The Daily Worker Newspaper, October 23, 1930, Page 4

‘ | | Page Four Published by the Compro¢ es 18th Street, New York City Address and mail all chec! Publishing Co., Inc. Y. Telephone Al, HOW THE “SOCIALIST PARTY” WAS ACCEPTED INTO THE FAMILY OF CAPITALISM By PAUL NOVICK. America. of s of value in their he parties and platforms of the pr ion campaign. JR, CHARLES EDWARD RUSSELL was MA the “s ” candidate for governor of New York in the year of 1910. Not a picayune lawyer, but a “man of letters,” one who to- gether with John Spargo and William i Walling “made history” by joining the sociz party. However, one who has been accustomed now to see the publicity of the “socialist” party splashed all over the capitalist press would be surprised to find no mention of Mr. Russell in the capi papers of those da instance: a glance through the old fi New York Times at the New York library will reveal that in 1910 there were but two candidates, democratic and repu As far as that paper was concerned, the “social- ist” party and its candidate might not have existed. Even on the day of election there was no mention of Mr. Russell. Neither on the day after elections. The day, two days after elections, a few in of space on an inside page were devoted to a tabulation of the votes Russell received. Anathema in Those Days. either in 1910 nor in 1912 when the “so- cialist” party was in its hay day, with a mem- bership of over one hundred thousand, that party hardly ever succeeded in “breaking” into the capitalist press. Its name was anathema, Probably, with the exception of the election campaign for Meyer London in 1914 when Hearst who (for no sublime reason) was fight- ing Tammany, had ‘an editorial printed in fa- vor of London in the yellow Evening Journal, no capitalist paper in New York up to 1928 ever supported a candidate of the “socialist” party. In 1926, the “socialist” candidate for governor of New York, Jacob Panken, hardly received any publicity to speak of. Not that the “socialist” party in the days of Russell was much more revloutionary. But it was still talking about the workers. There was Debs talking of the Social Revolution. The main reason for freezing out the “socialist” party however, was that the capitalist class did not need the “socialist” party. The two- ystem was good enough for the capital- next spised by the workers, the “socialist” party was in a poor shape since the splits of 1919 and 1921. So poor, that by 1925-1926 that party was hardly existing. Not even the shell of the once formidable organization was left. With the exception of Milwaukee and New York, where, in the former, the Berger crowd was still capitalizing on its pro-German at- titude during the war and, in the latter, where the Jewish Daily Forward crowd was still liv- ing on the fat incomes derived from that yel- lowest of all sheets, the “socialist” party was non-existant. By 1926 something important happened. By that time the social democracy of Germany and Austria, as well as MacDonald in Great Brjt- ain, have conclusively convinced the American bourgeoisie that the parties of the second in- ternational can be of immense use for capi- talism. And by that time the American bour- geoisie realized that it must not allow the “socialist” party to disappear. Left Wing Unions. By 1926 a number of unions in the United States came under the influence of the left wing, the then powerful Ladies Garment Work- ers union amongst them. Probably hundreds of thousands of workers came directly under the leadership of the left wing. Things looked very bad for great sections of the exploiting class. Here the fur workers under a Commu- nist leadership, through a militant strike, have gained the 40-hour week and a high standard of wages and union control. The manufactur- ers were smarting under this control. And that was only the beginning. The cloak and dress- makers, the cap and millinery workers, the tailors, were following in the wake of the furriers. Something dawned upon the manufacturers. There was a ray of hope. During the fur strike of 1926 the “socialists” were the ones to put up a fight in order to break the strike. In the cloak strike that followed after, again the “socialists” were the ones to take up the cudjels. It dawned upon the manufacturers that such a party must not be allowed to die! At Their Service. The “socialists” were given every consider- ation. The courts and the police were at their service in the fight on the left wing. So was the capitalist press. Hundreds of thousands of dollars were showered upon them (over half a million dollars of the cloakmakers’ Unem- ployment Insurance Fund kept in trust by one of the heads of the Chatham and Phoenix Bank, enormous amounts contributed