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9 NED AND CONTROLLED BY THE SOCIALIST PARTY OF CANADA tr PUBLISHED IN THE INTERESTS OF THE WORKING CLASS ALONE NUM * 682 VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, SATURDAY, AUGUST 24, 19J2 Subscription Price m\ a A PER YR4R VlslU ALL THINGS III COMMON Sermon Delivered in the Methodist Church, at Bellevue, Alberta, on Sunday, April 7, 1912. Text, Acts IV, v. 32. "And the multl tude of them that believed were of one heart and one soul; neither said any of them that aught of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common." If the religion of the Jew was su perior to other religions, its superiority lay in the spirituality or mental calibre which emancipated him from being a victim of his immediate surroundings. The truth appeared to him in its nakedness and he viewed it without the prejudice of one who could see no farther than his own individual interests as isolated from the interests of the social organism. He saw the truth from a pinnacle above the "mists and vapors that crowd theBe earthly damps," among which they live who "love the darkness neither come to the light." The industrial revolution of the past century and a half has swept over our civilization as a great veil or mist, obscuring the truth from human intellect. In that mist *ye have run hither and thither, knowing not whither we went, rushing, as we thought, towards the light, but finding only darkness everywhere. Scientists have observed reptiles lying In watch for their prey A bird flies overhead, it stops, it approaches the enemy, nearer and nearer it comes, right up to the very Jaws of death. Why? Because the eye of the bird has been caught by the eye of the reptile. The bird has been charmed, intoxicated, and it freely plays with death. The human mind is subject to very much the same kind of intoxication as the bird. We are captured by the grandeur, show, splendor. If royalty visits us we call out the militia, decorate in gaudy colors, form grand pageants. Why? The answer ls always the same, "To promote patriotism." Monarchs and dignitaries visit places in person, not to see the sights or to enjoy the society, but to arouse patriotism among the masses and they do it by their very presence. The people are intoxicated by the magnificence of the show. The politician bfiows that there are few methods more effective for capturing votes than a great meeting preceeded by a monster, parade. The labor union uses the same'methods to arouse sympathy with the cause. I have known cases where evangelists have summoned the Christian population out into the streets in a great parade, and the towns have been captured^ business was suspended, and overflow meetings were held everywhere. In fact the towns were possessed with a religious mania and all because of the parade. The slogan, "Remember the Maine," captured every ear in the United States and there were few breasts that were not fired with a frenzied passion to murder the Spaniards. The Industrial revolution was an intoxicating movement. Men went to bed poor and got up in the morning rich. To own land or to own a machine became like owning flocks of geese that would lay golden eggs. The profits accruing from the machine were far in excess of anything that had ever been launched upon the Industrial world, and millionarles became common, and people forgot that this wealth was not the product of human endeavor on the part of the possessors. It was the unearned Increment of lands, or the production of a great, dumb, thoughtless, machine. Yet it was dazzling in its effects and we were blinded. We did not see that in allowing vast enclosures of land we were 'signing away our birthright. It is every bit as logical to say "stop breathing air," as to say "Trespassers will be prosecuted." In signing awej^land we were signing away our right to live, and a landless people can only exist because of the condecensloh of the owners of the land in allowing them to de so. The same stupid mistake was repeated in the caBe of the machine. We forgot that the machine would become indispenslble ' to our existence and we allowed Its ownership to pass into the hands of certain Individuals, giving them the right to control its output, and to say who should and who should not" be employed to work the machine. Here, again', we signed away our birthright to live. He who owns the things necessary to my existence own me. He can dictate to me the terms upo*i which I may continue to live and I have no option but to accept his terms. In some way we must discover a twentieth century equivalent for the communism that existed among the Christians of the flrst century. The some plan would not be found workable today but lt is absolutely necessary that some means be discovered whereby those upon whom nature calls to live shall have access to a share of the means of life. Nature, by whose beneficence the mother's breast has been provided for the babe, and pure, wholesome air for every living creature to breathe, was also beneficent in bestowing the earth with her increase, the mines with their wealth, the seas with their fish and tyie air with her birds, and that same Nature, through the development of human genius has called into being the greatest labor- saving devices, so that we can now in fifteen years equal the production of fifteen past centuries with fewer men at work. Think of the luxuries which have been thus bestowed upon us and yet the masses wallow In the mire, exist in filthy tenements, and starve to death because ihey have signed away ,voted away, given away the benefits which Nature bestowed. In our Intoxication we forget about ourselves. That is, we forget about our brothers, our own flesh and blood, we forget about humanity. Here and there a millionaire crept into view, and we lost sight of everything else. We saw visions and dreamed dreams of minions, we lay awake and talked frantically about real-estate, business, machines. We de so yet. But where are the men who lay awake at night or are haunted in their dreams by the tragedy of poverty. It is revolting to think about, yet it Is (rue, that the telling argument in bringing reforms is not that it benefits the many, but that it pays the few. Mines, factories and railrods will be made safe places for men to work when we can convince the owners that it pays in dollars and cents to have them safe. , As long as it is only humanity itself that is benefitted the wholesale butchery of men will go on unless humanity Itself rises in revolt. Man is not an end in himself, but a means to an end, and that end is wealth for a few of the lords of earth. When man is incapacitated to serve that end he is thrown on the scrap heap. One asked "Is not a man greater than a sheep?" We are more careful to answer "No" We are more careful of our sheep than our men. Our stock is fed and fattened. Our men starve and die. Our electrical machines or cleaned and burnished, Our human beings sicken in poverty and filth, while wealth ls the end of human endeavor and man is the means ot its production. Let us as a church confess lt frankly, Christianity Is a mockery. When Christianity makes man the end it will become the religion of the masses. Christianity must mean a re-organlzatlon of society so that the actual needs of no Individual shall be neglected. That involves that we must substitute a system of co-operation for our present competitive system. While we continue to race for the necessities of life the success of some means that the rest must fail, and failure is fatal, yet millions must fall through no fault ot their own. I am aware that I denounce competition In the teeth of most bitter pre- julice. Competition has made you what you are, and thinking yourselves perfect your worship your creator. Yet I want to say that competition is un- brotherly. It ls war and murder. It ls inconsistent with all that this church claims to stand for. On the other hand co-operation is brotherly. It Is .peace. It embodies a kingdom of righteousness, peace and joy fpr the men of this world. That is Christianity as set forth in the words of our text. You are objecting" in your mind, "but, is not competition the life of trade?" I reply, "It is," but it is also the death of man. You must choose between modern trade and your own lives, You retort "that It brings out the best that is ln man." But I must remind you tbat man was never so un resourceful as he is today. The field of human endeavor Is rendered more and more limited, we are losing the genius'of resourcefulness. XJie fact ls that we are competing today -because lt ls the easiest thing to do. We have DON'T BE AN EA8Y MARK. If you had built a house, finished it nicely throughout with your labor, painted it and made it all ready to occupy and someone came along who hadn't done a thing on the place, ordered you to get out and give him possession, it would make you pretty hot under the collar, wouldn't it? There's no telling what you might do. And yet this Is what the average workman does many times every year. He breaks the ground, lays the foundations, builds the houses, finishes them inside and out, makes the costly furniture and spares no effort to make a home that will be comfortable, lasting and luxurious, and then just as it Is all ready to occupy, he" gives up possession to the man who hires him and slouches back to a miserable rented shack, until prosperity ordains that be shall come, forth and repeat the performance for some other master. Labor, you are a hlg, hard-headed boob to do this and neglect and impair the happiness of your family. Get next to yourself and hang onto the things you produce.' You are the laughing stock bf civilization.—Hope. The Diesel engine liner "Zeelandia," on her trial trip, only used .366 pounds of oil per indicated horse-power per hour, and showed mechanical efficiency of 84.5 per cent.—The Engineer, of London, England. ' \ . Briefly stated, the advantages of the Diesel engine as compared with steam, are that lt dispenses with the boiler plant and its force of stokers; that it enables a cheap grade of fuel to be used, and that, even wjth the cheaper grade of fuel, it uses only half a pound per horsepower per hour, as against a pound and a half of coal, which represents the best average practice in up- to-date steam installations.—The Scientific American. SOCIALISM—THE YOUNG MAN'8 CHANCE. By A. FRED RINDLER. "The young man," says Ralph Waldo Emerson, "on entering life finds the way to lucrative employment blocked with abuses. The ways of trade have grown selfish to the borders of theft and supple to the borders (If not beyond the borders) of fraud. A tender and Intelligent conscience Ib a disqualification for success." Young man, don't you think there is something wrong with a system that makes common honesty and success an incompatible condition? Don't you think it is about time to change a social order that says to every young man at the threshold of life: "Young man, get the money; get it honestly If you can, but get the money." If you believe you are entitled to a real chance to make good In the very broadest sense of the term, and believe that, other young men coming after you are also entitled to an opportunity, why not do your share NOW to bring about the new day? The Socialist Party needs you—you need the Socialist Party. The Socialist Party offers you the one big chance. Why not get into line? The Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railway has installed, at cost of $3,000,- 000, a freight terminal tfhich depends absolutely upon mechanical methods instead of manual labor, handling everything from a crate of eggs to a grand piano. In ancient times, before the use of any tools more complicated than a crooked stick, and a stone ax, a slave could produce enough to maintain himself, land a surplus for hla master. Today he can produce a thousand times as much,' and lt ls hard to flnd a master. There are too many slaves. THE FARMER AND THE MACHINE The mail that brought Comrada Read's invitation for an article to the Alberta edition of the Clarion also brought the writer a pamphlet or catalogue from the Rumeley Oil Pull Tractor Co.,' of La Porte, Ind. To the farmer Socialist who understands the evolution of the machine and its effet-t upon society this little pamphlet makes an interdesting study. There you will flnd pictured the evolution of the plow from Millets (the spader) gaunt and weary looking, their backs bent to the slavish task. The Mexican peon with his crooked stick hitched to the horns of the plodding ox, merely scratching the surface of the soil to the neat steel walking and gang plow of the western farmer and, finally, the dawn of successful mechanical plowing. The gigantic oil tractor, pulling from 10 to 14 plows and turning from 25 to 40 acres of sol) in a day and operated by only two men. We have sometimes heard the expression from the Socialist speaker that the only difference between the wage slave and the farm slave ls that the latter was assured