The daily worker. [volume], December 16, 1924, Page Page Six, Image 6

About The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958

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Page Six
THi DAILY WORKER.
Published by the DAILY WORKER PUBLISHING CO.
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(Phone: Monroe 4712)
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THE DAILY WORKER
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MORITZ J. LOEB —. Business Manager
Entered as second-class mail Sept. 21, 1923. at the Post-
Office at Chicago, 111., under the act of March 3. 1879.
Advertising rates on application
Gompers 9 Successor
The capitalist and reformist press is greatly
exercised over the choice of a successor to Gom
pers, but we Communists are not so interested in
the individual who will step into the dead man’s
shoes, as we are in the fact that, whoever he may
be, he will continue the policy of class collabora
tion and servility to imperialism that makes of the
A. F. of L. machine the most reactionary combina
tion with a labor label in the whole world.
There is not a single official among those from
whom the next president of the American Federa
tion of Labor will come but that is as wholly reac
tionary as Gompers was. There is not a single
member of the official family that does not worship
at the shrine of American capitalism, not a single
one that is not against the doctrine of class strug
gle, not a single one that is not as devoted an up
holder of the existing order as Gary or Rockefeller.
From this precious crew the workers of America
can hope for nothing but betrayal—betrayal studied
and constant. The officialdom of the American
Federation of Labor has embarked upon a con
scious policy of imperialist activity that expands
in proportion to the aggressions of the American
ruling class.
The American labor movement was left by Gom
pers at the bottom of the pit. It can sing no lower
but it will continue to play the role of watchdog
for American imperialism at home and in the sub
jugated nations. There is no successor to Gom
pers that will make the slightest effort to change
this role.
The only result that may come from a change in
individual leadership is that ihternal rivalries and
dissensions, a struggle for power among the bu
reaucrats, may disrupt the official machinery and
make it less efficient. There may set in a process
of decay that the aged but lirm hand of Gompers
was able to check.
The tendency in the American Federation of
Labor is towards closer unity of the most reac
tionary sections internally and internationally
towards unity with other reactionary groups in
the Amsterdam International. It would not be sur
prising therefore if the railway brotherhoods came
into the A. F. of L. to consolidate behind the suc
cessor to Gompers a solid bloc of the labor aris
tocracy that would tend to make the A. F. of L.
a more efficient instrument of imperialism.
These then are the two possibilities—a struggle
for leadership that may weaken the bureaucracy
or a compromise that will line up the most back
ward elements in the organized labor movement.
The latter is the more probable because Amer
ican imperialism needs the A. F. of L. to block the
rise of a fighting labor movement.
The task of the left wing organized around the
Workers (Communist) Party will not be changed
by a change of leadership of the trade unions. Its
lask of breaking the grip of reaction on the or
ganized workers may be made easier by a weak
successor to Gompers, but back of him, whoever
he may be, there will stand the full power of
American capitalism.
0 ,
The Capitalist Assassins
The attempt to assassinate Leonid Krassin, So
viet ambassador to France, was dismissed by the
capitalist press with very scanty notice. But the
news that filtered into the papers from Paris
sought to justify the act of the would-be murderer
by mixing the news of the attempted assassination
with a hash of atrocity yarns supposed to have been
seen by the female killer. A similar effort was made
to justify the dope fiend who murdered Comrade
Voritsky in Switzerland.
While the capitalist press indulged in an orgy
of big headlines over the imaginary “red plots”
that convulsed the panicky French bourgeoisie,
and pointed out the coincidence of these “plots”
with the arrival of the Soviet envoy, dismissed the
assassination plot, a very real thing, as a matter
of no importance. It did not happen to suit their
main purpose, which is defaming Soviet Russia.
The capitalists will never let up in their fight
ugainst Hoviet Russia. The workers’ republic
stands as a perpetual challenge to the dark forces
of capitalism. They try mass force and they try
starvation and the boycott. They are not beyond
using the assassin’s dagger and the bullet.