by the fur manufacturers, the check-off system, ete.). the Daily Worker, 50 East 13th Street, New York, N. ¥. orker nist Porty U.S.A. By mail everywhere: One year, $| of Manhattan and Bronx, New SUBSCRIPTION RATES: ork City. six months, $3; two months, $1; excepting Boroughs Foreign: One year, $8; six months, $4.50 =—<—<—— No, the “socialist” party must not die! The manufacturers and their press were deter- mined. The friendship made during the fights on the left wing—Matthew Woll acted as the go- between, when necessary—grew into love. The fruits appeared in full bloom during the 1928 election campaign. Norman Thomas, who never had much of a chance before and who was considered by the “socialists” an unlucky preacher that had entered the party on a black Friday in order to bring the daily New Leader into an early grave and the “socialist” vote to its lowest ebb, suddenly was raised on stilts. Norman Thomas was “discovered” by the capi- talist press. The “socialists” realized that a y paper of their own, something for which truggled from the beginning of this cen- tury up to 1924, was just one of “them” young and foolish ideas. Why, the capitalist papers Love Grows Stronger. The further the parties of the second inter- national, of Zoerbiebe] and MacDonald, had sunk, the more they suppressed the revolution- ary workers and colonial peoples with blood and iron, the stronger grew the love of Amer- ican capitalism for the “socialist” party. The once hated name, “socialist,” the name that was about to be discarded by that party at one of its conventions only several years ago, began producing quite different sounds, sounds of delight and hope. Ask any manufacturer, particularly a small manufacturer, for his opinion on the “social- ist” party and he will tell you that the party is “O.K.” with him. If he will not be voting for that party, he will be happy to see his workers vote for it, if they will. A consider- able vote of the “socialist” party this year will come from manufacturers and all kinds of exploiters. This “socialist” party is openly the third party of capitalism, the “more lib- eral” party. Comparisons. Compare the platform of Roosevelts Bull Moose Party of 1912 with the present platform of the “socialist” party, and you will find no difference. It any, it will prove that the party of the arch-faker Roosevelt was more militant and spoke more of the “poor people” than the “socialist” party does. Officially, the “socialist” party has discard- ed the worker. Mr. Waldman, “socialist” can- didate for governor of New York, in his “mes- sage” printed in the booklet “Campaign Issues of 1930,” published by the “socialist” party does not even pretent to talk to the workers, as_a class, to represent the workers. It talks of the “people,” as Roosevelt did, as the repub- licans and democrats do. Of course, it tries to fool the workers into voting for the “social- ists.” With the publicity obtained in the capi- talist press it reaches the workers who still read that press and who until now were vot. ; served asa mass call when '60,000 workers ing for the democrats or republicans. But so do the old parties try to get the worker’s vote in the name of the “people.” Respectable Now. The “socialist” party has become respectable. The weekly New Leader, official “socialist” paper, does not use the word “comrade,” as the old Call did. It is “Mr. Thomas” and “Mr. Broun.” That imbecile, Abraham Cahan, ed- itor of the “socialist” organ, the Jewish Daily Forward (labelled above) writes on the front page of that paper October 18: “The most intelligent and best Americans come to our party.” “Once the rule was: Socialists are for- eigners, real Americans have nothing to do with the socialist party. “Times change, and rules charge. “The lively campaign now conducted by the socialist party is distinguished by the lively interest. real Americans take in that campaign. These are mostly representatives of the American intelligentsia—educated, progressive people, the best class of people, in the best sense of that word—the cream of America. “The best the American nation possesses is participating in our agitation, is helping with word and deed, spiritually and fin- ancially. In the entire front page “box” not once the word “workers” is mentioned. For Abraham Cahan of Pedberedze, went in for “real Amer- icans,” for “the best class of people!” The name of the “socialist” party is sooth- ing to the wounds of capitalism. With the two old parties utterly discredited, with the pillars of capitalist society shaken by a crisis, the “socialist” party provides consolation. Every manufacturer will tell you that there is still some hope, as long as there is a “socialist” party. For, look what