the present Anglo-Saxon American population to claim the right to in- vade and seize those parts of Europe which their “racial” predecessors inhabited two thousand years ago. At that the present imported Jewish inhabitants do not | rule Palestine and do not want to rule Palestine under the circumstances. On the contrary, they demand that the Brit- h government shall rule Palestine (as it does) with bayon- ets and machine-guns over the Arabian inhabitants who out- number the Jews by as much as nine to one, and that the wealthy Jewish invaders be allowed to cooperate with the British rulers in the exploitation of the laboring native popu- lation under the dictatorship of British government represen- tatives. The slightest idea of a republic is abhorent to them, because the population which they are exploiting and ex- propriating of their land is a majority of nine to one against them. There are no pogroms being made in Paléstine by the Arabs. F When the expropriated Arabs rebel against the rape of their country, the fascist Zionists know how to shriek of “pogroms.” But what is a pogrom? . Certainly a pogrom means an organized slaughter.of a suppressed and persecuted people. instigated by agents of the ruling and exploiting class. xactly the opposite is the case here when the robbed Arabs rebel against the British rulers and their Zionist agents. The wealthy Zionists are the exploiters of Arabian labor- ers. ‘They aid the British rulers in ruling over the Arabs who are the suppressed and exploited people. Only those whose minds are hopelessly saturated with the “black-hund- red” propaganda of imperialism can call the desperate resist- ance of the exploited slaves a “pogrom.” They could as’ well talk of “lynchings” of the “poor helpless” white people in Alabama or Mississippi by the “fanatical mobs”’ of Negro. !ynehers. Nothing could be more reactionary than such dis- honesty, such a distortion of all-realtty; sucha ‘standing: of history on its head. . 3 Poe But is thera any doubt that both British and American imperialism couid find a choice lot. of slogans. for the coming: deceit of the workers if a world-war situation. were to:follow. after the present Palestine events? SEW aeer. LO. 30H But the reactionary nationalist Zionism is not the liber- ator of Jewish workers or of any workers; it isthe bootlick of British and American imperialism! _ Only: the.revolutionary. movement of the working class. and the .class-conscious -Jew- ish workers in their ranks—supporting the Arabian and.all. other revolts of exploited slaves of capitalist, imperialism—. will bring emancipation to the oppressed classes of the world! Pi } vet 5 Against tha counter-revolutionary slogans of British and American Imperialism (echoed by their Zionist agents) the revolutionary workers, Jew and al! others, raise the slogan: “An independent Arabian republic in Palestine, a3 a part and peoples of a federation of Soviet Republics of Arabistan—with auton- | omy for national minorities!” _- | GASTONIA—1928: ~o By Fred Ellis. ~ 4M | HE recent conference of the Daily Worker agents was one | of the most constructive conferences |held fora long time. The record |attendance at this conference was | | the first ‘sign of the growing re- |sponse of the Daily Worker agents |to their work. The number of | agents who took part in the general | |discussion was another indication of | the growth of the understanding on the part. of the comrades on the im- |portance of this work. The accom-| |plishments, as well as the many) shortcomings were discussed in a | constructive way so as to be able,| on the basis of the lessons gained | from. the discussion, to increase the accomplishments and greatly lessen | the shortcomings and reduce the | many obstacles. | Among the plans accepted at this conference, were the plans for the revival of the Daily Worker Builders Clubs, utilizing to the utmost ex- tent the great number of sympa- thizers that our movement has. The organization of such clubs must proceed not. only on the basis of residential territory, (sections), where the-workers live, but the for- |mation of such clubs in shops and factories and other places of work | | should be carried on more intensely. A good basis for the organization of such clubs in shops and factories |should be the carrying of the | Ruthenberg Sustaining Fund into |the shops and factories, recruiting the maximum number of workers |as possible for the building and | strengthening of the Daily Worker, by not only making them regularly jreaders of the Daily, but also re- leruiting them for assistance in {form of various contributions, such |as contributions of articles, news| |items, shop news, etc., and financial | | contributions to the Daily. /united into’ clubs of Daily. Worker | | builders, “They should very often | \be called together in order to also |take up and discuss important prob- lems*confronting them, as: well as | the :important "issues in the Labor | Movement. of | At the ‘safe: time it swas made| clear at this