But all their attempts will fail. Behind the So
viet government there is the immense power of the
millions of workers and peasants while within
each capitalist nation there are in reality two na
tions, the capitalists on one side and the workers
on the other. It is this fact that stands like a
dreaded ghost over the couch of the bourgeoisie.
It is this fact that is responsible for their pnnic,
which manifests itself in ‘Ted raids” and assassin
ation plots against the leaders of the workers’ revo
lution oil over the world.
Proud of Their Treachery
Fritz Ebert, socialist president of capitalist Ger
many, is growing offensive to the monarchist and
extreme nationalist elements of that country, now
that they are somewhat less nervous over the inner
political situation than they were at any time since
the defeat of the imperial armies on the western
front in 1918 sent the kaiser on an extended pil
grimage to Holland.
In justice to Ebert, it must be said that he has
done his level best to serve his masters and it must
also be admitted that he pulled out of a nasty
hole when he and his party prevented the German
workers from following in the footsteps of their
Russian comrades and erecting a Soviet Republic on
the ruins of capitalism in 1918. But the big capital
ists and landowners of Germany, like their proto
types in England, do not consider gratitude a
servicable virtue. Ebert having, in their opinion
at least, outlived his usefulness as a decoy duck
with which to deceive the masses, they decided to
confer the order of the boot on him.
The monarchists charge the socialists with hav
ing aided the munition strikes in 1918 and thus
helping to defeat the German armies. To this
charge Ebert and Scheidemann enter vigorous
denial, offering proof that the executive committee
of the social-democratic party refused to support
the munitions workers’ strike and urged them
to obey the conscription laws. In order to com
pletely knock out the monarchist charges, Ebert
read a letter from Von Hindenburg, praising the
socialists for their services to the kaiser during
the war.
After reading the letter, Ebert leaned back with
a satisfied smile on his greasy countenance. In the
face of such a recommendation from the leader of
the German armies during a period of the war,
what more could be said in the way of testimony
to the loyalty of the yellow socialists to the Ger
man plunderbund and their treachery to the Ger
man working class?
And it is because Ebert is showing his true face
more and more to the workers as their enemy that
his usefulneses to the big capitalists is decreased.
The evidence that may acquit him of the charge
of treason to the German government during the
war, will automatically convict him of treason to
the German working class.
Democracy at Its Best
Those who glorify American pure democracy
usually do so with considerable volume of speech.
Nearly every effort made by these defenders of the
most notorious fraud in existence aims to hide the
real character of our emloying class dictatorship
behind a smoke screen of meaningless abstrac
tions.
The loyal lackeys of our capitalist system are
especially vociferous in their praise of the exten
sion of. American democracy as a civilizing force
among the so-called backward colonial peoples.
We have in mind a genuine manifestation of the
kind of democracy our ruling class transports to
the economically weaker lands. We have in mind
the last eleetion in Porto Rico. American sugar
interests and Yankee tobacco interests have for
many years been raising havoc with the will of the
mass of Porto Ricans. Even the slightest pre
tense at liberalism in politics was bitterly fought
by our capitalist group. The matter has now as
sumed a character which is forcing the Porto
Ricans, even the meekest of them, to protest vehe
mently.
In Washington, the headquarters of our bosses’
democracy, the Porto Ricans have established a
protest committee. These Porto Ricans are still
illusioned as to the place where they can get help
for their national freedom. Their statement char
acterizes the last election in Porto Rico as reeking
with “fraud, violence, corruption and wholesale
robbery.” These elections held on November 4 are
branded as “the greatest outrage upon American
citizenship ever committed.”
Washington is the last place on earth where
these wrongs will be righted. Washington is the
city where all the criminals who perpetrated the
ghastly crimes against the Porto Rican masses
draw their inpsiration. If the Porto Ricans ever
hope to win national freedom they will have to
light to the bitter end against those who dominate
Washington. They will have to ally themselves
with the working and poor farming masses of this
country who are fighting the very same enemy.
The sham of American democracy is a menace to
the workers at home as well as the masses abroad.
