THE REVOLUTIONARY AGE July 19, 1919 14 Correspondence To The Revolutionary Age :Concerniny a Ner arty thing has moved faster that you and reckonRECEIVED a letter from a comrade who ed. Those ousted from the party made a resI expresses great concern, lest the mention Michigan Convention had decided upon a call ponse which you and I, still within the party, did not feel. Arguments were made about the of the possibility of a new party may work for a new party to be formed September first, mischief with the Left Wing conquest of the and this call was made absolute. The Left party fight which had the merit at least of disparty. This comrade stands today in the fore Wing could take or leave it; Michigan would counting the idea of too long a fight for its most ranks of the Socialist movement in the go ahead anyhow.
physical apparatus, though these arguments United States and undoubtedly expresses the By this time had become convinced of one have yet failed to budge me as to the worth sentiments of many thousands of the most thing: that there must be an exact date when whileness of our two months campaign within the party. The subsequent expulsion of Masearnest members of the party. For this reason this party fuss shall stop, and this date could sachusetts, the threatened expulsion of PennI am asking you to publish this letter as my not be left to the choosing of the old personal expression on the vital question in There is no use quoting the Constitution as sylvania (and probably of Ohio) all of these volved. may add, however, that did not against the proposition that the old show at the same time the lengths to which send this letter without asking several of the will control so long as there is no Convention.
the old bunch will go and the clearness of the members of the National Left Wing Council And there is no use driving a good argument Left Wing triumph. When we come together to read it, and am assured that my letter ex to the point of absurdity by insisting that there August 30th in Chicago, there will be no presses the point of view which dominated the is no way for the old to frame up a question but that the party is ready for ComNational Left Wing Conference.
Right Wing Convention for August 30th or munism, or that the new party is only the same The letter follows (July 9, 1919. later. Things can be done in the physical party turning into a new avenue of aggressive have just read your letter of July 4th to sense which are ethically outrageous. They attack against American and world Capitalism.
Comrade Cohen. hasten to make answer in ve been done; they are being done from Not to mention new party in connection with our fight within the party is to play the addition to such answer as may be made by day to day by Germer and his bosses. The Comrade Cohen, in the first place to greet you gang that has gone as far as these men have old game of fooling our own people in the We from this office and to urge you to send me vain hope of allaying the timid ones.
gone will hardly stop at any extremity. The cannot yield ourselves to the Michigan Fedeall the suggestions you have for immediate point is that by forcing them to these extremaction, and in the second place to make someities we make clearer than ever the real state ration politicianeering, nor can we ignore the what clearer to you the party situation as it of affairs within the party, showing beyond realities of party sentiment which this call for a Communist Party represents. Those who will stands after the Left Wing Conference. dispute that the Left Wing is the party This think would have written just what you it is mighty important to do. But it is another not frankly face a crucial situation, recognize wrote if had not been to the Conference, matter to keep on insisting against everydefinite alternatives, and accept the dictation of facts, cannot be truly helpful in this using almost the same language, as recall my thing, and anything that the Left Wing is situation. There must be a showdown, and it point of view of twenty days ago. On the bound to control a party convention chosen other hand, am quite positive that if you by a few thousand voters still outside the Left had better be August 30th, let the old gang do as they will. have argued that new party had undergone the experience of the Left Wing movement. And even worse would it be is just what they played for, and refused Wing Conference there are certain statements to let the mass of the membership remain adrift you make which you would consider inappro at the pleasure of the gangsters, telling them to help them get what they wanted. But cannot see the merit of carrying this argument priate to the actual situation.
that some day it will all come out all right.
It is very important that we understand one to the extreme of forgetting that we have The Michigan proposal had the advantage something far more important to do than to another fully and exactly under the circum of coming from the outside, from an ousted stances of this party crisis. By this time State, as a mandate of the Michigan member time needed to show up the situation clearly attenuate a party factional fight beyond the you have received the delayed number of the ship, expressed by a Convention. It had the, to the active membership. do not know just Revolutionary Age telling about the Confer sadvantage of being pinned on to a declarence. But will deal with the single item what we shall be called upon to do with regard ation of principles upon which the new party to the physical apparatus of the party, but of new party just as it came to my personal was to be organized. Also, it did not include attention and just as reacted to the whole the alternative of Left Wing control of the ainly would think it petty folly to let such a consideration make us forget the big world August 30th Convention. It was amended to fight in which we are engaged. Part of this From the opening of the Conference it be meet the latter objection and it was made clear fight is to be made within the Socialist Party; came evident that there was some sort of a that the program attached to the Michigan the higher part of it is a tremendous work move on foot to start a new Communist Party call was of a tentative character. But think right then and there. did not know who was agitation among the 30, 000, 000 wage workthe majority was fully justified in repudiating behind this move.
ers of the United States.
The whole idea seemed the State patriotism of my very good friends preposterous to me, not that was averse to and comrades from Michigan.
If this letter still leaves you in doubt as to the idea of a new party, if that was the bes The action of the Conference itself was not the sound sense of the Conference decision to way for us, but that could not see how a different in principles. Comrade Wagefknecht compel a showdown on August 30, after makConference called as this one was called could reported for the Organization Committee in ing the fight to control the Emergency Conpresume to make this sort of a decision for favor of: 1) a thorough campaign to control vention, want the chance to write to you the fifty or sixty thousand members definitely the August 30th Convention for the Left again. As to talking and writing new party within the Left Wing.
Wing; and 2) the alternative, failing the fulI must certainly disagree with you. What you On the sensible basis that we had better see filment of certain conditions of organizing and can discuss every member can consider.
first what we agreed about and what we disa new party September ist in Convention of It is all important that the membership underagreed about, the majority waived aside dis Left Wing delegates. Afterwards the further stand clearly the situation as it will be on cussion of a new party several times. Finally, alternative was added. 3) an August 30th Con August 30th, and all of its possible alternatives it became evident that we had to discuss this vention to organize a new party if the old In re reading what have already written, question or nothing. An entire session was does away with the Emergency Conit occurs to me to add the New York delegation taken up directly on this subject, with unvention. The conditions for the August 30th was against the new party proposition and in limited discussion, most of the delegates taking regular party Convention are the seating of favor of working for the election of Left Wing the floor. The vote was against the immediate Left Wing delegates, the undoing of exdelegates to the regular party convention, and formation of a new party.
pulsions and suspension, the fulfilment of rethat the minority New York delegates acted Meanwhile the forces for the new party ferendums.
against instructions. It is probable that the plan made themselves known. First, a small By this time the minority had rallied around Federations will not help us in this campaign group from New York and Philadelphia, with so far as some of their Central Executive the Michigan plan, though the Federation delComrade Zucker as indefatigable spokesman. egates made it obvious that they were uneasy Committees are concerned, but we must do Second, the four Michigan delegates, with about the Michigan theorizing. As result, 31 our best against this internal opposition. If Comrade Brien and another comrade from delegates withdrew from active participation Convention, the membership will accept this the old gang decides to call off the Emergency Rochester, and with Miss Gordon of the Left in the Conference. Now they have joined in Wing of Minnesota. Third, the Federation the call for a September Ist Communist Party the final proof of their defeat, and will be delegates, with only a few exceptions. The poll Convention, but on the basis of the Left Wing ready to deal with the Left Wing Convention was 38 votes for and 55 against.
Program.
as the real party convention.
Next came the Michigan proposal. The Comrade, we must talk new party. This FERGUSON idea.