conference that.'a col- lection of the Ruthenberg Sustain- ing Fund in the units is not system- ized, and therefore doés not bring the desirable results, Not all: the, section and unit Daily Worker agents-are yet. paying suffi- cient ‘attention’ to this work, which if properly followed up, will greatly decreasé- the necessity of so many special appeals and money-raising campaigns conducted by the Daily. The achievement of some sections | in this particular field of work; namely section one andefive, is very indicative of what ould be done for the Daily through this weekly paying system properly followed up| by the units. In connection with the immediate practical tasks discussed at this conference there was also a lengthy discussion on. such questions like Workers Correspondence and the, necessity to increase the circulation of the Daily. It was made clear at the’ conference, that these two) phases of the work are intertwined, | and therefore cannot be separated, that we cannot increase the circula- tion ofthe Daily, get more readers and subscribers for it, if we do nov, also at the same time consider the vroblem of bettering the contents of |the Daily, and making it more and ;more a mass-organ of the workers. It. is precisely in this light that) we must consider the question of | |there will be even less work days These...contributors ‘to he later industry, production will be ipereased Woorkers Correspondence as a part 4 Daily Worker Agents Plan Work of all our other practical and im- This underestimation of the im- mediate tasks in connection with ce of the Daily Worker, is ex- building the Daily. pressed in the lack of activity on We, who have connections in shops |the part of rty members and factories, in various industr and Dai nts, and it is preci moment that we must raise the question of greater activity on the part’ of all Party s for the building of the revo- lutionary press. unions and other. workingclass or- ganizations, must see to it that we do all we can in order to develop as many Workers contributors to the Daily as possible, At the same time, there is yet insufficient understanding on the part of many of our comrades of the importance of the revolutionary press, particularly at this period of the growing attack of the bosses on the workingclass, and the growing resistance and the mood for strug- gle on the part of the working 2. class. > | within the sections for the loc: In connection with this question, the problem of tightening up of the organization of the Daily Worker agents in all the sections, was taken up. Some immediate concrete steps towards the solution of 1. More erences. Beginning October 1 Soviet Holidays Spread Over Week Factories, Shop Equipment Used Seven Days; Production Increased, Vacations Better (Wireless By Inprecorr) MOSCOW, U. S. S. R., Sept. 1.— The Soviet government has an- nounced a decision according to t which on Yhe first of October, the the beginning of the new economic year, at all the pr all factories and offices are to adopt tion will be the uninterrupted working week mer This is a provision for operatir the plant seven days a week, though the workers will still have one day off every week, as before, and in certain industries and in all indus- tries when more progress is made al, Cultural Opportunities. at the advan- that withou ir effor 1 be workir do a tremen- pon for cu preading of the work- st days over the whole week instead of having them all on Sunday gives far greater possibili- ties for satisfying the workers’ cul- tural needs and delivers a great blow at religion t;7 abolishing all 20-per. cent. without any increase church holidays at one blow. ers’ per week. When the uninterrupted working week is completely carried out in Three Die in Tenement House Fire re sa Senaneert The greed of landlords again took its toll of workers lives, when three members of workingclass families were burned to death as fire gutted a dilapidated tenement at 81 Seventh Avenue, New York. Escape was barred by the firetrap nature of the building, - | sections. tet revolution. L| part in the coming imperialist war, tion of the campaigns of the Daily, so as to gain the utmost benefits for the Daily and Party. A good example for instance is the work previously undertaken by the Daily Worl and their ex- pose of the housing situation in| Negro Harlem, This campaign, how- | ever, was not sufficiently utilized by the Daily Worker agents there to get immediate results for the Daily Worker. Still we must say, that| such campaigns are one of the best | mediums of popularizing our Daily in the workingclass sections as a real militant fighting weapon in the | hands of the workingclass, | What has been done in Negro Harlem should also be done by other For instance, Section One, the territory of which takes in the lower downtown, which is world- famous for its slums and fire-traps, | dirt and filth. Such a campaign un- | dertaken by Section One, could be tremendously utilized, not only for the building of the Party press, but | also