Insuring “The Daily”
Comrade Alfred Wagenknecht, who is on tour
for The DAILY WORKER campaign to raise funds
so that it can be developed into a bigger and better
paper in 19115, is meeting with success. At a meet
ing of Workers Party locals in Youngstown, Ohio,
representing a membership of 308, one thousand
dollars was pledged and this money is to be paid
to the DAILY WORKER within thirty days.
This enthusiasm for our daily is typical. From
everey section of the country our members are
rallying in a most satisfactory manner to the call
of the Central Executive Committee to make the
DAILY WORKER campaign the first order of
business at all Workers Party meetings. The in
crease in circulation made by the first Communist
daily in the English language since it was founded
and particularly during the election campaign, is
a healthy sign and proves that with more effort
our paper can become a tremendous weapon for
bringing the message of Communism to the masses.
Ir is the I wist weapon in our ursenal for making
contact with the masses. Get behind it.
Get u memhei for the Workers Party and a new
bubbcriptiou lor the DAILY WORKER.
THE DAILY WORKER
Organize the Party - - 8 » l -
In these days of intense party dis
cussion on the theses of the C. E.
C. and the minority we must not over
look the important task of building
our organization. On the contrary, we
should take advantage of the situatior
by bringing to the forefront the neces
sity of bending every effort towards
building the Workers Party in a mass
Communist party. The task of get
ting new members should be one that
is never lost sight of.
In the program of action, which was
adopted unanimously by the C. E. C
several months ago, and printed in
pamphlet form, one of the most im
portant items was exactly thi:
strengthening of our party member
ship. The program of action proposed
that in every unit of the party then
CAL SCHEMES ID
FORESTALL VOTE
ON POSTAL RAISE
Higher Rates for 2nd
Class Mail Subterfuge
(Special to The Daily Worker)
WASHINGTON, D. C., Dec.
15.—President Coolidge is work
ing hard to prevent a vote re
curring in the senate on the bill
providing pay increases for pos
tal employes, which he vetoed.
It is known that the vetoed
bill is likely to pass over Cool
idge’s veto, and in order to fore
stall a vote, Coolidge held a con
ference with two favorable
senators.
New Takes Fight Out of Senate.
Postmaster General New is trying
to rescue Coolidge from this political
pitfall by advocating advances in
postal rates on second class mail. The
newspapers of the country are pro
testing against this increase, how
ever, and it is hoped by Coolidge
backers to keep the discussion going
until it is too late to take a vote.
Coolidge told the senators that he
fears another attempt will be made to
arrange a date for voting on the bill
increasing the postal employes' sal
aries. Coolidge is not going to raise
their pay if he can help it.
Senators Reed of Missouri and Dill
of Washington blocked an attempt to
postpone vote on the bill until Jan
uary 8, charging it was “subterfuge
attempting to prevent the senate from
overriding the president’s veto.”
150,000 Workers in
New York Lose Jobs
Since October, 1923
NEW YORK CITY, Dec. 15.—About
150,000 workers who were on the pay
rolls of factories in New York state
in October 1923 are on the streets
looking for work today, according to
the November employment report of
Industrial commisisoner, Shlentag.
His report shows that changes in em
ployment since September have been
merely seasonal with no effective
break in the depression which hit
wage earners in the spring.
Shientag’s statement contains a
chart which shows that this employ
ment slump which reached the low
point in July and August was far
more serious than has generally been
admitted by the capitalist press. The
line falls rapidly from a level nearly
3 per cent above the average of 1923
to a level more than 15 per cent below
that average. This represents a 12-
month decline of about 17% per cent
Factory employment in New York
state, says Shientag, showed practic
ally no change in volume from Octo
ber to November. The usual seasonal
decreases in some lines tended to ef
fect lm*>rovements in textiles, wood
manufacture and some metals.
Changes of Importance noted in the
report are Increase of 1,500 employed
by railroad equipment manufacturers
reporting to the commissioner; gains
of several hundred workers in both
textile and furniture industries; addi
tion of 1,900 in the Inst two months to
the forces employed by steel mills in
the vicinity of Buffalo; decrease of
1,600 in sugar factories; and layoff!
in the clothing industry including
more than 1,000 workers in the worn
en’s garment trades.