blessing the social-dem- ocracy was to German capitalism! Is there any wonder that the organs of Wall Street, the Times, Herald-Tribune and the other metropolitan papers, as well as the mag- azine “American Business World,” organ of the open shop manufacturers sing their praise for Broun and Thomas, Vladeck and Panken? The “socialist” party is a boss party. The working class has but one Party, the Commu- nist Party. Smash all capitalist parties! Vote Communist November 4th! RED KRONSTADT By ISABEL CRAVEN. » hatenbapeies the pages of revolutionary his- tory, brightly shines the record of Kron- stadt, the little island in the base of Finland, from whence, in the October days of 1917, sailed the revolutionary sailors, to fire the first shots in the struggle for the overthrow of capitalism and for the dictatorship of the proletariat. We found the island a hive of industry— shipyards and electric power stations—all used to maintain the strength of the Red Fleet, ever watchfully guarding the Workers’ Father- land. Our first visit was to a battleship—an old type, dating from 1903, but whose every bolt and screw spoke eloquently of the great days of the proletarian struggle. This was the famous “Aurora,” rightly named “Goddess of the Dawn,” which on October 25th, 1917, steamed up the Neva to fire the first shot at the Winter Palace and which gave the signal “The Last Fight Let Us Face.” How proudly the sailors received us, a for- eign delegation, and questions, questions, questions became the order of the day. different from the rigid discipline on the Bri- tish battleships. On the “Aurora” we found a curious mixture of good, self-imposed disci- pline on duty, and absolute freedom in leisure time; common club rooms of men and offi- cers—libraries, lounges, music, radio—what a How, NEWS ITEM:—Hoover and hi at the sore time cuiting the siarvation waye in half and putting the full burden o THE PRESIDENT ACTS —— \ WANT TO stow —BY BURCK You WHATANICE FIGHT FOR THE UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE BILL! VOTE THE HAM MER AND SICKLE! STEVE KATOVIS PAM- PHLET IS RANK AND FILER’S LIFE TEVE KATOVIS: Life and Death of a Work- er,” just published by International Pamph- lets, 799 Broadway, New York, as Number 9 in their series, will be of unusual interest in connection with the present election campaign. With the Communist Party—the party of Steve Katovis—engaged in a mass struggle against labor injunctions, the life of this worker, who died on the picket line while fighting the in- junction issued against the New York Food Workers becomes doubly stirring and instruc- tive. The name of Steve Katovis already has ascerabled last January to honor him and pro- ; test his shooting by a Tammany policeman. teve Katovis: Life and Death of a Worker” is unique in working class biography. Against the background of the class struggle it tells the story, not of a leader, but of a simple rank and filer unknown before his death. The pamphlet is the joint work of A. B. Magil and Joseph North. The publication of the pamphlet is sponsored by the John Reed Club, an organization of revolutionary writers and-artists, of which both authors are mem- bers. It sells for 10 cents the copy, with dis- counts on large orders. Bundle orders for use in election campaign meetings should be rushed to Workers’ Library, Publishers, 50 E. 13th St., New York. glorious atmosphere of comradeship. In one room a fireman came up from the stokehold to do a Russian dance, while an officer played the music for him. The friendly consultation before the dance, arms around each others shoulders, spoke volumes of the real unity in the Red Fleet. Dinner time fvund us scattered in small groups in the various mess-rooms—my group happened to be with the firemen—and how they questioned us about the situation in our own countries. “What will the workers do when the imperialists make war on us?” “We are ready!” “Will you be ready to help us?” This was the burden of their inquiries. How we enjoyed that meal—one of the best we had had for years —the quality of the food, common to all, was excellent—but the quality of the | discussion was even better. With what great pride they showed us the famous gun that fired the historic shot. Sailors from other ships invaded the “Aurora” and greetings, cheers, and counter cheers, kept the Baltic Fleet in a fervor of enthusiasm for many hours. Then we visited a special Training School— a fine modern building splendidly equipped. Then on to the barracks, beautiful, spick and span buildings, comfortable quarters, and an air of cheery homeliness, a fine new club, just being completed with great pride. A meal in the common dining rooms—more greetings, more cheers, great enthusiasm