gaining direct organizational | results for the Party. Since we must understand that the readers of the Daily Worker are potential s of the Party—Communists. re are many other campaigns | of a local (section) character which can be undertaken, if only the Daily | Worker agents would be alive to the great possibilities in their sections, and would try to utilize them for| the campaigns of the Daily. | Another good suggestion made at} the Conference was expressed in the uing a special Manual | ker. Agents,in “form | ok of instructions, This sug- good for many: reasons: all the experiences gained agents for the entire period | since the existence of the Daily Worker are lost, and cannot be util- ized by the greater number of the} agents, and secondly, because of the | fact that the Daily Worker office was most of the time engaged in conducting of spontaneous and sporadic campaigns in order to help | the Daily out of difficult financial crisis, had no time to prepare and work out a systematized and well- planned methods for building the Daily Worker. The Daily Worker is | now taking steps to issue very soon such a pamphlet. | This conference as can be clearly | seen is to better, more systematic, intensified work in connection with building the Daily, and has taken a| series of important steps in making the Daily Worker a mass Revolu- tionary organ of the proletariat of | this country. | | New Type Dirigible Built for U. S. Will Soon Bomb Workers DETROIT, Sept. 1.—The cover- ing, shape and controls of the new dirigible ZMC-2E, just completed here for the Wall Street navy, dif- fer radically from the usual type of rigid balloon as represented by the | Graf Zeppelin and the Los Angeles, | making for a weatherproof, fire- proof war weapon more easily hand- led in bombing expeditions. The “flying tomato can,” as it is known, represents four years of ex- perimentation and an outlay of! $1,250,000. Its metal envelope is no thicker than writing paper and in form it is a bloated egg. The |ZMC-2E has made a successful test | flight under an army dirigible pilot jand is expected to play an important 1 SAW IT cow: stescie mri wy baes os AY SEL Reprinted, by permission, trom “I Saw It Myself” by Henri Barbi published and copyrighted by E. P. Dutton & Co., Inc. New Y¥‘ THE DASTARD TRAIN N the night of December 11-12, 1917, the station of Modane, which lies in France, close to the Italian frontier, was swarming with travellers, They were strangely, terribly alike, these phantom travellers that crowded the platforms and waiting-rooms. They were dressed in poor and sorry garments, and dressed the same, every one. Most of them seemed to be suffering; their shoulders stooped, their feet dragged after them. Over the faces of the most helpless looking mud and exhaustion had spread. a grinning mask. Only a few looked like ordi- nary men. These shadows, all dressed in the same dingy-colored clothes, were moving up and down in the gloom of the platform, or sitting on the ground. Only the sharp light of the station lamps cut them out into real shapes; then they appeared half-black and half-white; the faces cf some were merely hollows; others were red and glowing, like Chi- nese lanterns. But all looked happy. Many were talking aloud, many were sin, ing, and even some of those who had sunk to the ground were whistiing. It will be guessed these unfortunates who looked so happy were soldiers on leave. They were French soldiers on their way home for a spell, back from the Italian front after the battles on the Piave. The Piave! The word has lost something of its power, of its full flavor, if I may speak so, in these last ten years; for ten years can make a great void in a people’s brain. But in those days it meant a desperate, tormenting endeavor, a frantic struggle against other soldiers who were in the hands of other big men-owners. These soldiers had done what they had been told to do, The host had marched, encamped and marched again; run, fired, hurled themselves into scorching flame; they had melted away, drilled themselves with holes through and through. Justly one might say that they had all committed suicide, yet only some had died. And so when the lessening of numbers, the army had at last consolidated the position. These soldiers took much delight in recounting the inci- dents of the campaign, and were already playing like children with their recollections. . ° . Now they were far away from the. Piave and already in France; no longer could they hear the shouts of triumph in the plains below, bred of their heroic doings. They were waiting for the train in the Modane frontier railway station—where even now, ten years after, one still half fancies the platforms alive with fresh bustlings and soldiery. Now the good old giant of a train appeared and drew up beside the platform on his iron road. And these survivors of war, turned free men for a time, tucked themselves away into corners, visions of the famiilar home plucking at vitals and heart. But there was delay in starting. The