of a steady job, but the evolution of the machine will undoubtedly relegate this idea with a good many others to the scrap heap. Surely Marx spoke wisely when he said, "Capitalism will furnish its own grave diggers." The hand and brain of tha toiler by perfecting the machine, long ago undermined the position of the handicraft worker and at last forced him to accept wago Blavery. The same hand and brain is today at work undermining the position of the small farmer and preparing the ground for successful capitalistic exploitation of the farm, the last stronghold for capitalism to conquer. The time proven Marxian theory of 'value that corn- followed the course of least resistance. It demands more Intelligence and resource to co-operate than lt does to compete. Perhaps your final argument will be that other stereotyped one, vis., "that I am intereferlng with Nature's laws." Does not Nature say that only the fittest shall survive? If you drive me back to Nature, there I am content to Btay. I want the laws of Nature to operate and I want the survival of the fittest. But alas, the ravages of com petition leave the fittest In the mire The fittest to produce are members of the poorest class on earth. All I want Is conditions under which it will be possible for the fittest to survive, and that will only be found In that Kingdom upon earth where righteousness and peace and joy shall reign because men have all things ln common. modities exchange at the necessary social labor time of production will assert itself. In other words the. cheapest production in any line of commodities will determine its value, supply and demand being equal. All other forms of production being classed as unnecessary or waste labor. The advent of mechanical power on the farm will in time revolutionize farming as an occupation, taking the past aB a criterion and other lines of industries as guide posts. It will increase production per individual many fold, it will give power and wealth to the owner undreamed of on the farm before, It will also be accompanied with the usual train of evils that follow ln the wake of capitalistic exploitation, At first a fierce sii >gle by the many unable lo follow In tLe evolution process, a o.iiiHtant lowering of their staw'.' ard of living ar.d last wage slavery, w'ifli its periodical full and empty* 'i:u ner pall You, Mr. Farmer, who up to this time has held government-ownership aud reciprocity it tht panacea for the Ills of the farm slave, are you willing to look facts fully In tho face? Tho facts ln this case being Mr. Oil Pull just starting out In its baby career and expecting to grow to manhood. Have you the necessary land and coin to master him? If not are you willing to produce oats, wheat and other commodities by tho old, cumbersome method at a price set and governed by this same being and no other? If you try the contest long enough this baby will be able to alter the grey matter ln your think tank as no Socialist soapboxer could ever hope to do. He will make the issue so clear cut that no soapy master class Issue of reciprocity will ever quite fool you again. It will ln the fullness of time force the conviction upon you that lt Is the possession of mechanical power, the concentrated energy of the social working class fashioned into machines of wealth production that gives to the master class Its power to rob the working class of the fruits of their labor. This power finds its expression in the capitalist political state whose function Is to preserve and defend their property rights in the means of wealth production. The worker has one birthright bestowed upon his long ago by the master class, that "will give him power if used In his own interest. That Is the ballot. The mission of the Soclnllst Party Is to educate him to tue the ballot In his own Interest and transforip capitalist property ln the means of wealth production Into working class property, thereby ending Blavery.. He who desires freedom need also strike the blow. JOHN BECKMAN. ANARCHY, FREE LOVE, ETC. Some of the Things Charged to the Socialist Movement By Defenders of Privilege arid Class Rule. The Socialists of the world, are dubbed by the prostitute capitalist press, and all the capitalist teachers, whether in the form of a parson or a day school teacher, as being everything from discontented lrresponsi- bles to carzy' anarchists, free lovers, dividers up and so on. In the public schools the slaves that are to be, get told the bourgeois stories of everybody getting a chance in this world, of a possibility for each of them to be either a capitalist If they are thrifty, or a Lord Roberts if they will only join the boy scout movement. "What a glorious country you live in, my boys," they will say. "The land of the brave and the free," under either the BritiBh or Yankee flags. "Look up to the flag, my boys and all will be well with you," says the parson and "steer clear of those dirty, low down anarchists who have no morality (bourgeois) and no God (bourgeois)." Of course, they mean the Socialists, and they think that if they poison the minds of the developing bags or packages of labor power, that they will be safe or free from all the disturbing elements tbat threaten the average wage slave. The most peculiar thing of all ls that all the mud slinging that they can do, is to pick up something of which capitalism alone is responsible and stigmatize the Socialist with the same. Of course it is their environment and they could not do otherwise. "Free love"—just as if under. capitalism we had an ideal sexuality, When we know that the present marriage system is nothing more or less than a bartering of one's mind and body for a mess of pottage. "Dividers up," wh«n lt is the capitalist with his superior economic power and political insight to his aid, tbat does the dividing up to suit himself. "Patriotism" when the, capitalists are banded together with one common bond which is economic and not sexual or racial, or national Like thieves at a fair they are banded together, irrespective of caste, just with one common aim, to exploit the working class. To crown all, the few working men who are wise to the skin game, are termed anarchists! Just fancy a fat, bloated old capitalist minded parson and others saying, "Ab it was in the beginning, Is now and ever shall be," etc., and then to accuse the Socialist of being anarchistic. Who are the anarchists, the Socialist or the forces of reaction (parsons and others)? Obviously, anarchy recognizes no law. It recognizes not social evolution and if a parson or anyone says, "As it was in the beginning," etc., then he must be the anarchist. "Beware of the anarchists," fellow slaves. Take the parson's word for lt, but first of all, get to know what anarchism is, and who are the anarchists. The economic world ls composed of two classes, and we can safely say that the sociological world Ib also composed of two classes. As the economic develops and makes clearer the lines of cleavage, the sociological world will find its bearings. Then the Socialist philosophy will come to the front, and anarchy will go to the background, whether of the demonic or the angelic type. Why will this be so? The only answer Is that "Tho world is ruled by law,' and these laws cannot be held or pushed back. Consequently the Socialist, founding his philosophy on the natural law of evolution, cannot be held back. His is the only school of thought that ls logical and natural and consequently It will come about because of human necessity, that the workers shall take back that which has been taken away from them. To sum up, Socialism Ib not a perfect social organization, and ls not founded on any abstraction. It Is nothing more or less than "the application of the new scientific theory of natural evolution to human society," to ubo the words of Enrico Ferrle. It. is not a perfect social organization. It Is not founded on an abstraction. Socialism is founded on four laws, namely: Historical materialism, the class struggle, the law of surplus values and anarchy In production. A knowledge of these four points Is essential to become a Socialist. Historical materialism is opposed directly to idealism, therefore Christianity bas no place in our philosophy. Having said a little in regard to Socialism, we will now get to the other bunch, who are opposed to us either consciously or unconsciously. I refer to the anarchists. They are of two types—the toxff water and the sewer type. The rose water type are those who, like Tolstoy, and a very few followers of Jesus, believe in offering the other cheek tor the smlter. Unconsciously the working class are followers, of this doctrine, because they offer the whole cjamn family for exploitation and themselves in the bargain. This Is the klijd of guff that the capitalist likes, forflt lt satisfies the slaves, then he la ,safe, whilst the slaves suffer in silence. The Utopians are half-baked anarchists, for they base on an abstraction altruism. However, in the case of the Utopians there is hope. Just as was the case in the development of scientific Socialism out of Utoplanism, we will have the same development in each individual Utopian. Some wll stop In the mire of anarchy, ap history shows us was the case , wltb Proudhon, Bakunlne and others, but more, will follow Marx, Engell and thousands of others by becoming the real red, who Is the sole danger ito tne master class. n The dirty water type is composisff-of * both terrorists and egoists. me assassinators are all terrorists.: They give life and limb, ln order to strike a blow for anarchy. The egoists are best represented by Stlrner, who was a bourgeois-minded person. He said that he was "thp owner of everything he needed, and. could get hold of." That is true todayjunder capitalism, but take care that sou do it according to capitalist rules and regulations. The capitalists do so themselves, and consequently after all, why Bhould Stlrner have kicked, or . any of his followers kick today | when the successful ones are merely following the doctrine laid down by Sflnner himBelf? Where Stlrner and a few more anarchists fall, is because they do. not recognize natural evolution. This is the Socialist stronghold, and the weakness of anarchy, or shall I say the strength, because we know that if a man only understood natural evolution, he would soon leave the anarchists and join hands witn the scientififlc Socialists. Anarchy is reactionary, because the anarchist method of carrying on a warfare is more in line with the times when Moses was,.the greaff high priest. To have killed Moses Would have practically meant, the rout of the entire Israelitish army. At the present time, however,'"direct action" vfithotit political power is entirely uselesi. Let me give an illustration. A man 1 know as a member of the engineer's, union, i^ked, at the time of the Titanic disaster, if ."Hays had gope down?" Of course the answer was in the' affirmative, and he„sald, "Good." this was anarchy with a vengeance, butipn, be.-, Ing asked what'he would do with Hays No. 2, he was paralyzed. No, sir, anarchy is an obsolete weapon of the time of Christ, He drove out the money changers, but If you tried the same stunt; today it would be nothing more or less than a new way of committing suicide. The only method Is "direct action" with political power behind us. Until then, we are weak. Let us get strong. THOS. MELLALIEU. SECOND PARTY IN ALASKA. Complete returns from the recent election in the fourth division, the most populous section of Alaska, which includes Fairbanks, give Wlck- ersham, progressive, for delegate to Congress, 789 votes; Kazis Krauzunas, Socialist, 5T2; Gilmore, Reptunlcan, 150; Jennings, Democrat, 151. ' | The striking feature of the eleetWri " is the fact that according to unofficial reports the Socialist candidate for Congress is the second party ln Alaska. Wickersham—who is a calf ;of the Bull Moose—seems to have been elected, with tbe Socialist a close second. LOCAL VANCOUVER Propaganda MEETING i— i Every Sunday Eveniog Empress Theatre •/ PAGE TWO THE WESTERN CLARION VANCOUVER. BRITISH COLUMBIA. SATURDAY, AUGUST 24, 1912.. IK WESIERN UON Published every Saturday by tho Socialist Party of Canada at tho office of the Western Clarion, Labor T-imple, Dunsmulr St., Vancouver, B. C. POST OFFICE ADDRESS, LABOR TEMPLE, DUNSMUIR ST. SUBSCRIPTION. •1.00 Per Year, 50 cents for Six Months, 25 cents for Tbree Months. Strictly ln Advance. Bundles of 5 or more copies for a period of not Isss than three months, at the rate af one cent per copy per Issue. Advertising rates on application. If you receive this paper, It Is paid for. In making remlttancs by cheque, exchange must be added. Address all communications and make all money- orders payable to THE WE3TERN CLARION may .be sure, and that is if the response is sufficient to once put even a few organizers in the lleld it wlll be an easy matter to keep it up. Nothing succeeds like success. Once there appears to be something doing a lot Qf hitherto spineless ones will proceed