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THE SOCIALIST PRESS,
G. H. HENRY, EDITOR AND PUBLISHER. i
Published at 20 Third Ave. * - POSTOEEICE BOX 630
Subscription Rates, l,i'' *
One year *5,00 Six months $0Q months, $2.00, Onp month
■$i.oo. ‘1 '' " '
Saturday, Jan. B0________
MORE OF THE OCTOPUS.
For some time the city Has been paying to the N. C.
Co. $600 a month for the water system for use at fires.
It is said that the company informed the city some time
ago that $100 was not sufficient to pay them for keeping
up the pressure that is necessary for fire use. The city,
then agreed to pay an extra $200 and certain pressure was]
to be kept on the mains at all times. It has been asked
by many citizens why it is that we pay $200 extra for
what we don’t get. The pressure is only put on at fires.
We must not be surprised any time that on arriving a,t a
fire the firemen will not have pressure sufficient to fight
the fire successfully. We pay $200 extra for a steady
pressure and we ought to get it.
JUDGE BUNNELL.
Judge Bunnell is a very welcome man in Fairbanks
and it really appears as if at last Fairbanks has been
given a Judge who will look around and see for himself
instead of as his predecessors almost without exception
have listened to interested persons in their conduct of the
office.
Our new Judge sure has a chance to make good and
show that he is not only a democratic officeholder but a
conscientious Judge and go out of here with the good will,
of the better element, which has not been the lot of his
predecessors. Especially have former judges been as a
general thing discredited by the U. S. Commissioners
whom they appointed.
WHERE WE ARE AT.
We have heard considerable criticism of “The Hu
man Jungle” which appeared in our last week’s issue. WTe
will say that as a working class individual, tye have no
preference for any of the governments Qijgaged in trying
to annihilate each other but we have gpt a deep sympathy
for those of our class who are being slaughtered to satisfy
capital, it matters not their language. Note “Last Phase
of Capital” which appears on first page from another ex
change.
THOSE SALARIES.
This dope came through an employee of one of the
banks: “City employees other than school teachers can
get their vouchers cashed. While school teachers cannot.”
Why the discrimination?
WHY NOT A METER?
We notice that the lights furnished by the N. C. Co.
to the city are in evidence in daylight and moonlight as
well as dark. Does the city use a meter? If not, Why
not?
The war is costing Europe $50,000,000 a day and
those who are contracting this enormous debt think that
posterity will have nothing better to do than to work off
its fingernails in paying that debt.
m
7
4
A Disinterested Spectator.
J3y John AVanhoph.
ip ii.
When all the ttfik a,bout war
and the horrors thereof has been
exhausted, w/jen t,he' subject Has
been raked from top, bottom and
both sides, ahead and astern,
a-larboard and a-starboard', when
millions of “non-combatent” dis
putants have^awed and whanged
and sputtered and mora’ized and
busted t,he other fellow’s head to
make him s^-e ,t^e puint it a1*
comes back to this—that, when
, f
a 1 the froth and scum has been
hlown away, what remains is
the fact that Socialism and Soci
alism alone must l.e accented as
the last resort, as the final power,
that will make war impossib’e.
Socialism did no.i do so last
August. It was powerless to
stop war, not because it had no
power, but because it was not
powerful enough; which is quite
a difference, m the result and in
sufficient power is equiva'ent to
no power.
And it is no* the Socialists j
alone who see this. Men whc I
have never been Socialists, in th<
sense of making open and public
connection with the Socia ist1
Partv, and working jnside of it,
see it just the same as those whc j
carry red cards. That is, oi'
course, assuming that they are
equipped with the average brail
and reasoning power, and make
use of both, undeterred by oh
prejudices, hobbies and fancies.
C arence S, Harrow *s one 01
this kind of men. A man with i
most powerful, active and logical
mind, untrammeledj with oh
prejudices and superstitions.