British Miners Defend 7-Hour Day.
LONDON.—Not a chance in the
world of getting the Miners’ Federa
tlon of Great Britain to give up the
8-hour day, declares Gen. Secy. A. J.
Cook. Before the employers can re
store the 8-hour day there will be the
fiercest strike in the history of Brit
ish mining, Cook promises. When thi
contract expires in June 1926 the min
ers will demand continuance of the
7-hour day with increased wages.
Next Sunday Night and Every Sun
day Night, the Opsn Forum.
should be membership committees
created. This was intended to be
taken seriously by our party and it
should be put into effect everywhere
Up to date, however, most of the
branches have not given this vital
matter the attention that it deserves
Another principle of the program of
action was that the mere creation of
committees to carry out certain func
tions, such as membership committees
to get members, was not sufficient.
These committees had to be made to
function. Hence, at every branch
meeting a call should be made upon
the membership committee to make t
report of its activities. In case the
committee does not function liver
elements should be injected into it.
Under no circumstances should it be
alowed to degenerate into a paper or
ganization. The life of such com
mittees depends upon demands being
made upon them for results.
GOVERNMENT IS URGED TO DEPORT
LASSEN, HUNGARIAN COMMUNIST,
TO DIE AT HANDS OF HORTHY
(Special to The Daily Worker)
NEW YORK, Dec.-15.—The United States government, which recently
made a loan to the Horthy fascist government, is now ready to assist that
government once more.
The defeat of the Hungarian proletarian revolution in 1919 was followed
by a government which began a systematic campaign to root out, not only
the Communists, who had led the revolution, but every working class organ
ization. Horthy’s regime has been one of blood.
The heel of the dictator —whose government is under the control of the
league of nations —has been felt by
every member of the working class
who showed any militancy.
The Communists did not cease their
activity in behalf of the oppressed
workers. Many of them were shot,
many sent to prison for long terms.
Many of them were forced to flee
from the w r hite guards, who hounded
them all over Europe. The trade
unionists were persecuted: all the ac
tive workers were terrorized. The
social-democrats worked openly with
the government, denouncing the Com
munists and revolutionary workers.
Among the active workers in this
period of the history of the Hungarian
working class movement was John
Lassen. Lassen was not a man of
words alone —he was a man of deeds.
As a consequence, he was forced to
flee from Hungary and came to the
United States. The Horthy fascist
government would like to put its
hands on Lassen, for since his com
ing here he has been active in edi
torial work, being editor of the UJ
Elore, the Communist Hungarian pa
per. This paper has helped to keep
the revolutionary movement alive in
Hungary, at a time when all Commun
ist and revolutionary papers were for
bidden. Hence the Horthy govern
ment hates and fears Lassen. The Uj
Elore has also been most effective in
revolutionizing the Hungarian work
ers in the United States and bring
ing them into close touch with the
Communist movement. 'For this rea
son the Uj Elore and its editor, John
Lassen, are hated by the capitalist
controlled American government.
No wonder, therefore, that the Amer
ican government sought an opportun
ity to stop Lassen’s effective work
both in the United States and in Hun
gary. Horthy would like to lay his
hands on Lassen—it seems there is
no friend more willing to help him in
this case than the United States gov
ernment.
Just before the elections, Lassen
wrote a poem on the significance of
the ballot. Lassen is a poet known on
both continents. For the content of
this poem Lassen was arrested and
now stands before the capitalist court
charged with stirring the masses to
violence. This looks like a trick of
By ALFRED V. FRANKENSTEIN.
ENRICO TRAMONTI, first harpist of
the Chicago Symphony orchestra,
made his annual appearance with the
orchestra on the regular program of
Dec. 12 and 13. He played a chorale
and variations by Charles Marie
Widor. No week ever goes by with
out some rusty organist in a church of
God playing one of this man Wldor’p
mediocre symphonies for organ. He
is still grinding them out, but he oc
casionally changes the instruments
tion a bit, as in this harp work. Mr.