to develop enough backbone to add their little "mite" of effort to the good work. The Clarion sincerely hopes the response will be sufficiently hearty and abundant to admit of an energetic campaign being set on foot at once and kept up indefinitely. There is a tremendous amount of work to be done. We have those at our command who are splendidly equipped for the task in hand. Are we enough interested r»flt*",,tttch th8 lftbel on your tiaptr. lt OOJ this number ls on It. your subscription expiree the next issue. SATURDAY, AUGUST 24, 1912. Labor Temple, Dunsmulr St.. Vancouver, ,|n the a(ivancement of the revolutionary program _of the working class to dig down In our pockets for small coin for the war-chest? Are we too Indifferent and spineless to raise either a dollar or a dime in behalf, of the struggle of our class for freedom from capitalist exploitation? Our Party organization needs funds to push forward OUR work. It requests that the collection cards provided be energetically circulated and funds collected forwarded promptly, (with card) on or before date specified, to the Dominion Executive Committee, Labor Temple, Vancouver, B. C. +■" What will the answer be? WHAT WILL THE ANSWER BE? For some time the Socialist movement in Canada has been chiefly noted for the apathy and indifference manifested by the majority of those who profess to be followers of that particular economic and political faith. While each individual will cheerfully acknowledge the necessity of carrying on vigorous and persistent propaganda and the building up of an organization for the purpose of effectively dealing with the problems that are pressing upon the working class for solution, few there are who will offer any substantial aid toward such purpose. The same spirit of shltfless apathy seems to afflict the trade union movement as well. There is next to nothing doing anywhere along the line of labor Interests. Whether this is due to the anesthetic virtue of Canadian prosperity, or that the workers have simply lapsed into the category of invertebrates, where submissive slaves properly belong, is a question that we shall not attempt to answer. Owing to a lack of funds lt has been impossible to keep any organizers in the field for some time past. The Alberta Executive has been able to do a little in this line, as the report ln another column shows, but under extreme difficulties, owing to lack of cash. Even the little thus done could not have been accomplished had it not been for the voluntary services of Comrades O'Brien, Budden and a few others. This is not as it should be and it is to the everlasting shame of those of us who ate both shiftless and spineless that such a condition obtains at all. The Dominion Executive bas appealed for funds in order to carry on this necessary work. Such appeal has met with no response except from a very limited number of comrades, and these are the ones who seldom, If ever, wait for an appeal to be made. Another attempt is now being made along the line followed by the Socialist Party of the United States in raising its campaign fund for the pending electoral contest. A collection card has been prepared to be placed In the hands of as wide a circle of comrades and sympathizers as possible, by means of which it ls hoped that sufficient funds may be obtained, through small contributions upon the part ot individuals. These cards are so arranged that a contributor may sign his name and perforate the card with an ordinary pin so as to Indicate' the amount paid. As the cards are to be used only by duly authorized collectors the punching of a card by the contributor is equivalent to a receipt for hiB money, as the amount thus indicated must be accounted for to the proper officers of the Party by the collector. Twenty-five cents per month Is a sum bo lnslgnflcant that it would be nonsense to assume that it could not be paid by practically every member of the party, or every reader of the Clarion in Canada, if they felt- so disposed. If this was forthcoming at least a dozen organizers could be kept In the field and a tremendous work accomplished on behalf of the proletariat. These small sums can be contributed by even the more impecunious, without being felt, and they would be In most cases cheerfully given If the Individual could but realize the tremendous significance of concerted action by the workers ln even this individually small financial way. A macnlflcent movement Is building in the States. Its activities are assuming a magnitude that is disturbingly suggestive to the brutal capitalist class. That Its work is carried on through the email, even petty, contributions of a multitude of earnest but impecunious souls Is a matter already noted with alarm by the capitalist press of that country. Just what the result of this plan of the Dominion Executive to raise funds for the purpose in question, Is to be, THAT IS WHY. can not defy the storm. Were it "built upon a rock," etc., etc., you know the rest. Since when the S. P. of C. became a teacher of Darwinism we wot not, but inasmuch as the conclusions arrived at by Darwin in the. field of biology have proved, for more than half a century, as impervious to the attack of theological squirt-guns, as have the economic deductions of Marx to the stink-pots o' bourgeois political economy, it would uppear that Darwinism is near enough iu line with truth to be acceptable at least to the average Socialist. For '!>is reason we fail to see why our correspondent complainB, for he declares himself a Socialist. We offer these few rambling remarks in justification bf the attitude of the S. P. of C. as to certain charges In the indictment and a plea of not guilty as to the rest. That is why. WHAT WORKERS OUGHT TO KNOW. lumber, we could easily figure up how much values we produce and how little we get. And why? .Equipped with that knowledge we would realize what valuable animals we are. Then we would cease'to be meek and submissive slaves. We would break the rule of capital which exploits us. Before I knew how to measure value I was one of the most loyal subjects Queen Victoria ever had, but as soon'as I learned how to measure value I became chuck full of revolution. The Socialist movement is the only school that teaches how to measure value. If you want to learn, it is au easy as it is to learn to measure lumber. But in order to learn thc latter you hnd to study. So with value, you must study. Any proletariat can do it. You will never regret it. Anyhow to bo a Socialist worthy of the name you must know how to measure value. Next week I will send a short article on how to measure value. ' C. Hi. O'BRIEN. A Saskatchewan comrade asks, "Why does the S. P. of C. attach so much Importance to the materialistic conception of history, attack religion, and teach Darwinism as a part of the Socialist philosophy?" In reference to flrst part of the question, we quote the following from Marx and Engels as a brief and concise statement of the very essence of the materialist conception of history. "The materialist conception of history starts from the proposition that the production of the means to support life, and, next to production, the exchange of things produced, ls the basis of all social structure; that in every society that has appeared in history, the manner in which wealth is distributed and society divided into classes or orders, Is dependent upon what ls produced, and how the products are exchanged. From this point of view the final causes of all social changes and . political revolutions are to be sought, not in men's brains, not ln man's better insight into eternal truth and justice, but in changes ln the modes of production and exchange. They are to be sought, not ln tbe philosophy, but in tbe economics of each particular epoch." * • * » « m "In every historical epoch the prevailing mode of production and exchange, and the social organization necesarlly following from it, form the basis upon wbich is built up, and from which alone can be explained the political and intellectual history ot that epoch." From this viewpoint the reason for the existence of all human institutions, political, educational, juridical or religious and their policies and purposes may be readily understood. Hence the materialist conception of history is the very groundwork of what our correspondent terms the "Socialist philosophy." From this groundwork easily follows a crit'.cal analysis of each and every phase of social activity, whether in the rtalm of truth or falsehood, fact or fiction, science or faith. This .s why, not merely the S. P. ot C, bui every Socialist, in order to be armed for the fray, attaches so much importance to the materialist conception of history. Without an understanding of that, both the Party and the individual would, like a ship without a rudder, be more apt to founder in the breakers of reaction than to keep head on to the revolutionary storm. As to attacking religion, upon behalf of the S. P. of C, we deny the charge. The materialist conception ot history knocks the supernatural underpin" ning from faith, mysticism and superstition, and reduces these threadbare stage properties to the category of all other junk that rests entirely upon a material basis and exists solely to fulfill an economic purpose. Neither the S. P. of C. nor the individual Socialist, needs to attack religion, for just as rapidly as modern research uncovers the facts relating to the growth and development of human society and all that pertains thereto, just as speedily does mysticism, superstition, faith and credulity totter toward their grave in oblivion. We were about to remark that any cause that tears attack cannot be founded upon the bedrock of truth, Lest we injure the feelings of some thin-skinned devotee we will refrain, however, and merely beg to suggest that when any one protests against an attack upon their hobby, whether it be religion or something else, they are but proclaiming from the housetops, as it were, that it Js builded upon the remains to be seen. Of one thing we sands of uncertainty and, therefore, 'I'S^r^^"" ^STjNB.C," fin*rVBS.' Every Comrade ought to know how to measure value, if for no other reason than the pleasure to be derived from taunting the representatives of the capitalist class with the fact that they do not know how, neither is it taught in the authorized places of education. In the higher places of education they deal with value, they could not very well overlook such an important subject. They teach that the law of supply and demand determines the value of a commodity. About sixty years ago Marx hurled this question at the defenders of capitalism: "If supply and demand determines the value of a commodity, when supply and demand equal each other what is its value?" Why lt would have no value. For Instance, when the supply and demand of clothes became, equal we would get clothes for nothing. Members of our class know that we do not get things so easy. True the capitalist class gets everything for nothing, but that Is regardless of the relative position of supply and demand. Though they have never answered Marx' question, they continue to teach their victims that supply and demand determines value. To show how confused the representatives of the capitalist class are on the question of value, I will here tell one of my many experiences' with them. It was my flrst session'in the legislative assembly. His Majesty's loyal opposition was crowding the government, which only had a small majority. On every division I had walk' ed out rather than support either of them. None of tbem knew what to make of me. I had just finished taunt ing them on how little they knew about the nature of the property they represented, when the Attorney General made a bold effort to gain my support. He said: "As a member of this government I welcome every Social faction to be represented ln this assembly. Then we will know what is required. But I particularly welcome the Socialists as they belong to a new school of political economy, and while many leading lights still cling to the old school (taking a fall out of the leader of His Majesty's loyal opposition), soon we wll) all have to recognize this new school. The old school taught us that the law of supply and demand was an all important factor in determining prices. But the. new school as represented by the Socialists proves to us that supply and demand has nothing whatever to do with determining prices." Great applause, and most of them looked at me as much as to say: "There is no longer any need of you trying to be a third party. Why, the Attorney General is not only familiar with the old school, but he ls also a Socialist." The expression of victory spread all over him. When he finished, I said: "Mr. Speaker, I don't think the Honorable member intended to misrepresent the Socialist teachings, but he ls very ill- informed. We Socialists never said tbat the law of supply and demand was not a factor in determining prices. Oo the contrary we prove that lt is an all Important