Harrow has npver joined th
Socia'ist Party. He has said him
se’f that he cannot work h
organization harness. And per
haps he cannot. That, :f so, isi
matter for himself, individual
and terperamenta'.
But none the less, Harrow ur
ges oth irs to work for the secui
ingof peace through joining the
Socialist Party, as he holds that
socialism and socialism a'one, by j
abolishing the economic condit
ions that cause war, can b-ing
permanent peace. But he will
not join it himself. He says,
quoting frorq the press report of
his address in Brownsville the
other nigh1: “If 1 can get what
the socia'ists are striving for,,
under another name, I’ll go for
ji." tyiat is the reason I do not
care to affiliate with the party.”
We have nothing to say as to
whether that is good reason for
non-affiliation or not. Darrow
thinks it is, and it is w.hat he
things, not what the rest of us
may think, that must be the
guide for his conduct. He dees
not like the name, and says so.
And wjti'e they may sound triv
ial ag the expression of a power
ful mind, he himse'f is and ipust
be the judge.
Men of this kind do now and
then come into the party, and
then leave it. finding they can
not do ,what they consider th^ir
work therein. And we have
neither ,\vish nor desire to keep
the harness on any man when it
ch ies him, or he ^magines it
does.
The socialist party is composed
of a curious assemblage oi pec;
j|e. Many of them are very rude and
>utspoken—like Harrow. And they ap
parently <j° scant courtesy and rever
ence to superior intellet, though that
s mostly on the outside. Then again,
nany of them wrangle and tight and
split and disrupt, oVer whkt seems tc
' many outsiders rather trivial matters
that could be adjusted without any
great amount of sound and fury. Also
the Socialist party has its full share
of obdurate, stubborn people, “impos
sible” people, very difficult to get
along with, and what many would
call stupid, predjudiced people also.
But with all theso evil qualities, with
all this denseness, arrogance, pugnac
ity and stupidity—multiply it by the
hundred if you please—and they are
still the salt of the earth, the only peo
ple in whom there is any hope, so far
as the abolition of war and the introd*1
duciion of permanent peace on earth
l: Hi •' I
is concerned.
Darrow sses one side of the equation
but not the other. He wants the coach
of progress to travel along the Socialist
road, but he will not personally tail on
to the drag-rope. He doesn’t like his
stable'mates' and wheel horses. So
he trots alongside and shouts powerful
and incisive words of encouragement to
the toil:rs in the Social’^ harness, and
imagines he is helping to pull.
Perhaps he is. Who can say that his
song is ineffectual? But the crass ma
terialism of the red card holders impels
them to the opinion that unless they
| actually see the singer in the Socialist
harness, he isn’t doing any pulling.
But just the same the teatimonial to
the Socialist Party from a man like
Darrow in immeasurably more import
ant than if ii came from an “affiliated
worker,’ and that is why we can call
attention to it.
11
Are You One Of The
Socialists who Says
“Yes I am a socialist—been one for many years—alwaj s 'ote
the ticket—but 1 do not belong to the org.vniz.tion.” If you are
.[ that class, you should get out of it Tlie only Socialists M
count are the onos that pay tbeir ,
kittle 25 cent ckiee per month, and
Aid in the work of the party orgapi
jAtipn. These are the fellows tn»t
we making the Socialist I-ariy the
|reat force for the common good in
America. The capitalist class won’t
dnauoe our party and wu don’t
want them to. Its the twenty-five
cents-per nruii.tti f.om iu> Uiou. aeob
of real Socialists that keep the
wheels of the organisation goi \g.
Gome on in and find out how we
run things. You will have just as
much to say as another. M e have
made it easy for you to take fhe
| first slop—below is a coupon which
| you Bhould
Out Out, Tear Off And Mail Today
l'u N, R, King, Fairbanks or L. Weitearik,
Jleary City.
I am convinced Uwt I should be amembar of Hie sat<ea ytra r>*
present. Please seni soma on# to take my application;
t •
Fame .
Addraae
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1 will be ai HlJJnf
Mammoth Clothing Store
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