ended a glor- ious day. But with all the keenness and enthusiasm underneath we sensed the grim determination of the Russian proletariat to safeguard the gains of their revolution. Never for a mo- ment do they forget the border of fascist Fin- land is only 18 kilometres away—and that the capitalist states are driving ahead with their war plans. “We are building socialism not only for ourselves but for the working class of the whole world. Our victory is yours. We re- gard ourselves as not only the safeguard of the Russian Revolution but also as the van- guard of the International Class Struggle.” These were the words of a sailor of the Red Baltic Fleet, which find an echo in our hearts. Red Kronstadt is ready! We must redouble our efforts against the imperialist war mon- gers—for the welfare of the Soviet Union, and for the final struggle for proletarian power over the whole world. “hunger committee’ arp advocating putting the employed workers on half-time in order to “provide work for the unemployed, ihe erlsis on the backs of the working class. The Great Sham Battles By MAX SALZMAN. T= papers are full of attacks of the re- publican party against the democratic can- didate for governor and attacks of the demo- crats and a section of the Vare machine in Philadelphia and of the utilities group in the state against the republican candidate Pinchot. What is the meaning of all this noise? For the capitalist parties it serves the purpose of creating a great smoke screen under the cover of which they attempt to deceive the workers into believing that one or the other candidate represents the workers’ interests. Statement after statement appears in the press. What is behind this fight? In the primary elections Pinchot secretly supported by the Mellon group and the large manufacturing in- terests defeated Brown, the candidate of the utilities group, and Vare marching for tue republican nomination for governor. The fight represents the struggle by the utilities group, the railroad interests and the manufacturing interes directly connected with railroads and utilities against the Mellon group and the Jarge manufacturing trusts for control of the machinery of the state govern- ment.. They want to use this control to give the group they represent better advantage through special privileges and through plun- dering the population of Pennsylvania. A “Dry.” Pinchot is running in the election as a “dry” and is in favor of the antiquated blue laws. He takes this position to win the support of the backward farmers and the churches. Ex- perienced in the art of demagogy, qualified as a first class promise maker, gifted as a de- ceiver of the masses, Pinchot comes forward with a program of catch phrases ef disgust- ingly false promises and with the use of tricky language tries to win support for his group. He poses as a “trust buster,” as an enersy of the utilities group in order to win the support of the petty-bourgeoisie and small capitalist groups in the state. Open support has not been given by the Mellon group to Pinchot because it is feared that this open support (which is, however, given secretly) wifl drive a large section of the petty-bourgeois elements from the Mellon camp. Pinchot himself a large stock holder in the Mellon institutions, as well as other large firms connected with the Mellon poli- tical machine will also personally profit by the success of his campaign. A Court Battle. The winning of the republican nomination by Pinchot threw consternation into the camp of the Vare machine and the utilities group. For a long time they conducted a court battle in attempt to win the nomination from Mr. Pinchot. Failing in this they were driven be- tween two courses of action. One, to maintain the unity of the republican party through this to continue support for the Hoover adminis- tration, or two, to split the republican party in the state and make possible the election of a democratic governor by throwing their sup- port to him. They chose the latter course. In the city of Philadelphia where the repub- ° lican machine is controlled by the utilities group 47 of the 48 republican ward chairmen came out against- Pinchot and for the demo- cratic candidate, Mr. Hemphill, who was run- ning also on the liberal ticket. Mr. Hemphill’s nomination on the liberal ticket was organized by the anti-Pinchot republican elements in preparation for the split which they knew would come. A Deep Split. The break in Philadelphia was immediately followed by the declaration of Mr. Atterbury, president of the Pennsylvania Railroad, who resigned as republican national committee man from Pennsylvania, to support the democratic candidate. In this break Mr. Atterbury was followed by the entire