factor in determining prices. We differ from the old school, in that they teach that the law of supply and demand is an all important factor in determining value. y "We easily prove that the law of supply and demand has nothing whatever to do with determining value; that the value of commodities are determined by the social labor time necessary to reproduce them; that the price ls the monetary expression of value, and fluctuates above and below value according to supply and demand." He who had set down a hero, now looked at me with a cheap grin as much as to Bay, "You mjght have left lt with me." His admirers looked disappointed. They felt too cheap to think they were so easily trapped. They give us such education as we have because lt ls to their material interests to do so. They have us taught how to measure lumber, weigh wheat, coal, etc., because that increases our productive power, makes us better slaves, but why don't they have us taught how to measure value? Because It is not to the interests of the capitalist class. If we knew how to measure value as we know how to measure Comrade G. Darts of Sardls, B. C, sends in one dollar towards the or- ganizng fund. TO LOCAL SECRETARIES. Cards for the collection of organizing funds have been sent out to secretaries. If you have not received any let us know at once. All cards must be returned whether used or not. Let us know how many cards you can use in your locality, so that we can properly supply your requirements. It is time to get in touch with all members of your Local. See that they are communicated with and supplied with a collector's card. At the next business meeting flnd out how many members are subscribing for the Western Clarion. Have you got your books in shape so as to be able to make a report when you send ln your next quarterly report card? Make a list of members who are behind in their dues, and get somebody to hunt them up. THE NEW CHIVALRY. Still, as of yore, the Are of knighthood glows, Though time has rent the tower upon the hill; Brave Galahad girds on his mail, and still On Greatheart's armour fall the clanging blows. Shall they hold back when hourly deeper grows The wrong might lays on weakness? Trumpets shrill, That whoso hears must feel an answering thrill, Call them to battle with the people's foes. But now no more knights-errant lift the lance In tourney-sport beneath fair ladles' * eyes; Stern war they wage—time shall not see it fail. They know their workless brothers' sad mischance, And they have overheard their sisters' sighs, And met a little child whose cheek ls pale. JOHN ANDERSON STEWART. The Springs, Meadle, Bucks, England. Socialist Party Directory DOMINION BXECUTITE COMMITTEE Soelaliat' Party of Canada, meets second and fourth Monday. Secretary, Wm. Watts, Labor Temple, Dunsmulr St., Vancouver, B.C. BRITISH COLUMBIA PBOVINCIAL Executive Committee, Socialist Party of Canada, meets second and fourth Mondays in month at Labor Temple, Dunsmuir St., Wm. Watts, Secretary. ALBERTA PROVINCIAL EXECUTIVE Socialist Party of Canada, meets every alternate Tuesday, at 429 Eighth Ave. East. Burt K. Anderson, Secre- tary, Box 617. Calgary. SASKATCHEWAN PROVINCIAL EXECUTIVE, 8. P. of 0., Invites all comrades residing In Saskatchewan to communicate wltb them on organization matters Addres< D. McMillan, 222 Stadacona Street West, Moose Jaw, Sask. MANITOBA PBOVINCIAL B.TBCUTTVE Committee: Notice—This card is inserted for the purpose of getting "YOU" Interested in the Socialist movement. SOCIALISTS are always members of the Party; so if you are desirous of becoming a member, or wish to get any Information, write the ■secretary, J. 1). Houston, 493 Furby St.. ■Winnipeg. MARITIME PBOVINCIAL EXECUTIVE Committee, Socialist Party of Canada, meets every second and fourth Sundays In tbe Cape Breton office of the Party, Commercial Street, Glace Bay, N. S. Dan Cochrane, Secretary, no* 491, Glace Bay, N. S. LOCAL VANCOUVEB, NO. 69, 8. P. of C. Headquarters, Hoom 206 Labor Temple, Dunsmuir Street. Business meeting every Friday in the month at 8 pm Reading room open every day. Socialist and Labor papers of all countries on file. Secretary, S. Lefeaux. LOOAL OREENWOOD, X. C, NO. 9, S. P. of C, meets every Sunday evening at Miners' Union Hall. Greenwood. Visiting Comrades invited to call. C. Prlmertle, Secretary. LOCAL FERNIE, 8. T. ot ft, HOLD holds educational meetings In the Miners Union Hall every Sunday at 7:30. Business meeting nrst Monday in each month, 7:30 p. m. Economic class every Sunday afternoon at 2:30. H. Wilmer, secretary, Box 380. LOOAL ROSSLAND, NO. SB, B. T. ot ft", meeta ln Miners' Hall every Sunday at 7:30 p.m. E. Campbell, Organlaer. Will Jones, Secretary, Box 13C. Finnish branch meets In Flnlanders' HaU Sundays at 7:30 p.m. A. Sebble, Secretary, Box 54, Rossland, B.C. LOOAL MICHEL, R. ft, NO. 18, 8. T. ol C, holds propaganda meetings every Sunday afternum at 1:10 p.m. In Crahan's Hall. A hearty Invitation is extended to all wag* slaves within reach of us to attend our meetings. Business meetings ar* held the tlraC. and third Sundays of each month at 10:10 a.m. in the same hall. Party organizers take notice. T. W. Brown, Secretary. LOOAL NELSON, 8. P. of 0., —BETS every Friday evening at 8 p.m., in Miners' Hall, Nelson, B. C. I. A. Austin, Secretary. LOOAL VERNON, NO. 38, 8. P. OP O Meets every Tuesday at 8 p. m., In L. O. L. Hall, Tronson St. W. H. Gll- mour, Secretary. LOOAL BXVXLSTOXX, X. C.", NO. ?, S. P. of C. Business meetings at Socialist headquarters fourth Thursdays of each month. B. F. Gayman, Secretary. LOOAX SANDON, B. ft, NO. 36, 8. T. OP C. Meets every Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. In the Sandon Miners' Unlor Hall. gommunicatlons to bs addrassed rawer K, Sandon, B. C. LOOAL VICTORIA NO. 2, B. T. Ot ft— Headquarters and reading room 675 Yates St. Business meeting every Tuesday, 8 p.m. Propaganda meeting overy Saturday, 8 p.m., corner of Yates and Langley, LOOAL SOUTH PORT 0XOMB, R.O., No. 61, meets every Friday night at 8 -p.m. In Public Library Room. John Mclnnls, Secretary; Andrew Allan. Organizer. LOOAL CUMBERLAND NO. 70 8. P. Of 0. Business meeting every Sunday, 10:30 a.m. Economic Class held twice each Thursday, 10:30 a.m. (for afternoon shift), 8 p.m. (for morning shift). Propaganda meeting every Sunday 3 p.m. Headquarters: Socialist Hall, opposite post office. Financial Secretary Thomas Carney, Corresponding Secretary, Joseph Naylor. .VANCOUVER LETTISH LOCAL No. 68. S. I*. of C.—Business meeting every first Sunday of thc month and propaganda meeting every third Sunday. Room open to everybody at 612 Cordova Street East, 2 p. m. ■ Secretary, Atl Kreekls. LOCAL VANCOUVER, B. ft, NO. 45, Finnish. Meets every second and Fourth Thursdays in the month at 213 Hastings St. East. Ovla Llnd, Secretary. LOCAL VANCOUVER No I, 8. P. of ft— Business meeting every Tuesday evening at Headquarters, 213 Hastings St. East, 11. I'ahlm, Secretary. LOCAL COLEMAN, ALTA., NO. t. Miners' Hnll and Opera House. Propaganda meetings at S p.m. on the first and third Sundays of the month. Business meetings on Thursday evenings following propaganda meetings at I. Organizer, T. Steele, Coleman, Alta.; Secretary, Jas. Glendenning, Box It, Coleman, Alta. Visitors may receive Information any day at Miners' Hall Secretary, Wm. Graham, Box 63, Coleman, Alta. LOCAL EDMONTON, ALTA., NO. 1, S. P. of C. Headquarters 622 First St. Business and propaganda meetings every Wednesday at 7:30 p.m, sharp. Our reading room is open to the public free, from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. dally. Secretary, J. A. S, Smith, 622 First St.; Organizer, VV. Stephenson. LOCAL CALOARY, ALTA., NO. 4, B.P. of C.—Business meeting every Saturday evening at 8 o'clock at the headquarters. 429 Eighth Ave. East, between Third and Fourth streets, S. K. Read, Secretary. LOOAL REGINA NO. 8, BAB—, MBBT8 every Sunday, Trades Hall, 8 p.m. Business meeting, second Friday, I p.m. Trades Hall. W. B. Bird, Gen. Del., Secretary. LOCAL BRANDON, MAN., NO. 7, 8. P. of C. Headquarters, No. 10 Nation Block, I*ossar Ave. Propaganda matting, Sunday at 8 p.m.; business meeting, second and fourth Mondays at I p.m.; economic class, Friday at 8 p.m. Secretary, T. Mellnlieu, 144 Third St., Brandon, Man. LOCAL LETKBBIDOE, ALTA., NO. 16, S. P. of C. Meets first and third Sundays tn tho month, at 4 p.m., la Miners' Hall. Secretary, Chas. Paa- cock, Box 1988. - LOCAL MOOSEJAW, 8A8X., X*. 1, 8. T. OP ft—-Propaganda meetings evsrr Sunday, 7:30 p. m., ln tne Trades Hall. Economic Class every Sunday, I p.m. W. McAllister. Secretary, Box 687. A. Stewart organizer. LOCAL No. 1, WrWNTPEO, MANITOBA, S. P. of C.—Hoadquarters, Labor Temple. Business meeting every Saturday, 8 p.m. Secretary's address, 270 Young St. Propaganda meeting every Sunday at 8 o'clock ln the Dreamland Theatre, Main St. LOCAL OTTAWA, NO 8, 8. P. OP O. Open air meetings during summer months, corner McKenzie Avenue and Kideau Street. Business meetings, first Sunday ln month in the Labor Hall, 219 Bank Street, at 8:00 p.m. Secretary, Sam Sturgess Horwlth, 16 Ivy Avenue N.E., Ottawa, Phone 277. LOOAL OLACE BAT, No. 1 OP MARITIME—Headquarters ln Rukasin Block, Commercial St. Open every evening. Business and propaganda meeting at headquarters every Thursday at 8 p. m. Alfred Nash, secretary, Box 168; Harold G. Ross, organiser. Box 606. LOOAL SIDNEY MINES NO. 7, Of Nova Scotia.—Business and propaganda meetings every second Monday at 7:30 ln the S. O. B. T. Hall back of Town Hall. Wll'lam Allen, Secretary, Box 344. ■ UKRAINIAN SOCIALIST TION of the S. P. of C, ls organised for the purpose of educating tha Ukralnean workers to the revolutionary principles of this party. Tha Ukranlan Federation publish their owa weekly organ, "Nova Hromada" (New Society), at 448 Klnistlno Ave., Edmonton, Alta. English comrades desiring information re the Federation, write to J. Senuk, Fin. Secretary. Cards Inserted $1 a Month ThlB Is your chance to get a blow at the system. Are you going to take advantage of it or are you going to let tbe rest ot tbe working class remain ln Ignorance for another generation? This ls the best opportunity you have had for putting our dope into tbe hands of your fellow slaves, and yet the response is not what lt should be. Surely you are not satisfied with the present system, surely you don't expect to find tha working class hunting you up and asking about Socialism without knowing there ls such a thing. If at aqy time you don't receive your regular copy of the Clarion, let us know and we will endeavor to send you one of that Issue. Things will go wrong even in tbe best regulated families. ATEMTS ll_H__UI_B_3___!J In all Countries. Ask for bur Inventor's Adviser. Marion & Marlon, 364 University Street, corner St Catherine Street, Montreal, and Washington, D. O, "O. S. A. F. PERRY TAILOR Removed from 58 Hornby St. to LABOR TEMPLE. A Good Place to Eat at Mulcahy's Cafeteria 137 Cordova Street West The best of Everything properly cooked PLATFORM Socialist Party of Canada We, the Socialist Party of Canada, in convention assembled, affirm our allegiance to and support of the principles and programme of the revolutionary working class. Labor produces all wealth, and to the producers lt should belonf. The present economic system is based upon capitalist ownership of the means of production, consequently all the products of labor belong to the capitalist class. Tbe capitalist is therefore master; the worker a slave. So long as the capitalist class remains in possession of the reins of government all the powers of the State wlll be used to protect snd defend their property rights in the means of wealth production and their control of the product of labor. The capitalist system gives to the capitalist an ever-swelling stream of profits, and to the worker an ever-increasing measure of misery and degredation. The interest of the working class lies In the direction of setting Itself free from capitalist exploitation by the abolition of tbe wage system, under which is cloaked the robbery of the working class at the point of production. To accomplish this necessitates tbe transformation of capitalist property in the means of wealth production into collective or worklng-claBB property. The Irrepressible conflict of interests between the capitalist and the worker ls rapidly culminating ln a struggle for possession of the reins of government—the capitalist to hold, the worker to secure lt by political action. This Is the class struggle. Therefore, we call upon all workers to organize under the banner of the Socialist Party of Canada, with the object of conquering the public powers for the purpose of setting up and enforcing the economto programme of the working class, as follows: 1. The transformation, as rapidly as possible, of capitalist property in the means of wealth production (natural resources, factories, mills, railroads, etc.) into the collective property ot the working claBs. 2. The democratic organization nnd management of Industry by the workers. 