engine driver was not ij his cab, but on the platform, talking loud and long. He was talking to the braided and striped officials who were sovereign princes in that station. He was daring to disagree with them. “It’s impossible to start,” he was saying. The word aroused the ire of the noble officials. “Impossible! And a Frenchman dares to talk like that! _Haven’t you heard, you pacifist son of a gun, that the word impossible isn’t French?” : The driver replied: “The load’s too heavy.” He explained to them, hoping perhaps that they were ignorant, that the line down which the train had to run was damnably uneven— curves, sharp inclines. To venture down it with too heavy a load was to risk losing control of the running engine. One cannot ask of superior officials that they should be well informed. All the same, the big bosses knew what kind of a line it was—a sort of switchback running down through the Alps. But there was one question which came before all others, It was this: orders given by railway chiefs are sacred; no common sense arguments could override the ultimate argument that the order to start had been given. In vain did the little black fellow gesticulate, shout the truth of matters, explain that the engine and carriages would perhaps go head- long off the rails. The chiefs, glittering beneath the platform lamps, kept saying: “You must start all the same.” eee 4 HE soldiers were already getting impatient; thrusting faces eut of the doors and asking, like thwarted creatures: “Why don’t we start ?* But the well-grounded fears of the driver were such that he te fused to start. His chiefs replied with formal orders. So he climbed Into Nt cab and obeyed; the train moved off and left the station. But soon, by the laws of things, the slope took complete charge. The train was indeed too heavy and not powerful enough to control speed as it should. Steam and driver alike were useless. The train was swept onward and downward. They were in the Arc Valley, where the line winds down along the edge of a rocky torrent. Driven on faster and more and more furiously by their own weight, the chain of carriages tore down the mountain slopes. Steam was re- versed,*but the long vertebrate mass glided faster even so, and faster. It rushed down the slope, fast at first, then at express speed, then like a hurtling demon. Human strength was powerless now to stop this chain of carriages which was plunging down to the depths. With a terrific rattle and roar, in streams of smoke—for the driver had jammed on the brakes and they had no hold on the iron monster—five thousand hundred- weight of iron and twenty-four hundred stone of living flesh—but in braking he had set fire to the underwork of the carriages. The black-cabined tempest broke out into sparks, then into streams of fire, and a headlong comet came darting down upon the station of St. Michel-de-Maurienne. The men shut inside these cages of reddening metal and smoking wood, walled in too, one might say, by the incredible speed—the fiye hundred Piave survivors—guessed that they were racing on to deat) Fists were unclenched to thrust open the doors slammed to by th cyclone whistling past. Many leapt out into the blackness of the nigh Not one of these escaped, and their mangled bodies festooned the line down to the place where mathematical certainty awaited this death- load, running to destruction from the mountain side. * 8 « us predestined place was on a sharp curve, where the line runs over a bridge, not.far from St. Michel station. The solidified hurricane, this meteor with a human core, dropped to earth here like a spent shell, continued its straight line over the curve, left the rails. The engine suddenly rolled over on to its side. The carriages hurled themselves into it one after another, leaped into the air, tumbled down the rocky river slope below, piled themselves up, till they reached the bridge’s parapet. The whole train had sudderly reared up like a monster on its tail. This pyramid so suddenly formed out of the wrecked carcass of the train was instantaneously wrapped in flame and_transformed into a gigantic bonfire. Cries™were not heard for long from that bonfire. From the ruins blazing in the darkness, a hundred and firty wounded—some very seriously wounded indeed—were extricated. All the rest were burned to death; three hundred and fifty soldiers who were on their way home with hearts rejoicing to take a few days of rest before returning to a life of perdition. Horrible accounts of the St. Michel-de-Maurienne “accident” ap- peared two days later in the papers. They were much relished by read- ers sitting in front of their fires in time of war, with toasting feet and comfortable hearts—as easy, in body and mind, as the railway officials who had told the driver to start against his will. They were not bothered for explanations, and since that day they have all been brilliantly promted. But we, who call things by their true names, will remember that accident, (Tomorrow: Vengeance From On High.) ; Pad