utilities group which controls all railroad systems, street car sys- tems, bus systems, gas, electric and water com- panies, etc., throughout the state. In Penn- sylvania politics up till now nomination in a republican primary insured the election of the one nominated. But this deep split in the republican machine makes the election of the democratic candidate possible. The Utilities Speak. Following the action Atterbury a large group of important utilities firms and other institutions connected with utilities came out against Pinchot and for Hemphill. In western Pennsylvania the anti-Pinchot committee is headed by the powerful Westinghouse group which produces brakes and signals for the railroad companies and electrical and gas ap- paratus for the power companies in the state. It is interesting to know that all of the manu- facturing companies, with practically no excep- tion, which broke away from supporting Pin- chot are those which produce directly for the railroad and utilities groups in the state. Mr. Hemphill, preceding this break, had been marking time, limiting his campaign speeches to agitation against prohibition, but as the day of the break came nearer r. Hemphill began to talk of the “unsound economic doctrines” of Pinchot, by which he meant the agitation of Pinchot against the utilities comnany in his effort to win the support of the petty- bourgeois masses. So the great battle is on, the reallignment of forces amongst the capitalist groups: in this election have already taken place. False issue after false issue is raised. The Hemphill group vies with the Pinchot elements in their dema- gogy, in their use of deceptive phrases, of false suggestions, of fake promises to the workers, The most important feature of this struggle is that the fight against Mr. Pinchot assumes the character of a struggle against the Hoover administration, despite the pre- tended neutrality of the republican national committee. Both Pinchot and Hemphill dance around the question of unemployment. Neither of them offer a solution. While raising eriti- cism of the coal and iron police system, both play with +! he supporting either Mr. Hemphill or Mr. Pin- mendous proportions, must be exposed to the entire working class of the state. Regroupings It is interesting to notice tHat the same expression of regrouping of forces within the capitalist parties is taking place in other states where in Cleveland, Ohio, for example, the re- publican paper “The News” has gone over to the side of the democratic candidate for goy- ernor following the example of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Recognizing that a large section of the work- ers will not be deceived hy thie chem bottn, the bosses push forward the socialist party to pose as a anti-capitalist group in order to keep the workers from following tas hosp of the Communist Party. Tremendous publicity is given to the socialist meetings. Every effort is made by the capitalist press to have the socialist party as an anti-capitalist group to turn the discontent of the workers toward the socialist party where they know the socialists will turn it in support of the capitalist system. Our Tasks Upon the shoulders of our party in the elec- tion falls the task of exposing not only the stom hettle between the capitalist groups from which the workers can gain nothing, but ad- ditional exploitation, but also the task of ex- posing the role of the socialist party chosen for it in this election by the capitalist class, This can be done by increasing tenfold the activities of our Party in the election, by mak- ing the agitation of the Party more concrete, by winning the workers to support our Party, to support the struggles of the Party, by vot- ing Communist in the election. By JORGE How to Tame Crocodiles Half the pleasure of running this column would be missing unless we attracted a cer- tain percentage of protests. The gentleman who thought we should be considerate of dogs and cats, is matched by a few who urge us to be kind to D.O.s. By and large, for every anxious bureaucrat (only such, or those influenced by such, have protested) there are a dozen letters which may be summed up in the phrase: “More strength to you!” from rank and filers. A number have requested—and for this we add a few lines—that other irresponsible prac- tices be exposed. Some have said that we should castigate “the whole party” on the ground that “everybody's to blame,” etc. But to blame everybody is really to blame no- body; no one is held responsible and the job of correction looks so big that tackling it ap- pears hopeless. We don’t fall for that line at all. We begin where we begin and intend to go through with it if it breaks a leg. Without such