BolshevismCommunismIV InternationalLeninMarxOpportunismSocialismSocialist PartySovietWorkers MovementWorking Class

The New York COMMUNIST Vol. I, No. New York, Saturday, May 24, 1919 Price cents Clearing the Decks Mlong retirement with an article in the Cau union.
question al socialgovernmental power and the has demonteringer of the Party membership, ax. hio tion.
oppurtunistic TORRIS HILLQUIT has emerged from his internationally. Not as trade unions, nor even as ment, or shall it share governmental power and remere industrial unions, but as one working class sponsibilities with the capitalist class, at least, dur.
for May 21st, entitled, The Socialist Task ing the period of transition. and Outlook. Because of his position in the Par But how is this to be done? According to Com. So far as we know, no Socialist leader advocates ty, this article must not be taken as the expression rade Hillquit own statement the organized labor the socialization of industries and national life of an individual. It is published in The Call in me ve the better situated strata of labor he skilled out that del seu calidairy. But this is beside the just the manner that the pronunciamentos of James Beck are published in The Times. It may be re workers. In other words, the economic causes.
garded as a semi official declaration, formulated point. The issue is not socialization after consultation with Party leaders of all shades industry, but the class under whose rule this of opinion, of the position or lack of position Call for a National Conference of ization shall be carried out. In this respect the of the element which still controls the Party mafinal question is pertinent: Shall the working class chinery the Left Wing immediately assume the sole direction of the govCareful reading of this document impresses one Call for a National Conference of the Left Wing ernment as a working class government, or shall it immediately with the power of the Left Wing agi of the American Socialist Party, issued by Local share Boston. Louis Fraina, Secretary. Local Cleveresponsibilities with tation in the Party, and its profound roots in the land. Ruthenberg, Secretary. and the Left the capitalist class, at least, during the period of revolutionary feeling of the rank and file. Morris Wing Section of the Socialist Party of New York the transition. Hillţuit is a clever politician; he knows how to City. Maximilian Cohen, Secretary. Το question there is but one answer for a The international situation and the crisis in the scientific Socialist. In the words of Marx (Gotha and elsewhere. His American Socialist Party; the sabotage the party Program) This corresponds a political transilegal training and his experience in Party affairs fit him better than anyone else to lead the Centre, convention; the pretired on the emergency nationay on period, during which the government cannot social patriots at Berne, with the Congress of the be into whose hands the Right Wing is willing to de anything else but the dictatorship of the proleGreat Betrayal; the necessity of reconstructing our tariat.
liver its power, now that it is unable to maintain policy in accord with revolutionary events. all this, It is true that Comrade Hillquit declares that itself before the wrath of the rank and file.
and more, makes it necessary that the revolutionary forces in the Socialist Party get together for counsel the Socialist International must support the dictaWe had expected something better from Comrade and action.
torship of the proletariat in all countries in which Hillquit. The document runs away from all im This call is therefore inued, for the holding of the working class seizes the power; but he still furportant questions; it endeavors to create the im National Conference of the Left Wing of the Amer. ther emphasizes his doubt of this cours of action, pression of dissatisfaction with the behavior of the can Socialist Party, to discuss and implies a serious criticism of Bolt bevik and Party, while it carefully avoids any specific state1. The crisis in the party, and action thereon; the ments: it formulates conquest of the party for the party, for revolutionary Sparticide tactics, when he says: definite position; it cen.
Socialisc.
ther we approve or disapprove of all the sort Socialist parliamentarism in one phrase and The New International: ways and means to methods by which such proletarian government has defends it in the next, forgetting to call attention prevent the party aning itself with the Internagained or is exercising its power is beside the quee to the actions of our Congressional representative tional of the mucial patriots of the Ebert ScheideAnd lesser parliamentarians; it makes provision for mann gangaters, and the wavering centre; filiation The Socialists of the world must not support inwith the Belshevik Spartacan Communist Internaa change of front as pressure is applied. a truly sional aluni.
tervention in Rumia, ur actively oppose that gov position. Now as ever, Hillquit is at The formulation of a declaration of principles ernment (the Soviet Government in the face of tempting to carry water on both shoulders; he and purposes of a nutional scope of the Left Wing its life and death struggle with international capi.
flirts with the revolutionary, sentiment that is now of the American Socialist Party.
talism and imperialism. The same with Hungary.
dominant in the movement; he coquettes with Pro4. Forming some sort of a national council or bureau of the Left Wing for propaganda, securing But he does not say that we must support the So.
letarian Dictatorship in Russia and Hungary, while of information and spreading information.
viet Governments Russia and Hungary which is spurning it nearer home; he implies a mild reproof To express and draw together the revolutionary our Left Wing position to the majority Socialists of Germany; he mentions forces in the party; to consider other means of fur. In countries like Germany, however, in which the St. Louis platform and immediately sheers thering the cause of revolutionary Socialism.
away, fearful of this test if applied to the leaders This call is issued to locals of the Socialist Party, struggle for mastery lies between two divisions of the Socialist movement, one class conscious and branches and Left Wing groups within the party.