Tramonti surely could have picked
something better to play.
Ferruccio Busoni died last July. As
a memorial to him Mr. Stock opened
this program with the Italian music
ian’s "Berceuse Elcgiaque,” a lullaby
sung by a man at the coffin of his
mother. Busoni’s treatment of the
theme is quite simple and severe but
conveys in a deeply affecting way the
sense of the stillness and the majesty
of death. The only work that comes
near to it in power of expression is
Rachmaninov’s “Island of the Dead.’
Busoni was one of the great men of
the day, and his passing is greatly to
be regretted. As a pianist, arranger
and editor, teacher and composer his
ability was preeminent.
A new suite in four movement!
called "From Finland,’ by Selim Palm
gren was given its first Chicago per
formance on Lhlß occasion. The music
The Communist International has
emphasized time and again that the
great task before the Workers Party
is to build itself into a mass Com
munist party. The Workers Party
fully aware of this necessity, has like
wise repeatedly urged the members to
give this matter of getting new mem
bers more consideration. One of the
leading points to be borne in mind in
the membership campaign is to utilize
all our party movements around the
varous slogans for the securing of new
members for the Workers Party. It
is not enouge simply to advocate class
political action, amalgamation, organ
ization and relief for the unemployed
and the other various campaigns of
the Workers Party. The very essence
of these is that they shall be utilized
for the building of the Workers Party
If we fail to use them for this purpose,
we fail in our Communist duty.
We must build our membership. An
the government, playing band in hand
with the Horthy fascist government.
The Hungarian workers in the
United States know what Lassen
means to the revolutionary movement
of this country. This is a matter,
however, that affects not only the
Hungarian workers, but the WHOLE
American working class. LASSEN
MUST BE DEFENDED BEFORE THE
CAPITALIST COURT. The American
workers must demonstrate that
neither the capitalist class of the
United States nor the fascist dictator
ship of Hungary can make a victim
of John Lassen. This case must be
fought thru the courts —but that will
mean a large sum of money if Lassen
is to be saved for further work in the
labor movement. If the government
succeeds in convicting Lassen, it will
be easier for them in the future to
Intimidate and persecute the revolu
tionary and labor press of this coun
try.
The workers Party calls upon all
revolutionary workers and sym
pathizers with the militant and revolu
tionary labor movement of this coun
try to assist in the defense of this
comrade. Thousands of dollars will
be required—hence every worker and
militant in the labor movement must
assist. The legal defense of Comrade
Lassen is being handled by the Labor
Defense Council. Send all contribu
tions to the Labor Defense Council,
New York Division, 208 E. 12th St.,
New York City, (or to Room 307,
166 W. Washington St., Chicago, 111.)
Skilled Workers Fill
Unemployment Lines
in Tacoma, Wash.
TACOMA, Wash., Dec. 15.—Unem
ployment has increased sharply here.
An average of 600 unemployed work
ers seeks jobs in the city-state free
employment office daily. This does
not include the hundreds who wait at
the gates of factories and sawmills in
this town every morning.
The Todd steel shipyard recently
closed down, throwing nearly 1,000
skilled men out of work.
as indicated by the titles of each
movement , (‘‘Spring Dreams,” “Min
uet in Popular Style,” “Dance of the
Palling Leaves,” and “Sleigh Ride”) is
anything but the work of an over
brilliant imagination. The suite
might be vastly more effective If ar
ranged for piano solo.
Music with a social significance is
Alfredo Casella's Italian rhapsody
which wound up the program. Cassel
la did not take a couple of dance tunes
and shove them at us as representa
tive of his country. But he took a
grim, acrid tune of the slaves who
work in the sulphur mines of Sicily, a
hopeless, beseeching prayer of fisher
men and a pitiful title melody sun|
by the women who work In marble
quarries near Palermo and built up an
opening slow movement on them.
And the rhapsody winds up with a
brilliant use of the Neapolitan song
"Funlculi-Funicula” and as it never
has been handled before. This rhap
sody is one of the big contributions
of the new Italian school.