3. The establishment, as speedily as possible, of production for use instead of production for profit. The Socialist Party when tn office shall always and everywhere until tt°he present system ls abolished, make the answer to this question Its guiding rule of conduct: Will this legislation advance the Interests of the working class and aid the workers ln their class struggle against capitalism? If it will, the Socialist Party ls for lt; If lt will not, the Socialist Party is absolutely opposed to it. In accordance with this principle the Socialist Party pledges Itself to conduct all the public affairs placed in its hands in such a manner as to promote the interests ot the working class alone. SUBSCRIPTION CARDS 5 Yearlies - - - $3.75 10 1-2 Yearlies - - 4.00 20 Quarterlies - - 4.00 8ATURDAY, AUGUST 24, 1912. THE WESTERN CLARION, VANCOUVER. BRITISH COLUMBIA. PAGE THREE Special Off et- WE HAVE IN stock a quantity of 5c and 10c pamphlets of our own publication. They should be put in circulation, as they contain matter of value to the student of economic conditions. They are especially valuable to put in the hands of those not yet familiar with the Socialist position and argument. In order to get them into the hands of readers and and at the same time push the circulation of the Western Clarion, we make the following offer: For each subscription to the Western Clarion for one year received on or after August 15, 1912, and until further notice, we will forward to the subscriber the following list of booklets postpaid. Manifesto of S. P. of C 10c What Is Socialism? 10c Socialism and Unionism.... Se Slave of the Farm So The State and Government.. 6c Value, Price and Profit 5c Struggle for Existence Se Summary of Marx' "Capital" Se fl This applies to all, whether new subs or renewals. «J If you are not already on our list take advantage of this offer by getting on. «J If already a subscriber, take advantage of this by renewing your sub. *2 Get your neighbor to subscribe, and thus become acquainted with the literature of the movement. <J In all cases read these little booklets carefully and then pass them along for the good they may do. WESTERN CLARION LABOR TEMPLE Vancouver, B. C. The tide ln Canadian prosperity has changed. Real estate sharks everywhere are looking 'with envious eyes on the working man to try to get him to Invest in a river bottom, mountain side, or an Inaccessible forest, but the wage plug la having no more of the "sure things" peddled by those shysters. Even if he had thoughts of Investing ln a lot (of Junk) the high cost ot living makes him have another think and he eventually comes to the conclusion that tt is better to feed Mb own stomach than the shark's. He will soon be thinking it better to get the full product of his toil than to give four-fifths of it to a parasite who has too much already. CORRESPONDENCE REPORT OF THE ALPERTA PROVINCIAL EXECUTIVE. For the Half-year Ending June 30, 1912. Locals organized since Jan. 1st, 5. Locals reorganized since Jan. 1st, 3. Total number of Locals ln Alberta, June 30th, 31. Number of members in good standing. 335. Admitted during the half-year, 115. Expelled or suspended, 32. Deceased, 1. Propaganda meetings held by Locals, 104. Business meetings held by Locals, 6). . Provincial organizers in the field, C. M. O'Brien and Alf. Budden. Meetings held by O'Brien since the adjournment of the House, 96. Meetings held by Budden, February to June, inclusive, 89. Letters received by Provincial Sec retary, 176. » Letters written by Provincial Secretary, 259. Receipts from all sources, Jan. 1st to June 30th, $164.20. , Expenditures during the same period $144.44. I Balance in hand June 30, $19.76. Owing to the tardiness of some of the Secretaries of the various Locals, and the failure of others, to send in their reports to the Executive, this re port has been unavoidably delayed; and some of the figures relating sto membership are only approximate, being based on former reports. 18 Locals reported to the Provincial Sec retary for the quarter ending June 30, 1912. BURT E. ANDERSON, Secretary Alberta Provincial Executive Committee. HOW THEY COME ALBERTA PROVINCIAL EXECUTIVE A meeting of the executive held Aug 13, 1912, the minutes of the previous meeting being read and approved, aud the following members were present: Burge, Read, McLean, Haag, Turner, and the Secretary. Correspondence was read and dealt with from Locals Red Deer, Ersklne, Markerville and Edmonton; Ole L. Dahl, A. Budden, re organizing, and G. O. Vennesland, re Scandanavlan Socialist papers. Bill for $8 for rent of room allowed, BUI for $2.25 to S. K. Read for postage and Incidentals ln connection with the Alberta Edition of the Clarion allowed. The report of the Secretary for the half-year ending June 30, 1912, was then read and adopted, and a copy ordered sent to the Western Clarion for publication. The Secretary's financial report was then read and adopted: Receipts since June 30 $28.00 Balance in hand June 30 19.76 $47.76 Expenditures since June 30 39.05 Balance in hand $12.71 The committee then adjourned. BURT E. ANDERSON, Secretary. What are you. doing to help spread Socialism? You can get a bundle of Western Clarions every week for one cent a copy. You can get eight pieces of literature with your dollar sub. You can send in and get a card for collecting funds for organizing purposes. You can go to the Local in your burg, join it and take part in the work of that Local. If you are a member of a Local you can get a card from the Secretary for collecting organizing funds. Are you going to do any of these things or are you going to wait till things are bo damn rotten we will be compelled to shoulder a gun? Socialist organizers are badly needed In every province. We are preparing for a big onslaught this winter and it's up to you to start the ball rolling right now by sending in your mite to the Dominion Executice Committee or getting a card for the collection of funds. We want to start the organizers out about tbe middle of September. Once they are out we have something up our sleeve that will help keep them in the field without very much mom help from you. Some Comrade sugegsted that we should boom the "Clarion Army," for we need not fear that the sub hustlers would become too enthusiastic. Well, we don't like the idea of booming anybody who should realize that it is their duty to boom the Clarion' and not the Clarion to boom them. Here we have been struggling along for years, as all Socialist papers must, hewing to the line, staying right with the working class, and time and time again slaves who have grasped our teachings have gone back on us and joined another party, worked for another paper which today hides from the eyes of their readers certain little items that tend to cast shadows on tue S. P. of C. and we flnd our own members taking no notice of these things, but continuously helping another party whose mission is, If they have any, to destroy the S. P. of C. We don't want to cause any more strife among the working class than we can help, as we can see that nothing has been gained ln the past by stirring up trouble, but it should be the bounden duty of all workers to keep their eyes skinned for any crook, ed work by a so-called working class organization. Our day will come. In the meantime stay with the Party who has been fighting the battles of the working class for the last twelve years. We all want to see the Co-operative Commonwealth ushered In in short order, but no matter how ripe some of us are there is a great majority of the workers still uneducated. Some of our old members can tell of how men who had been reading so- called Socialist papers for years went and voted the old party ticket because it looked good to them. The Western Clarion Is published to make Socialists, not sympathizers, and our Party is in the field to educate the workng class and not merely to catch votes. Comrades, lt is up to you to push your paper and your party, we do not want you to become martyrs, we want men. Nothing can be gained by helping to cause a split. Now, then, let us show a solid front to all enemies of the working class, Let us be* united on tbe Issue of working for one Party and one paper. Here are a bunch of hustlers who have rained to the cause of the. working, class: H. G. Ross, Glace Bay, N. S...... 21 P. A. Peley, Colingwood, BL, B. C....J.4 Geo. Paton, Content, Alta 11 Thos. Tomashavsky, Lethbridge, Alta 11 Geo. McKay, Marron Lake, B. C 10 Jas. Cuthburtson, Greenwood, B. C... 7 W. K. Byrce, Demaine, Alta 6 Walter Suley, Moose Jaw, Sask 6 M. J. Andruss, Big Valley, Alta 5 J. A. Everett, Erskine, Alta 4 Philip Paughman, Montreal, Que 3 A. Taylor, Toronto, Ont 2 A. D. McDonald, Klnnondale, Alta.... 2 J. A. S. Smith, Edmonton, Alta 2 A. Stewart, Moose Jaw, Sask 2 A. Grewar, St. Catherines, Ont 2 Singles. J. Teit, Spencss Bridge, B. O.J D. Darts, Sardls, B. C; N. D. Thuchuk, Canmore, Alta.; Wm. McQuold, Edmonton; J. Watson, Winnipeg, Man.; Local Toronto; A. G. McCallum, Ottawa, Ont.; John Hartley, Fort William, Ont.; J. C. Turner, Victoria, B. 01; S. Lallman, Enderby, B. C; F.Evangel isti, Swampscott, Mass. ALBERTA REDS, ATTENTION! [matter Is pushed as it ought to be. I We can not expect satisfactory results The Alberta Provincial Executive unless we are up and doing. Many Committee has had, up to the present j hands make light work. Apply at once time, two organizers in the field, tour- to your Local, or to the Dominion Ex Ing the Province and spreading thelecutive Committee for a contribution Comrade A. G. McCallum of Ottawa sends in another five dollars towards the Clarion maintenance fund. Rally round the Party of your Class for you will gain nothing by siding with the parasitic class. Comrade M. J. Andrus of Big Valley, Alberta, forwards another bunch of subs, which makes forty-seven he has sent in from that little burg. If a few more of you fellows would do likewise we would have the old party politicians raving and throwing out all kinds of sops to keep back the rising tide of Socialist education. Why not do likewise? Local Brandon has been out of business for some time, but we have just got news that things have started up again there. It will now be up to Locals Winnipeg and Brandon to shoulder the task of putting a good organizer in that province and keep him there. Local Ottawa still reports good meet ings, also a good bunch of speakers who peddle the right dope. More power to them. Comrade N. D. Thuchuk of Can- more, Alta., sends In one dollar towards the Clarion Maintenance fund. Have you seen the new books advertised by the People's Book Store of Vancouver, B. C? Socialism means Independence—independence from dwarfing drudgery and debasing deprivation; independence from want, worry and wretchedness. Are you a member of the Socialist Party of Canada? If so you are needed at the next business meeting. See tbat you are there and remind the other fellow. There Is no reason whatever for your next door neighbor not to be able to read of Socialism while we are offering trial subs at ten cents for three months. Everybody's doin' it at MooBe Jaw. What are they doing? Talking Socialism. Yes, and the Local will have to hire a blggor theater before long, as the crowds won't be kept out of the one they have now. Another big bunch of subs from the Maritime. They mean business down there. All they want now is a good organizer to be kept constantly ln the field. Send in for a collecting card or get one from your Local secretary. revolutionary message of Socialism. The amount which has been contributed by Locals and individuals to the Organizing Fund since the flrst of the year, Is about $106.00. Of this sum Local Calgary and its individual members have subscribed B0 per cent, and had it not been for this Local and a few others live ones, the Executive would have been compelled to suspend the work early In the game. A notable example, and one worthy of emulation by other Locals, ls that of Local Markerville. This small Local of energetic Reds, though It consists of only 12 members, has contributed nearly 12 per cent of the Fund! May their tribe increase it! The question arises in the mind of the writer: Do the Socialists of Alberta want to see this organization work carried on?. It does not look like it, and save for a few enthusiasts, the responses to the appeal for funds published in the Clarion some time ago, were few and feeble compared to the magnitude of the task. If Alberta is to be thoroughly organized under the banner of the S. P. of C. as it can and should be, the least we can do is to furnish our organizers with their "hay and oats," as Gribble puts It, their railway fare, and possibly a stall in which to pass the "sma' wee hours," .though some of the bunch think, apparently, that a straw stack is good enough for an S. P. of C. or-, ganizer during the summer months. Charley O'Brien and Alf. Budden are well qualified for the job, and if they are willing to give their time and energy to the