The test of admission, provisionally, will be acceptUnlike many of our local Socialist spokesmen, ance of the Manifesto of the Left Wing of the So temporizing, we must support the class conscious, Comrade Hillquit admits that the Second Interna cialist Party of Greater New York radical movement. But in America, where the same tional broke down before the supreme test of the Left Wing locals are invited to send delegates of struggle over principles and tactics is ficially. Where a local officially refuses to particiBut it was not the Socialist movements that is going on in pate, branches or minority groups in the party ac.
the ranks of the Socialist movement, we must supwere at fault, It was the economic organization of cepting the principles of the Left Wing should send port the opportunists and the tem the European workers, and the pressure of their delegates.
Comrade Hillquit admits the necessity for the Representation one delegate for every 500 memimmediate economic interests (as understood by bers No local or group should send more than four Third International, but he is by no means specific them) that broke the solidarity of the Socialist Indelegates. Locals or minority groups with less than as to the reasons. He admits that the Second In. says Comrade Hillquit. It was not 500 members are entitled to one delegate.
ternational is broken, but the inference is that he parliamentarism which was primarily responsible The conference will be held starting Saturday, would put together the pieces and give a new June 21, in New York City. Each delegate will be name. He repudiates Berne, half heartedly, and he 25 for fund, out of sive parliamentarism, but on the whole the So.
hich will be paid the expenses of all delegates repudiates Moscow, as not having advanced cialists in Parliament expressed the sentiments of Left Wing Locals and Branches, act! Send com the process of reorganization of the Socialist their constituents pretty faithfully.
munications to Maximilian Cohen, 43 West 29th St. movement of the world. He continues, The task This in other words is Meyer London justifica.
New York City.
of organizing the Third International is still before was not elected by us. It must be accomplished on the basis of prina purely Socialist vote, and ciples and conduct, not on that of personal likes of my constituents, said London in effect when he the collapse of the Second International were, and dislikes. It is the common task of all interna.
was questioned. According to the Communist the economic organization of the European work tional Socialists. If this is Comrade Hillquit Manifesto the Socialists are, on the one hand, pracers, and the pressure of their immediate economic position, why did he not oppose the National Extically, the most advanced and resolute section of interests (as understood by them. ecutive Committee acceptance of Berne? Why the working class parties of every country, that sec What guarantee is there in the whole vague prodid he wait until Berne had discredited itself even tion which pushes forward all others; on the other gram outlined in Comrade Hillquit letter the eyes of Liberals, until it had shown itself hand, theoretically, they have over the great mass of summed up in the phrase Socialist propaganda as an offshoot of the conference taking place in the proletariat the advantage of clearly understand which leads us to believe that the skilled workers Paris?
ing the line of march, the conditions, and the ulti are going to forget their immediate economic in He carefully refrains from stating what he conmate general results of the proletarian movement.
siders should be the basis of principles and conBut now we learn organizations, That there is a fundamental difference of princi duct for the Third International. Yet it is just which are organized primarily to safeguard the ple between the Left Wing and the dominant mod this that is dividing the Socialist movement the wage status of the workers, are responsible for the erate Socialism which controls the Party, is no world over. Does Comrade Hillquit think the acreak Comrade Hiliquits line of argument is cor. Hillquil phrase, in countries which haver ested shird International, and if so, will it be sufficient where more clearly indicated than by Comrade ceptance of the Dictatorship of the Proletariat rect, how does it Varty, of which he is an executhe continuous flirtation which the Socialist ist government he wThis is a recomplised dif. sharing governmental power and responsibilities tive officer, carried on with the of until Gompers made it impossible? The economic or ferentiation between two forms of the Cooperative with the capitalist class, during the period of ganizations in Europe broke down in 1914. Dur. Commonwealth, which we do not admit. transition at home?
ing the two years following the of flirta What is the nature of this distinction? The fol When Comrade Hillquit uses the term internation continued, and the Socialist Party made no at lowing quotation indicates Comrade Hillquit contempt to point out the necessity for one working ceptand the socialization of industries and nation Scheidemann and Ebert from the Third Interna: tional. to qualifiyev Sucionary. Would he exclude class union.
Comrade Hillquit says, The first task of the post al life be attempted by one master stroke, or shall tional? If so, would not he then exclude all other war Socialist International must, thereforė, be to it be carried out gradually and slowly? Shall the Socialists whose acts during the war were dicorganize and reorganize all grades and strata of working class immediately assume the sole direc tated by the same opportunism as actuated these lahar a broad class lines not only nationally, but tion of the government as a working class govern(Continued on page 7)
of the Party war.
it taxe centra tion for his acts in Congress must obey the wishes in terests. that the the economic