The Beethoven eighth was the
symphony of the week. And that is
too well known to require comment
here.
tUv </&**“-* f s *-
Tuesday, December 16, 1924
increased strength to the party meaiis
greater power in every direction.
the material is at hand for us to do
this building. There are large num
bers of close sympathizers who should
be brot into our party, there are many
former members who have allowed
themselves to drop out for various
reasons. The available elments
amongst these should be brot into the
party. Every worker has a circle of
friends. He should carry out a syste
matic campaign to bring them to our
party. Our slogan should be “Every
Member Get a Member.” Just a little
activity in ths direction by the masses
of the rank and file will mean a tre
mendous strengthening of the Work
ers Party in every direction. Let us
therefore put on the first order ol
business in all or acitivies the cons
tant and systematic building up of
the Workers Party into a mass Com
munist party.
Views of Our Readers
To The DAILY WORKER:—As a
worker like millions of others under
the capitalist system, who go from
place to place with the jobs, I was
lucky enough to secure a job around
Oakridge, Oregon on a construction
job.
All I want to write about is some
thing of the officials of the I. W. W.,
or rather the anarchists who work in
side the I. W. W. whom I consider
the most reactionary element in the
class struggle. I do not mean to say
anything about the members of the
I. W. W., as they are as good as any
workers anywhere. But I do dare to
speak against the editor of the In
dustrial Worker, whom Harrison
George rightly calls the “funny edit
or.”
If you get the Industrial Worker for
November 15, you will find on the
first page an article entitled “Camps
on the Natron were hell holes.” In
that it says:
“Trouble has also come because of
the greed of the steam shovel men
who are continually seeking overtime.
These men are organized in the A.
F. of L. and have' what they call a
basic 8-hour day, but these steam
shovelers in every camp asked for
overtime, and they are ones respon
sible for the 10-hour day on the Nat
ron Cutoff. It was impossible to give
them their overtime and not have the
muckers work longer shifts. Do these
steam shovel men believe In the 8-
hour day?”
In this, as in other things, the
editor of the Industrial Worker ia
lying. The trouble did not come be
cause some of the workers have been
working overtime thereby forcing
other to do the same. There were
on this job and working overtime not
only non-union men, but members of
the I. W. W. also working overtime
and anxious to do so.
When I asked some of the mem
bers of the I. W. W. “Why do you go
out of the camps, fellow workers, be
fore the time?” And when I told some
of them, “‘Come, sit down here, wait
for the time to come.” Then a fellow
worker whose name I give here as
Pete Merry, told me, “It’s none of
your business.”
Now you can see who is acting like
the A. F. of L.
Yours for the Workers Party,—S
G. G.
Claim Lewis Re-Elected.
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind., Dec. 15—Al
tho the official convass of the votes
has just begun, the Lewis headquar
ters claims that John L. Lewis has
been re-elected president of the United
Mine Workers of America, together
with his entire ticket. The vote is
not given.
HUMAN EMOTIONS.
Book Review.
“Crime, Its Biology and Psychology”
by Duron J. H. Ward, is a little
pamphlet which undertakes to ex
plain the true nature of crime and the
reason why crimes are committed.
Ward’s purpose in writing this book
let was advocating prison reforms.
He nrgues that the criminal instead of
being locked up in our present form
of prisons, should be removed from*
the society whose laws he violated Vo
an institution which is an organised
society of its inmates und undertakes
to train men how to function as cit
izens in an organized society. As
soon aB he enters this new "society”
he is at once to be made a respon
sible participant in its civic duties
and social functions.
The pamphlet insofar as it is
scientific contains a valuable analysis
of human instincts, their influence on
behavior under normal conditions and
how extreme emotions cause perver
sions. For Instance, the instinct of
feeding is expressed in chewing, the
usual feoling is appetite, but the ex
treme emotion of that Instinct is glut
ony. The instinct of roving is ex
pressed by migration, the usual feel
ing is wanderlust. The extreme emo
tion is vagabondism.
Anyone interested in psychology
will find this pamphlet a handbook of
uaelul information.