movement, the Alberta comrades should be not only willing but eager to keep them ln the field, preparing the soil, and sowing the seed, for the harvest of votes on next election day! With bulldog tenacity, O'Brien, sa'e out of Calgary jail,, ls still hanging on, stumping from place to place; Bud den, however, has been obliged, owing to the dwindling of the Organizing Fund, to give up the work and return to his home; and until the Socialists of Alberta arouse from their present apathetic state* we must permit this brilliant and energetic young comrade to "hide his light under a bushel." It is not the purpose of the writer to indulge in either panegyrics or lamentations, but to put the situation plainly before the readers of the Western Clarion, and convince them, if possible, of the importance of the work which has been undertaken by the Provincial Executive, and which ls now being carried on single-handed by O'Brien—a Herculean task indeed! The Province of Alberta ls, accord The Province of Alberta Is, according to O'Brien the best organized ln the Dominion: If that is true, tbe credit is due chiefly to him who made the statement, but he has often remarked to the writer that the job was too big for one man, and that, with one more organizer on the road and the cooperation of the Party membership in the matter of finances, a great deal more could be accomplished. Shall Budden be recalled, and the campaign of education and organization be continued? If so, the burden that so far has been borne by a few, must be more evenly distributed. From that class of chair-warming, ornamental Socialists, who prate of the "Inevitability' of Socialism, and diligently study the celling while tbe chairman of the Leaflet Distribution Committee is asking for volunteers for Sunday morning at 7 o'clock—no response to this appeal Is expected. Cuspidor philosophers, engaged in aerimonlouB polemics over tactics, and the probable date of the Inauguration of the Co-operative Commonwealth, go to! and "Look not upon tbe w(h)ine when it is re(a)d." Send all contributions to the undersigned, Secretary of the Alberta Provincial Executive Committee, and such sums will be acknowledged In the columns of the Western Clarion as heretofore. BURT E. ANDERSON. Calgary, Alta., Box 647. The Dominion Executive Committee is now issuing a contribution card to be placed ln the hands of Locals and Comrades for the purpose of effecting a systematic and complete canvass for funds to carry on the work of organization. It is hoped that the Locals and members will energetically push the collection of funds so that active work along the lines already laid down by the Alberta comrades may be carried on throughout the entire Dominion. These cards will be ln the hands of Provincial Committees and Locals by the time this issue of the Clarion reaches Its readers. Those who desire to assist in the collection of funds and are not within reach of a Local should communicate with the Dominion Executive Committee and obtain a card and authority to use it. An amount sullicient to cover the expense of keeping a dozen organizers In the field can be readily obtained by the gathering of even ten or twenty- five cents each from Individuals If this card and get busy. Let us keep as many O'Briens, Buddens and similar agitators, educators and organizers ln the.field as possible. The field is ripe the harvesters are few, to our shame let it be said. THE DOMINION EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE, Vancouver, B. C. CHARITY. The Socialists are opposed to charity. They despise charity. Why? BECAUSE THE MEN AND WOMEN WHO DOLE OUT CRUMBS OF CHARITY TO THE WORKERS ARE THE SAME MEN AND WOMEN WHO ROB THE WORKERS. , The workers need no charity.' They have brains. They have muscles. They have willingness to work. By applying their brains and their muscles to the land and the machinery, the workers can produce—and are producing—sufficient wealth to keep themselves and their families ln comfort. The capitalists, by claiming ownership of the land and the machinery— neither of which they have created— compel the workers to give up to them the greater part of their product. As a result the workers are poor— tbe capitalists are rich. The workers starve—the capitalists live in luxury. The capitalists, to soothe their ac cusing consciences, and because they are afraid of the growing dissatisfac tlon among the workers, with sanctimonious faces give back to the workers a very small part of what they have stolen from them—and call It charity! Of course, they expect thankfulness and humility In return. But the workers, that is the Intelligent workers, are neither thankful nor humble. From day to day they realize more fully that what is needed Is not for the rich to feed the poor, but for the rich to stop feeding ON the poor. But the rich will not do so of their own volition. As Tolstoi said: "The rich will do anything for the poor excxept get off their backs." It ls up to the workers to remove the rich from their backs by united action at the ballot box.—Ralph Korn gold. Nearly all the products we consume are produced by some machine tended by members of the working class, yet we are separated from the ownership of the machine and its products by tbe vote of our own class. When our class realize that Labor produces all wealth, they will no doubt see to it tbat they own all wealth that they produce Instead of handing1 it over to the Capitalist class who take no part In its production. We have just printed a new bunch of applications for membership blanks. Ask tbe Local secretary how much ot a supply he bas. If he hasn't got many bave him get some. Twenty-five cents a hundred. THE PROBLEM OF LIFE. on a dust-mote, in an ocean of space, prisoners, chained to earth, gyrating- amidst a wilderness of worlds, over an abyss of unfathomable ether wbich cannot be bridged. Mars, supposing it to be inhabitable, ls thirty-five million miles away, and modern means of transportation, wonderful and pregnant with possibilities though they are, offer little hope of a successful voyage thither. Even if we could embark upon this aerial sea, and manage, somehow, to reach the planet, it ia probable that a race of hostile Martian being would be found already in possession, who, regarding mundane Immigration with keen diBfavor, would promptly resort to deportation. The problem or life—the auequata satisfaction of human desires—must*, be solved here; not elsewhere. Man,. In the long upward march of evolution, seeking to satisfy his needs, has* moved along the line of least resistance, and, striving to avoid that which Is painful, has sought to extract from his environment the greatest possible amount of pleasure with, the least possible quantum of effort. Starvation being painful, man seeks sustenance; the labor involved in procuring the material means of maintenance being also painful, though in a lesser degree, man has fashioned, or invented, various contrivances, from the pointed stick of the first agricultural savage to the modern steam plow, as adjuncts to his bare hands, to aid him in carving out for himself an existence and render the labor thereof less intolerable. Finally, the power of adaptation evergrowing and widening with the accumulation of experience, the very elements themselves are harnessed, and various non-human species are subjugated for the service of mankind, until, at last, there is an abundance, sufficient for all needs, and that part of the problem—that of production— is well-nigh solved. The problem of life, no longer one of the relation of th"e human species to the cosmos— how mankind can best adjust itself to its physical environment, so as to subtract from the Inanimate the largest totality of those things which are essential to Its existence and maintenance, has resolved Itself into one of the relation of society to the means of social production. Arthur Morrow Lewis, in his book; "Ten Blind Leaders of the Blind," says: "Society Ib the product of two material causes—man and nature. The foundation of society consists of the-, material means by which it produces- the material things by which lt satisfies its material needs. Therefore, if one section of society has exclusive ownership or control of the material, means of producing material wealth-, those who are shut out will only bo able to supply their material needs as the owners may dictate—a material; slavery. • This material slavery, and the intellectual slavery growing out of it,. can only be abolished by the removal' of its material cause, the abolition of that limited ownership and control of the means of producing things, anl the establishment in its place of ownership and control by the whole of Bociety, social democracy, In one word—Socialism." This change in the ownership and control of tbe means of social production can only be brought aoout by that ever-increasing section of society whose historic mission tt Is—the proletariat. The owning class, the bourgeois, once necessary to tbe development of society, natural upholder and defender of the principle of conservation is, on the contrary, Incapablle By Burt E. Anderson. ____^_^_^^^^^^^^^^^^^™ n-__ ,.„ ,„. ,. . of Ihe solution of the social problem- Down through the ages man has|__,, _____,_, __ ,. ,. „..,., been Impelled, in his acts, in the struggle to effectuate his desires, by two powerful motives; the desire to avoid pain, and the desire to secure happiness. Primarily, all action Is based on the necessity of the preservation of the organism, or species, and since the Inanimate universe never adapts itself to the animate, the problem of life consists In the adjustment of the organism to Its physical environment. Man, ln blind obedience to the principle of self-preservation, ls ever striving to attain the satisfaction of his various needs and desires. The inanimate universe moves on; the seasons change; continents arise from tbe depths of the sea, glacial epochs come and go, volcanoes vomit from fiery throats the vitals of the earth, tornadoes, wltb demoniacal fury, pursue their paths of destruction —all ln total desregard to the comfort or tbe safety of human kind, and, far from being cuddled like a birdllng in the lap of "Mother Nature," man Is obliged to keep out of her relentless path, and wrest, as best he can, a living from her unfriendly, or at least, Indifferent, breast—or perish! Surrounded by a thousand perils, threatened by the cosmic tendencies whose creature he Is, doomed to extinction if he does not bestir himself by the very forces that called him forth; man, compelled to act in accordance with hlB desires, or suffer the discontinuation of Iho specie-.. seeks to avoid its mulifarious dangers and adapt himself to its movements. From the conflict with Nature there is no escape Mank nd is maroonod and would not If It could. The bourgeois, as Engels pointed out, Is no longer fit to rule—"because it is Incompetent to assure an existence to Its slave within his slavery, because It cannot help letting him sink into such a state that lt has to feed him, Instead of being fed to him." Its existence as a ruling class Is, therefore, no longer compatible with the InterestB of society. The bourgeois, having performed Its function in the evolution of the social organism, having prepared the soil, and sown the seeds of the next social order, must make way for the only revolutionary class—the proletariat— and occupy Its niche, by the side of feudalism, in the sepulchre of dead societies! From the Paleolithic Period to tbe Profit System humanity has painfully climbed, the tortuous road dyed by the blood of billions, stumbling blindly onward towards the goal, until today wo pause for breath upon the threshold of the Future. The end Is not yet— "For the yeast of evolution work, as hitherto, forever; We are in the morning hours of our day; Down the ever-widening vista where long stretches end in twilight We shall come on new perfections; meet new music on t lie way. "Yea, the yeast of evolution works, as hitherto, forever; Far are now the wallowing drngonB In their sllmo; Ah, but farther, farther, farther, Is tho Ion? long way before us. We shall meet a loftier music clown the thoroughfare of time." 1PAGE FOUR THE WESTERN CLARION. VANCOUVER. BRITISH COLUMBIA SATURDAY, AUGUST 24, 1912. DOCTOR8—PHYSICAL—SOCIAL. "To the question, What is the doc- «»r's principal mission? probably the ■■'neply by those who never look beneath :*+ie surface of things would be "To - mre the sick and heal the injured." ^However natural this assumption may : appear, it is erroneous. This practice ilis followed primarily for the purpose «_ gaining a livelihood and to this end :he employs his knowledge anl skill t ipon his patients. The real life purpose of the physl- <■ iian should be to educate the people how to keep well when they are well - and in a more or less tentative manner this is being initiated by the publication of information on hygiene, • sanitation, etc. But if the medical I fraternity truly gave sound advice and -suggestion and were lavish in the dissemination of thoroughly explanatory ■■literature, there would still be no ap- 1 preclable decrease of diseases. To ac- '•CDmplish such a consummation all the -breeding grounds must perforce be • eliminated; the fever laden slums, the putrid masses accumulating around t abattoirs, the stagnant pools of filth wander the cook shacks of lumber -camps; the jerry made constructions misnamed workers' homes! the lint mien atmosphere of cotton mills, and . -so on, ad neauseum, all down the line, .. No; -the only way the physician can * * realize his true mission means a com plete revolution, and he, like the • members of every qther profession and ■ -craft, is compellel to govern his ac < tlons by his surroundings. Doctors as a rule, are men of sympathy and yet their own material interest often .prevents them from doing what they would like to do. For instance, he is • called to the bedside of a woman in ' _e early stages of consumption, whose busband receives barely a subsistence • wage to support those dependent upon '■blm. The doctor knows full well that at the patient could be sent to another -climate with healthful surroundings ■ the inroads of the disease could be ■■■ checked and possibly completely cured Professionally he deplores that his -.: skill and science are practically valueless so long as the unfortunate patient remains where she is. To advise that 3he take a change of scenery he knows Ms entirey out of the question, as the ' children need attention during the " lather's absence and he cannot afford ; to hire a housekeeper, cook or nurse I Neither can he pay the expenses nee- ■•■ assary to a trip for the invalid. There is nothing extraordinary about this ■ case. They are of daily occurrence the •world over, but the doctor is helpless, ■-■an there are forces opposing that he ' cannot overcome. Let us not blame the members of the medical profession because they are, JIke every other individual who has ' to sell his labor power, governed by ..economic interest. A very close analogy can be con -sistently drawn between an M. D. and -j» Socialist. The disciple of Esculpius and ■Hahnemann treats the diseased physical organism while realizing his limitations. The disciple of Mark, Engels, Kautsky et al. diagnoses the diseases . ot the social organism, knows the rem- -> sax, but he likewise realizes his limitations. The doctor in many cases is at man of heart and would like to aid in prevention as well as in the cure -tot the physical ills but his own material interest obtrudes. The Socialist, to be a genuine Socialist, must be scientific, and although he knows what would cure the social ills, realizes that before it can be effected enlightenment is essential, and the profit system destroyed. To make profit out of another's labor may or may not be distasteful, but tbe will to live, his own material interest, dominates his rule of action. Owing to the features peculiar to -the medical profession, such profound knowledge of the physical organism the many and varied analyses that every stulent must make; the dally ■■contact with practical sociological problems, it ls somewnat strange that doctors do not Investigate the science or living as well as the science of life. Sympathy is not enough. It requires study and the mind trained to analyze, dissect and heal the physical frame should be ln a fitter state of receptior- tty to investigate the causes of the symptoms of disease everywhere noticeable in tbe social organism, than the average layman. With many doctors no doubt the -caste distinction, the relative or assumed Intellectual disparity between them as members of a profession and what they are pleased to terms the working class, may have a deterrent -effect and yet they are equally a part --of the working class despite the fact l that consequent upon a few of them l getting more remuneration than the I tower paid worker tbey may be en- - abled to function capltallstlcally, in ■petto. Tell a doctor that he could heal ~a broken leg by administering a ■cathartic and he would smile at your credulity, although he might acknowledge that such a treatment can be febrifugal and yet tbe attitude he as- snmes has its parallel in the advocate dt such palliatives as old age pensions, ■ compensation laws, out-of-work insurance and other sociological nostrums, because though these may benefit temporarily at least, members of the WHY S0CIALI8M PROGRESSES. ACTIVITY IN THE EAST. We want the earth—nothing less— and what is more to the point, we Intend to get it. To the uninitiated, this may seem quite a large order, but we can assure them that we consider ourselves quite equal to the occasion, organized in every "civilized" and Ours is an International movement, seml-civillzed countrq. Already we are a hundred million Btrong and also have an influence altogether out of proportion to our actual numbers. One red frequently revolutionizes his whole district. Even our opponents help us, for every knock is a boost. The more they fight us the more recruits we get, because, during the scrap, the onlookers are shown the accuracy'of our position; and, moreover, the champion of slavery himself, being merely chloroformed, Is shown our standpoint and Is frequently converted. He has the ground completely cut from under his feet and the next thing we know he is out, tooth and nail, for the RED instead of being against it. Nothing has been so effective In fighting Socialism as merely Ignoring it. This capitalism could afford^to dd when the movement was younger and weaker, but now it has assumed such large proportions that the conspiracy of silence is quite broken and we thus have the spectacle of a prostitute horde of intellectual parasites ln the form of "anti-Socialist leaguers," clergymen, statesmen, journalists, two-by- four politicians, and thieves and grafters of every description—ad finitum, ad nauseum—rushing headlong to the defense of the doomed capitalist system. Too late! too late!! ye valiant host. The awakened giant Proletarians have even now driven their blade with tremendous force' into the vitals of your monster capitalism. Already the death rattle is heard in'lts throat and a few convulsive spasms more, like the squirms of an expiring serpent, and all wlll be over. The "anti-spielers" are now everywhere. Let them all come, all the bigger feast for us, though chewing so many of them at one time may make some of us gag a little at times. The reason of our success is because our program ls in line with Industrial evolution .and thus inevitable. Having made a study of economics and secured in the "Materialist Conception" the key to the correct understanding of history, we are enabled to forecast approaching social conditions, much to the mystification of our opponents, who do not possess this knowledge. As a result, we find them easy marks. For some time we have been 'telling them that the present social system is soon going to be thrown on the scrap heap, among the useless, wornout and forgotten Junk of past ages. Capitalists and their families were loth to believe It, but they are being kept in a continual state of hair-raising suspense watching the steady, irresistible growth and progress of the international "Red Terror," which is soon going to kick them off the earth and establish a system of production for use instead of profit. Every little while they announce that the movement is dead, but, to their unspeakable horror they suddenly realize that the apparent death was only a lull ln the storm and with towering might the Red looms up bigger an more fierce than before. "The menace of Socialism" gives them fits. It surely is a menace to their right to ride rough shod over the workers, and if it will give them any satisfaction we can assure them that they will soon be exterminated. Vive la revolution! W. H. ANDERSON, Dewsberry, Alta. Secretary Dom. Executive Committee: Dear Comrade—I beg to acknowl-' vantage of the coolness. i credit is as much due to those which gave their life in ', overcoming the warmth as to those which' took ad- BAIL UP 1.1 edge receipt of yours 6f July 22, also 80 stamps, and under separate cover 12 Platforms in Italian. In regard to report: we are trying to get Local in order. Some job, and have been looking up addresses of those who never turn up at our meeting with some satisfactory results, including the knowledge that our actual membership is about 40. But I would stake my life on it there are about 3,000 Old Country Socialists in this city who don't know where we are. I am meeting a big number.. One even wrote to the Montreal Star, but the Innocent people on that paper never beard of such a thing. What there is of us are doing very good work, selling literature at our-open air meetings, Western Clarion and Cotton'B the two for 5 cents, and pamphlets from Kerr's. We have also started the distribution of literature from house to house on Thursday evenings. This work is carried on by the Socialist Literature.. Propaganda League. The profits made on the sale Of literature go to pay for literature for free distribution. The members of the distribution league also pay 25 cents per month; they are mostly members of the Local and Young Socialist Federation. The Local holds its business meetings on Sunday at li) a. m. on Fletcher's Field, near Incline railway during fine weather. If the weather is bad we meet Monday evenings at 8 p. m., 3 Craig Street E. We want members badly. If there are any readers of the Clarion in the city then they ought to belong to the party and do some active work of selling literature or distributing it from house to house. It is my experience the measure of the party's succesB depends entirely on the amount of work it can get each individual member to do. Every solitary member should be made to do something and then we'll see the feathers fly. Throw them out If they won't do anything. We of the distributing and selling literature section would like to get some pamphlets as a good introduction to Socialism; cheap, without being nasty. I read the Clarion from one end to the other as a rule, but I consider it is a little too far advanced for the worker who has not had any previoiis experience of Socialist literature. In this opin- oin I am confirmed by quite a number of others. The matter is ideal, but the phrases are difficult to the uninitiated Finally, *we are just starting to things. Fraternally yours, PHILIPS FAUGHMAN, Secretary Local, No. 1, S. P. of Montreal, Que. We find the capitalist earth ax fermenting hotbed of' wrangling, strife, spite and hatred; we find it warm with the fierce animosities of jingo patriotism; we find a very hell of devilish exploitation, so that a man's honor, a woman's chastity, a chffd's safety, are perforce bartered for the bread of life; we find it rougth and rugged with uncouth Irregularities of social and economic positions. Ours be the glorious work of overcoming this condition of affairs! In doing so we may Bpend our lives to no apparent purpose; we may be financially ruined; we may be jeered at, ostracised, jailed, and even shot. We may seem to "lose our votes," to commit political suicide, as the snowflakes lose their objective and individual existence. But every crystal does its work. If the world is not "ripe" for socialization, let lt be our part to ripen it. The final credit will belong to us just as much as to the charter members of the final co-operative commonwealth. And let us not forget our need of gratitude to the noble army of early comrades, the countless thousands ot the past who have made our work easier. Many of us will live to see this old earth swathed -in the pure white of universal brotftsrhood, with the rough places smoothed over, the unjust irregularities obliterated, the filth covered and put out of Bight for: ever. When we apportion the praise, let us not forget that lt Is not alone our efforts which have achieved, but those also of the "great cloud of witnesses" to the truth who have gone before us. DUTY AND OTHER THINGS. do SNOWFLAKES. Have you anything to lose by studying the Socialist Philosophy? It won't cost you anything. Any Socialist will give you any book you care to read on the subject, if he haB lt. You cannot lose your job because it's not yours to lose. It'B only loaned you. We Socialists want to own the jobs. You have not a home to lose. If you have a shack to exist ln, I am sure you would want to lose it If you could get something worth calling a home. We Socialists are after better homes. Why not make another? working class, tbey are reactionary when it affects the working class as a whole. Here is a rock upon which opinions differ regarding the course that should be pursued by a Socialist i 0f six-pointed, six-sided crystals By Walter F. Harris, Red Deer, Alta. Did you ever watch a warm weather snowstorm falling on a city street? The first flake scarcely has time to touch the pavement before , it disappears; the same with the next. For half an hour or more everv (lake, every little crystal, large