International Gathering at Stuttgart.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 15, 12 October 1907, Page 11

International Gathering at Stuttgart.

Rod and rattling was the nows that came from Stuttgart all last week .(writes Mr.' J. Ramsay Maodonald, M.F., ..tho London "Chronicle" of August 26), and when it. got back undor Our oyos we were much amused. Thcro'wo wero in the Liedorhallo, as motley a crowd as has over gathered sinco tho opening" scene in tho Acts of the Apostles; Some of us had been travelling for months to get and when we camo wo did-not .understand' a word that was said. We looked upon mon whose names are in.itho mouths of. the wage-earnors. from tho rising to tho setting, sun, wo heard the words "Socialismus," ' "Capitalismus," and others of tho international language of tho workers, and wo cheered; wo listened to strange, wild swinging music which stirred the soul,-.and again wo cheored; thon we went home again. That is the story of tho Stuttgart Congress as several of our comrades will have to tell it. , If this gathering of nearly every nationality under .the sun had: occasionally, from the sheer necessities of the case, to drop the finor expressions of language and use tho moro primitive roars and gosticulations,, who should wonder ? Trade Unionism and Socialism. .' As its nucleus were the Gorman and tho French-speaking . peoples, Britain lay just outside that nucleus—powerful -Out irisular, and still a problem to the : Continental mind, , but with quiot certainty winning its way back t,o tho leading position it used to hold in European democratic; politics and movements: Our Labour Party, is the, admiration of our. Continental frionds. In Franco, Germany, Belgium, Holland, the problem of tho relations between: trade unionism and Socialism is one of growing; importance. The industrial organisation of tho workman must be, kept separate from'liis political organisation, and yet. both, ibrrns of organisation must co-operate whole hear.tedly. if industrial, democracy is to be a;reality., Wo.havo'had.to faco this in a way which', the, Continental Socialists, have ; hitherto, not experioiicod. , Their, Socialism ..yeas' groator than their trade unionism, and preceded ' it.... But ; time is .bringing tttem •to where 'we have boon; for ypars.. The Gorman, trade ; union- movement has outstretched - arm . arid, eager mien, mantling autonomy.;.. The.. German Socialist .leaders, aro;therefore,turning, to England to profit by our experience arid example. Having to face our problem.they now.seo how wisely we have, marshalled our forces, how _ the Marxians of' this country have missed thbir,opportunities and misled the Continental movement, and how tho Labour Party is the real International in .Great , v Britain; . 'So .Great ' Britain moves' 'bhck : into , tho inner circle ;and tho English movonymt becomes;; more and .more a doininating' force in Iritornatioual Socialism/

Confusion of Tongiics. . Meanwhile, . thore is confusion. ; Humanity. ~is a. word.'which is:blind to but when it pulls itself .to£btlior,._and .meots at,. Stuttgart,... it 'Speaks in many tongufes and sees ill: all sorts of opposing,., direction's . at ,;thesamo. time. , It becomes much, worse when; a bit of it is in Parliament and '.'another, bit -to',got-.in, 'If its chairilian sppaks and- thinks in Ger r man,, vroe. j)btideanybody, whom-, ho cannot follow - and who cannot follow him. -The boll, speaks in a common tongue and - makes nOiso more forcibly than man ; and'the man " who objects to tho rulo of the bell:and whp.cannot speak Gbmhaii ; has to' resort to; those priinitivo expressions /'which .colloctivoly .are-oalled: a ''scene. 1 ' -. ■ How innocent a,'"scene" at an Intbrnatibrial ;.Congress , is . was shown in the rfiost 'famous Pf all these episodes .—that with which the London Congress .Began, Cloven ■ ybars . ago. A bluff Ybrkshirbmanj whb could not : understand a'.word of French, was'in; tho chair, and: a'''polite Erenchnl'an,; with outstretched; - areand,' eager, inien, called: "Jo dbmande la. parole.": "Demand!" said ; tlio chairman. "Who' 'demands' from : mo?"- And the -.bell's tongue began; to wag and tho congress exploded.•. .'. ' -r-/'-' But theso scenes ,', are: most'goodhumoured, and imply, no differences excopt in language. ' < It.'must also'''be-remembered that, those ; international; congresses aro >• tho great; S'ocialist;.c'6urts 'of, appeal, and, like all courts i of; appeal, they aro conservative.. Vln every, country there is a movement of Socialist revision going on., ..Science- iand , thought ,:havo Changod siiice Marx wrote: what'was then prophecy : has, become history. Moreover, in' every .country, whero industrialism; has dpveloped .there' is a Socialist and | Labour Party •in . Parliament compelled by its position to. deal with,; tho facts of the time. Henco there, are wings of .the-Socialist movement ■ woiidorfully aliko in every land. A 'fight i between these two , wings in France, gave .us tho chief tonic which we dieiussed in. Amsterdam t&reoyoar.s ago, and similar contests gaVe us. our chiof "business, at Stuttgart., " This is all in the nature of things, and only short-sighted people regard these cori- . tests as indications of Socialist weakness. They are evidence of Socialist strength. '■ A Paradox.

