Blum, Hilferding, Buxton and Hillquit Discuss Problems of War and Peace at Marseilles
Blum, Hilferding, Buxton and Hillquit Discuss Problems of War and Peace at Marseilles By LEO GLAESER MARSEILLES, Aug. 25. ABRAHAM CAHAN, Editor of the Jewish Forward, made a speech at the...
...it is a question of life and death to Europe as s whole snd to each country in its own way...
...Applause...
...Delegates in the Labor and Socialist Congress are taking tasks very seriously, discuelng every festure ef the resolutions with utmost grerrlty and concern...
...But these scars of cstastroI phic struggle are still raw, open I wounds, exposed and making themselves felt economically in England, Germany, France, snd almost every I other minor country...
...They are inspired by the Socialist spirit and their hearts go out to this body...
...Various committees have been working in their respective rooms, j The first committee to report was | one on the eight-hour day...
...Communists spsred no diatribe to vilify delegates of the Labor tnd Socialist International It it perfectly clear thst mott of the cursing and rhetoric of Communists come from the very youngest ment of Merseilles Communists...
...The motion, however, wet carried by a majority of the committee, Thereupon Comrade d* Brouckere of Belgium resigned, but the resignation jwa...
...The eight-hour resolution was accepted unanimously by ths Congress...
...The Cnngreas demands Jess than an eight-hour day for trades so unhealthy that eight hours is too long...
...employed and mOra for ovsr four I years the immediate cancellation of !|all reparations and war debts to help [put the world on its aeenomie feat '•Belgian and French delegations veIhemently opposed, on grounds that :he International's previous decisions had accepted the reparations and the English motion would upttt things rpnd harm the cauta everywhere...
...There was friction on the question •lof separations and cancellation of pvaj (debts, but that occurred inside 'thV.kommitiae of unemployment and not fin the Congress session...
...Can they afford to close their eyes to the immediate demands that are made upon them by the working class and by tha population at large aad indulg...
...Speaking in vigorous, sonorous tones, he said...
...There it something almost weird in the poetic beauty and vastness of this panorama...
...By ABRAHAM CAHAN MARSEILLES, Aug...
...The t resolution was brought in by Tom . Shaw, Minister of Labor In Mac- j Donald's Cabinet, who is Chairman j of tha Committee...
...I am speaking in behalf af a vait num...
...There srs grsat bodies of Jewish workmen who do not happen to be affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, for reasons that I cannot enter into here, such as the marvelous Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America, which should not be confused with the International Ladits' Garment Workers' Union, another great union of Jewish workers affiliated with the American Federation of Labor...
...Now dele | gates are confronted with this seem; ing contradiction...
...It made quite a stir...
...This is not altogether true...
...He was introduced by the venerable Socialist leader of Italy, the celebrated Turati, who was one of the two rJhairmen of the day, the other being Abramovich, for Russia...
...4 greet msny of these Jewish workers form units of the American Federation of Labor, of which Comrade Hillquit spoke so truly yesterday...
...But, on the other hand, many of these comrades belong to parties who represent concrete power in their countries...
...It has been said, in a spirit of antiSemitic sarcasm, that a Jew is a banker or a Terrorist Bolshevik...
...Jewish I workingmen in whose behslf I sm speaking own a daily nswtpaper, the Jewish Daily Forward, whote circulation it 260,000 and which ownt a ten-story building in New York, a plant and building in Chicago, and hat offices in many other cltiet of tht United States...
...The union, which is affiliated with the A. F. of L* i» demanding a 26 per cent increase in wages, a 44-hour week snd union recognition...
...They are on strike now for about two weeks and are continuing in good spirits ready to continue until th* employers grant them their modest requests...
...In Europe the case is differ-• ent, which makes the resolution j clearer to American readers...
...They have an effective voice in legislative bodies and they are daily faced with the task of trying to solve these great questions of bread-and-butter and of life and death...