or small, melts as soon as it falls on the ground, and disappears forever. Orte might difference It tends to their destruc- very easily believe they fall to no purpose, for each makes no apparent difference. if by any chance they do make a difference lt tends to their destruction. As they melt they make the sidewalk wet, and the following- flakes melt all the faster. After watching for half an hour, the uninitiated would say the snow could never accumulate. But1 most of us know better. As the storm persists a flake here and there lies fos a moment, for several seconds, for half a minute, before it disappears. The disappearance becomes gradually slower, until presently a thin white layer begins to appear, to persist to grow thicker. Finally, , should the storm last, not only the street, but the whole world, as far as sight will ex- tend, Ib muffled, mantled and mothered under a soft covering six Inches or a foot deep. The above is a picture of the Socialist movement. Every comrade ia a snowflake, Every word for social justice, every book, pamphlet, leaflet, every invitation to attend the Local, or join the Party, is a tiny frost-crystal, which does its perfect work. A soap-box speech may contain a whole bundle M. P. when these palliatives are brought up. Knowing them to be reactionary the ultra revolutionary criticizes his action if the M. P. supports the measure oblivious to the fact that the great mass of the workers are like the man from Missouri, 1. e., they must be shown. To support them as though they were genuinely and permanently remedial is futile, but to vote for them and also call attention ln most emphatic language to their Inadequacy, is educative because after having been tried and found wanting they who would have held the opinion that such measures were really beneficial have been furnished concrete proof to the contrary, consequently a mental revolution has been effected. J. W. BENNETT. of thought, which fall on the receptive soil and do their work. Thei:e are those who say Socialist agitation Ib useless until the world Is more "ripe for it," economically and sentimentally. The parable of the snowflakes wlll show the fallacy of this view. For the soft, fluffy mantle of snow Is just as much the work of the first flake as It is of the' last The first disappeared ln a flash, while the last lingers unmelted, but lt did its work even in disappearing. The first flake—the first million flakes, in fact In melting, they took none of the warmth from It. Exactly in proper tlon to the melting—the apparent failure— of the first crystals, the earth was cooler, and therefore more receptive to the following flakes. The What shall I write? It would seem as though all the shades of thought and feeling had already been thoroughly exploited by the numerous exponents of the Socialist philosophy. Oh, that word exploited. It savors of capitalism. It ,1s one of the strange things abdut the study of Socialism that a plug (I'm plaga'rizing you, Charlie), who prior to his conversion (I mean this ln the political sense, of course), In order to appear fluent in conversation, iB obliged to Interject goddamit at every third word. After conversion fie speaks of robbery at the point of production as exploitation, calls a sponge an invertebrate and a cat a feline, just as though he had known lt all the time. The plug who in his savage condition saw ho necessity for washing his tin plate and cup till verdigris and ptomaines gave him the bellyache, sees in his clean plate and cup the beginnings of esthetic taste. But what shall r*wrlte? I might say that the movement in Alberta ls composed 'of a noble band of self-sacrificing comrades who are Imbued with an unconquerable; indomitable' determination to yield not one jot or tittle (that means very tiny, I believe), but to charge the enemy, to the stirring strains Of the International (hy Budden on his flute) and plant the red banner of brotherhood upon the most remote rampart of capital- lam, or perish gloriously ln the attempt. I might say it, but I won't, because I don't think it is true ln every particular. Furthermore, it ls your duty, If you are a Socialist, *.o boost for Socialism, Go after that acquaintance of, yours, he needs our dope and is just hanging around waiting for you to hand him the joyous tidings. Hammer lt into him with a wagon-spoke and know the supreme satisfaction of creation. Watch the dull sodden eye of the brute gradually and almost Imperceptibly light up with a tiny spark of something almost akin to Intelligence, so that after a time (of varying duration) his development might almost be termed consciousness in the orthodox sense. Watch him closely at this stage or he may do himself irreparable damage with tooth paste, Boston garters, etc. It ls the development of the esthetic, and it follows a devious course. After having guided him carefully through tbe foregoing stages, you may smile at God—you have transformed his noblest work into an esthetic being. All the result of pushing the dope. That is your duty, young man, do it. Do it, I say, or stand branded as a traitor and merit the execrations of your class, the class which has reposed implicit confidence and trust in you and are waiting patiently for you to lead them to—San Diego. Speaking further of duty, the weather ls warm and enervating, There *are trout ln the rippling river which babbles boisterously by my bungalow. And, listen, there are nymphs along Its banks. I saw two of them one day bathing their Trllbys in its crystalline coolness. It ls my duty I'm telling you about. We're all this, and gird up my socks and shirtsleeves for an assault upon the citadel of capitalism. Will I do my duty? Here, hold on a minute. I did not Intend to talk about my duty. It Is your duty I'm telling you about. We're all pretty good at that, are we not? Yours for duty for the other fellow, L. E. DRAKE, The only sane basis upon which society can be constructed ls that ln which each member shall do some useful work ln creating the necessities and luxuries which we demand for our comfort and happlneBB. Yet, after thousands of years of civilization, both Pagan and Christian, we have arrived at such a condition of things that those who do no useful work at all for society (about one- fifth of the population) consume two- thirds of the annual national wealth whilst four-fifths of the population toll and moil from the cradle to the grave and only receive one-third of the total wealth, which they, by their labor, alone have created. One-fifth live tn extravagance whilst four-fifths go greyheaded thinking by day and dreaming by night how they are going to pay their feed bill. One-fifth, ln order to get through the enormous wealth they steal, disport themselves In vulgar mansions, (like Senator Clark for instance) with thirty bathrooms, whilst four-fifths, including you and I, gentle reader, have to balance ourselves on the edge of a wash-tub after everybody has gone to "bed, ln order to make our share last out. Picture to your imagination, one swaggering parasite strutting before thirty bathrooms, (not to speak of Turkish baths and every other fold- eral) whilst the four men who built them are perched on thin edges of four tubs ! ! Four-flfthB produce all the wealth whilst one-fifth steals two-thirds of it. Of course they don't like such, terms as "steal" and "robber," but we are not accustomed to deal ln ambiguous generalities. Mirabean, one of the strong men of the French revolution, said: "I know of but three ways of living in this world, (although a noble by birth, he was a down-and- outer, and was beginning to see things) by wages, for work; by begging, and by stealing—so called and not so called." We are not concerned overmuch whether they call lt "stealing" or "business," it does not alter the fact of the act one iota. A man either lives by the sweat of his own brow, or he Uvea by begging or stealing a part of the .product of someone else's labor. Tbere are different ways bf stealing as Mirabeau indicates. You can slip along under cover of darkness, quietly on tip-toe, creeping up behind your victim and swat him on Lhe head. Then, while he is down and his thoughts are wandering over the scenes of his childhood, you can go through his pockets and extract what profits you can. Or you can meet a kid in broad daylight In the park, and contract with his so that he will give you his watch for a big bag of candy. This latter method Is the one adopted under capitalist rule. They make a free contract with you, in broad daylight when you are supposed to have your eyes open and know what you are doing, that, in return for a big bag of candy, or a full dinner pail; something1 to eat and a pair of overalls, you will hand over to them of your own free will all the wealth you create ln 8, 9 or 10 hours, as the case may be. It is the same kind of free will contract that in bygone days was summed up by "your money or your life." Freely hand over your wealth and I wtll freely grant you ar little longer to live. You enter into the contract today to hand over all the wealth you create ln return for you life's sustenance, simply because you have no other Choice in the matter. You must "ball up" to one Capitalist or another or die. Now you can stop this business right straight. You can easily bring about that time for which the prophet ot old sighed, -They shall build houses and shall dwell therein, they shall plant vineyards and eat of the fruit thereof." Yes, and you, can build motor cars and ride in them; you can make fine clothes and enjoy the comfort of wearing them; you can build electric light plants and telephones and telegraphs and airships, and every other convenience and plaything known to mechanical skill today, and enjoy them as soon as enough of you will Join us and vote for U. GEORGE F. STERLING. E. T. KINGSLEY ^Printer Publisher Higli-Grade Catalogue Book and Commercial NEW LABOR TEMPLE VANOOUVER, B. 0. GREAT BOOKS BY GREAT MEN Age of Reason, I'alno 25o Origin of Species, Darwin 25o IngerBoll's 44 Lectures $1.00 Evolution of the Idea of God, Grant Allen 26 Life, of Jesus, Renan 26 The Churches and Modern Thought, Vivian 26 All books postago paid. People's Bookstore 162 Cordova 8t. W. 66 YEARS' EXPERIENCE Trade Marks Designs Copyrights Ae. Anno* smalm a sketch and dosorlpUnn ma» qntoklt aaoaruln onr opinion frw whsthsr so liiTsnUon Is prohnblr r-l.'"<i'__^i"0™BHn*'*!1* •itlon Is probably uonsstrtotfisr- -■-■ sonl frae. Otdf t'auntt t*lu~ , - - sp-sWnoMM, without chars*, In ths Sdentiflc Hmcrkan. k hftaiwm, -llMtcated wmWt., --&__* & oalMUMi or mv ioi«Uflfl Joanal Jwnj» *w CNUd_- $m.n m rev, p-wufe pmwlds boW bf ■11 M~WtM^«_. _ftt*_M_f_L_M "•I'-*-**»~■]Ft ___, fey**,—iskfta* Vancouver City and Suburban Real Estate B.C. Acreage and Fruit Lands W. W. Lefeaux Labor Temple, Vancouver and at West Vancouver & Revelstoke i MOTOR STAGE Leaves Squamish wharf daily, on arrival of Vancouver boat Better Service Same Old Prices H. JUDD, Prop. 5fl &0rtali0t ^ott^a -with music, 25 cents. By Bouck White. Handsomely bound. For labor mass meetings, the home, etc. Propaganda on every page. New. Postpaid. Stamps or coin. Address, Socialist Literature Co* "DeptP" 15 Spruce St., New York City Out of the struggle of the past there has come down to use the franchise, although in many ways restricted, but the greatest fear that stirs the heart of the ruling class Is that we may become wise enough to use it ln our behalf. Every now and again during a strike we are told that all the btrikers want is justice, and they generally get it only It is'nt to their satisfaction. Justice ls blind but it uses brains in the interests of the class that has the power to say what ls right and what is wrong. When the workerB use their gray matter in the interests of their class to obtain that power (political power) they will be able to say what is right and what ls wrong and Justice will work in their interests. LITERATURE. We need money ana we want to make way for new pamphlet^. Therefore we make the following offer: Manifesto ot S. P. of ■<*".,' 10c Socialism, Revolution and Internationalism 10c Socialism and Unionism 6c Slave of the Farm 6c Struggle tor Existence 6c Summary of Mara' "Capital". So The State and Government ...... Be Value, Price and Profit 6c 50c THE WHOLE BUNCH FOR 25c. Party Lap*I BUTTONS Price: 50c each or 5 for $2.00 Dominion Executive Committee Labor Temple DENTIST W. J. CURRY 301 Dominion Trust Building Vancouver, B.C. The best and cheapest WORKINGMAN'S HOME Cordova Boarding ttbuse 612 Cordova Street East
Titled The Western Clarion from June 18, 1904 to June 1, 1907; titled Western Clarion thereafter.
Newspapers
Vancouver (B.C.)
English
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
Vancouver, B.C. : The Western Socialist Publishing Co., Limited
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BC Historical Newspapers
Original Format: Royal British Columbia Museum. British Columbia Archives.
Western Clarion
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