. The. curious thing is : that they arc sottled at the congresses by tho modern men being, defeated, and: then national calm is restored , and tho rer visioriist movements go on as beforo. Tho International in its res6lutions is always behind the national sections l in thoir actions. For instance, tho Bernstein wing of the Socialism of Germany was stronger at Stuttgart than over it has been. ■. 'Franco, for the time being, is beating ,the air with Horveism, and contributed; little at Stuttgart. Holland and Belgium are revisionist, and the Marxian section of the English movement has ceased J? co t \ l^l And yet, when any question like a ■ Colonial policy coirios up at those congresses it is the dead sections that' win. Belgium, Austria, Holland, the majority of England were beaten by Bulgaria, Sorvia, 'Poland, Russm, and similar nations, on Cblonial policy. But' tho resolution will moan nothing. The International is a safety valvo in this respect. The International "gives conservative decisions, and thus allows the national movements to grow without disruption, i" If anyone;really believed from tho reports of the Stuttgart Congress that Socialism is a spent forco, a disrupted and disorganised propaganda in Europe, ho has missed the significance of the gathering. A body of men who mot, apparently hopolessly divided as wo'were on militarism, 'owing to oiir difForont national condition's, and who departed af<-er having devised a formula which enabled Hervo to' agree with Bobcl, and,after having created a situation which made an immediate closure of tho discussion: in the full congress so reasonable . that .it was accepted with practical unanimity, is to go far in international diplomacy and is at the-head of anything but an illorganised and intellectually bankrupt movomont. ' '

Fruits of the Congress. ' But that is not all that can bo said for the congross. It was a demonstration moro than a dolilierativo gathering. Its nino hundred delegates occupied a hall tho lower half of which was filled perpetually with a buzz and a bum which 110 voice could ponctrato from tho platform. Amongst them

wero some of tho most extraordinary mon and women in Europo, and every timo that a speech was delivered it had to be twico translated. Hero every oloment making for disruption and confusion was proscnt, and yot, saving upon one occasion, tho proceedings wero as orderly as a Trado Union Congress, and I. liavo seen at Trade Union Congresses in tho old hot days as bad a scone as the offended English delogates created in Stuttgart 011 Friday. It was marvellous. To see Singer rule that assembly was infinitely more wonderful: than to seo Mr. Lowtlior mould tho passions of the House of Commons. Stuttgart' was picturesque, noisy, inpffoctivo—from the outside. From the inside, it was an enormous, advance upon Amsterdam. Its subjects wero more real, its interests wero more practical, its, membership was more responsible. It will benefit the Socialist movement by making its attitude to trade unionism moro definite than it has been, particularly oh tho Continent; by making its political attitude more positive and. less negative in foreign policy; by allaying the fevers that wero beginning to grow round Horveism; by encouraging revisionism; and, finally, through., the now organisation of the secretaries of, the Parliamentary, Socialist, nnd Labour parties started on Saturday, the Stuttgart Congress has placed the Socialist propaganda on a more, definite Parliamentary basis than ever;it, has hitherto occupied.