...It demands eight hours for all such workers as commercial employes, marine workers and agricultural workers, not at present covered by laws...
...2,000 Artificial Flower Workers On Strike Two thoussnd men snd women, among them a good many youngsters, rebelled against the most, inhuman conditions imposed on them in the artificial flower and feather industry...
...The only places where the birthday of this venerable champion of Marxian Socialist will be celebrated are the prisons of Russia, where the real followers of the great teacher, Marx, are languishing...
...I had * report of it from a Communist who had attended...
...Communiitt are enjoying thit kind of emotional excursion, but Socialists of Germany, Franct, England, Swedsn, Denmark, Czechoslovakia must forego that pleasure...
...Most of the shops are crippled and some of the employers, reprstenting, their association, hsve siresdy offered to grsnt sll demsndi except recognition of the union...
...It demands no unjustified overtime which nullifies laws already passed...
...Thsy srs contributing Isrgs sums to all struggles of unions and political campaigns in America and Europe...
...They know now thst if thit first strike hss msde their employers offer these concessions thst a permanent union will get them mora eventually...
...A broad avenue, three miles in length, lined by beautiful Southern trees and studded by palm trees, leads to a magnificent circular open space enlivened by more palms and statues...
...In particular, speakers at the Congress snd committee meetings of I ten refer to wounds left by the wsr I ss having been completely heeled so far ss Socialist Parties are concerned j in their relationship toward one anj other...
...A call for a genersl strike, sent out by s compsrstivsly smsll group of workers who hsve bsen organizing for sbout a year, brought out about 76 per cent of the workers in the industry...
...A great sculptured fountain with a beautiful artificial pond is directly in front of the vast exposition Building where the Congress holds sessions...
...Most of thess are grouped and known by a German name borrowed from the early German Socialists, Vereinigte Judische Gewerksehsftsn...
...Some of the older members of the Commanist Congress admit that congresses of thst kind get nowhere...
...not accepted...
...Communists of Marseilles, by the way, held a conference or Congress, as they insisted on calling it...
...The Congress emphasizes the importance of the great Towers, the United States, England and Germany, setting an example In adopting the eight-hour day...
...Smiles and laughter among deligatai...
...When a Marseilles Communist works himself into a frenzy it is hard to understand what he is talking about...
...Now committees are at work preparing resolutions on various questions...
...ABRAHAM CAHAN, Editor of the Jewish Forward, made a speech at the opening of the session today...
...About 60 per cent of the paper's very large profits are given away to help in strike and Socialist campaigns and ether good causes...
...Of oourse net It would be suicidal to a Socialist Party to follow a line of policy of this nature...
...The speech was translated into1 French and German...
...In their attitude ; as International Socialists snd Socialist idealists they should apparently ignore those temporary woes of humanity which happen to manifest themselves in each country in its own peculiar waj, and to think | solely of the generic problem of unii versal purpose of bringing about the | solution of all solutions to bleeding humanity, that solution which is known as Socialism...
...Then there are scores of other Jewish unions...
...They are being punished for living up to his principles...
...These parties can afford to toar into pearly cloudt of Socialist gtneralitiet...
...The full Congress session will begin this afternoon...
...The Congress demands the Immediate ratification by all nations pledged in the /Washington Convention of the International Labor Organizations to carry out the agreement to adopt the right-hour day without further delay...
...Walking up and down this avenue in twos, three or larger groups, some with arms around one another, whispering, gesticulating, debating excitedly, ars scores of delegates...
...lag in beautiful dreamt of Socialist future, close at hand though that future might be...
...Comrades: I am here today to convey to this Congress a message from 300,000 organized Jewish workingmen in the United States...
...Turati introduced Cahan with complimentary remarks as a prominent leader and builder of the movement in America...
...They vote for candidates of the Socialist Party of ths United States, represented here by the delegstion of which I hsve the honor of being s member...