stubborn persistence on concrete issues nothing is done. For years our Party has been talking about the evil of bureaucracy, and equally on the need for financial responsibility. And as long as these subjects remained ab- stract and dead in our resolutions and theses —all the bureaucrats supported the “fight” on bureaucyacy and every irresponsible function- ary. hurrahed for responsibility. But the minute the Central Committee de- cided to get down to cases, a pained but smoth- ered howl arose. It’s all right to expose bue reaucracy, but not definitely identifiable bu- reaucrats. Irresponsibility must be stopped, “but not mine.” Comrades who put on an air of concern “for the Party” give us a list of “political reasons” why crocodiles should not be imported from the Soviet Union: “They're foreign crocodiles, and America is an exception.” We've heard such arguments before—from Lovestone, Then one of the funniest things is that we can poke fun at the Secretary of the Secre- tariat, without attracting the thunders of Jove, but his doorkeeper gets a fever and wants us suppressed. Doubtless a Communist candidate for U. S. Congress feels dismayed when he is taken to” task in the middle of the campaign for being thoughtless about paying accounts or even pay- ing attention to them. But it is precisely op- portunism that hesitates between the injured dignity of one, or a few, and the permanent benefit of the working class and its party. If it is really the Party that concerns comrades, we give them a sure-fire recipe for recovering their sacred prestige. A speech should con- tain the following elements: “The Communist Party holds its members responsible before the working class. It is the workers’ party and not the property of its officials, no matter who they are. When a Party member in the Soviet Union is caught stealing, he is promptly shot. Here, even an irresponsible attitude toward proper account~ ing is publicly censured before the workers, so that the workers can be sure that the Com- munist Party doesn’t stand for irresponsibility. For example, here in the Daily Worker I am openly reprimanded for neglect toward Daily Worker accounts, And the Party was correct: in bawling me out this way. This is the iron discipline which prevails for the good of the whole class which the Party represents. Com- pare this with the individualistic boodle- seeking cliques that make up the republican, democrat or fake “socialist” parties. And be sure that if elected I will be held responsible by the Communist Party before the working class, openly criticized in the Daily Worker if my actions or words are not 100 per cent for the workers. This is the guarantee to you workers that what we say before election will be carried out. Vote Communist!” Such an antidote is sure cure for any croco- dile bites. * ae) As Through a Glass, Darkly Some rather anxious “dries” put out a sheaf of campaign literature, and wholly upset by the turn of both republicans and democrats to the Heywood Broun policy, arrived in one leaflet, at the following conclusion: “Tf the next year and a half sees no im- provement, the American people will either seize the democratic party from the alien gangsters now controlling it, or unite in a third party and elect a strong dry like Robinson of Arkansas. Failing in this last effort, the workers may turn to Communism as the last hope of relief from economic serfdom.” These people, you'll note, have more pa- tience than sense. First they want us to wait a year and a half. If there’s no improve- ment, then try to “seize the democratic par- ty,” which would be a painfully long job and not worth the trouble when finished. The third alternative being to “form a third party” for the special purpose of electing Robinson of Arkansas as president, a method and a purpose both of which we are flatly opposed to, as any “third” party is only an- other capitalist party and Robinson has bee trayed both Arkansas and the revolution by giving up red flannel underwear and endorsing the London “disarmament” treaty. Why not go Communist at once, without all these terrible trials? pee he Our Mangy President The “Beauty Shop News” of Sept. 30th, in- forms us that the president of the New York Hairdressers’ Association, being photographed with Hoover for reasons of state, doubtless, noticed that: “Mr. Hoover's coat was covered with dandruff and fallen hair.” The “Beauty Shop News” intimates that soon we must expect a Presidential Commis- sion to “Restore Hair and Prosperity,” or “Remove Dandruff and Hunger”—at least fo® “honest” people, Ti For the Communist Ticket! For Bread and Work! Against Mass Layoffs and Wage Cuts! Against Impe- —S——_—_—_ a I Conta) ae ase Fe pts TIKEmy! ATE IN THE SHOPS!