...When Cahan mo nted the great and beautifully decorated platform there was applause from several delegations, particularly the French, German and English...
...The Jewish Socialists have a wonderful body, 90,000 strong, known as the Workmen's Circle, a body of mutual aid permeated with Socialist spirit and doing excellent work in varied directions...
...Meetings sre held every day at the strike headquarters st Beethoven Hall, where the' workers are addressed by well-known men and women in th* Labor movement...
...Still there is s good sprinkling of white linen suits snd shoes among the delegstes, snd to see these almost dandified men gesticulating ss if their very lives were st stake and sometimes all but shaking fists in each other's fsces makes appearance of seeming contradiction...
...I felt it was my duty to state these facts, although they are pretty well known among comrades of Europe...
...They are discussing Important questions about to come up at the Congress, j It isn't merely a matter of theory to them nor solely a source of ideal! istie emotions...
...In the recent steel strike thsss worksrs contributed $200,000 to that struggle...
...They laid tha foundation of the whole Marxian movoI ment in Russis, snd yet the CommuI nlsts, who boast of being holders of I the Marxian theory, do not even allow any mention of Axelrod's name I and instead of celebrating his birthday vilify and throw mud at this founder of the Marxian movement in the country they now control...
...Their speeches were such a meaningless jumble of words thst it was impossible to make sense of what the speakers tried to say...
...In his introduc- j tsry remarks, .Shaw mentioned, | among ether things, the fact that in the United States 48 per cent of I the workers worked eight hours or | lest...
...The Congress demands that every hour the worker is required to be at the disposal of the employer shall be calculated as an hour of work...
...ment as a matter of concrete power is negligible...
...The hall of the Congress is located some distance from th* center of the town...
...The resolution reads as follows: "The Labor and Socialist International demands a national eight-hour day, with free Saturdsy afternoon for all workers, and that by Inspec-1 tion, administration and Labor control, the eight-hour day exist in actual fact and not in theory...
...It is quite hot here, but the nearness of the Mediterranean Sea tempers sultry air as New York Bay never does in case of poor, sweltering New Yorkers in August...
...They are determined to stick by ths union until this demand is also granted...
...Comrade Bracks, popular leader of the French Socialist Party, announced the 7(th birthday of the veteran Russian Socialist, Psul Axelrod...
...The English delegation vigorously demanded on behalf of i.ooo.ono un...
...These are hi* words: "There was a lot of fire, but I must confess no substance...
...These working psopls send their hesrty greetings snd fervent loyslty to thia Lsber snd Socialist International...
...French are emotional, and in tha South, in towns like Marseilles, they are extremely so...
...Of course...
...The sversge wage in the trad* it about $16 a week, and 64 hours a week is the rule...
...As he explained, the American Federation of Labor, to whom a great deal of credit is due for its good work in many ways, is unfortunstely not yet ready to enter the Socialist fold...
...Then Abrsmowitx msde s I powerful and stirring address, say - I ing, among other things: "Axelrod, together with Plechanoff, gave their lives to the disssminstion of Marxism in Russia...
...It is pnly Socialists of those countries where movement is almost entirely s mstter of aspiration and poetic forecast where move...
...IAM writing this cable In the morning...
...The scenes in the committee rooms sre very interesting and characteristic of the earndstness of the delegates snd slso of present situstions in Europe, most of them unknown to Americans st the present moment...
...These Jewish work men, however, sre pert and parcel] of our movement in America, and if they have not joined formally the International it is because, as mem- | bers of the American Federation of I Labor, they are not in position to I dstsch themselves and join the political body as trade unions, but many of them era members of this International by being members ,of the Socialist Party and many others are affiliated with this International Congress in heart and soul...
...But the workers refused to go bsck on such terms...
...her of Jewish people who are neither ena nor the othar, and I thurk it is II only fair to these 300,000 and thai entire Jewish race to placs this fact' on record before this World Con-1 grass...
Vol. 2 • August 1925 • No. 35
