338 



Tun Rkview of Reviews. 



SYNDICALISM. 

 In the North American Revieiv Mr. Louis Levine 

 describes the genesis and growth of SyndicaHsm. It is, 

 he says, a synthesis of Socialism and Trade Unionism. 

 The electoral success of Socialism in France, in Germany, 

 and in other countries led to the invasion of the 

 Socialist parties by members of the middle classes, 

 representatives of the liberal professions, who swamped 

 the Socialist working-men in all positions of authority 

 and responsibility. The invading intellectuals intro- 

 duced into the social movement the ideas of slow evolu- 

 tionary changes, and of peaceful and diplomatic 

 negotiations with capitalist parties. 



DISTRUST OF PARLIAMENTARY SOCIALISM. 



To the militant Socialist working-man, the success 

 of political Socialism became in his opinion dangerous 

 to the real success of the social revolution. He sus- 

 pected the environment of Parliament, its methods and 

 political trickery, and felt in his heart a growing 

 antagonism to the form of action which led Socialists 

 into the stifling embrace of capitalist Parliamentary 

 institutions : — 



Examining more closely the nature of the trade union in 

 which he had always played some part, the militant Socialist 

 working-man was struck by the idea that it offered the form of 

 organisation he was so eagerly looking for and that it was 

 capable of carrying on the social movement in wdiich he placed 

 his hopes. He therefore now changed his former attitude to 

 the trade union ; instead of merely suffering it, he now began 

 actively to support it and to shape it in accordance with his 

 views and aspirations. 



" DIRECT ACTION." 



So was developed the whole theory of Syndicalism : — 

 Direct action — which the Syndicalists so much insist upon — 

 consists in exerting energetic pressure and coercion on the 

 employers and the State in such a manner as to rally all the 

 workers around one banner in direct opposition to existing 

 institutions. Nation-wide strikes, vehement agitation, public 

 demonstrations, and like procedures, which arouse passions and 

 shake up llie mass of the working-men, are in the view of the 

 .Symlicalists the only methods which can make the working-men 

 clearly perceive the evils and contradictions of present-day 

 Society and which lead to material successes. Such' methods 

 alone drive home lo the working-men the truth that the emanci- 

 pation of the workers must and can be the work of the workers 

 themselves, and free the latter from the illusion that anybody 

 else— even their representatives in Parliament — can do the job 

 for Ihem. 



THE GF.NERAI, STRIKE. 



The direct struggles of the Syndicats — argue they — increasing 

 in scope and importance, must finally le.ad to a decisive collision 

 in w hich the two antagonistic classes — the working-class and the 

 employers— will be brought face to face. How that decisive 

 struggle will be begun cannot be foretold. But it most probably 

 will have its origin in a strike which, spreading from industry to 

 industry and from locality to locality, will involve the whole 

 country and affect the entire nation. This will be the General 

 Strike, in which the issue will not be an increase of w.ages or 

 any other minor matter, but the par.iniount social issue : who 

 shall henceforth control industry and direct the economic 

 activities of the nation ? 



THE AIM OF COMMON OWNEKSIIII'. 



The Syndicalists will not wait for Parliament to decide that 

 question, but will take matters into their own hands. When 

 Ihe "final hour of emancipation " strikes, the militant workinp- 



men organised in the Syndicats will step in and assume control 

 of all means of production, transportation, and exchange. 

 They will proclaim the common ownership of all means of pro- 

 duction, and will start production under the direction of the 

 Syndicats. Every Syndicat will have the use of the means of 

 production necessary for carrying on its work. All Syndicats 

 of a locality will be organised in local federations which will 

 have charge of all local industrial matters. These local P'edera- 

 tions of Labour will collect all statistics pertaining to local 

 production and consumption, will provide the raw material, and 

 will act as intermediaries between a locality and the rest of the 

 country. All Syndicats of the country in any one industry will 

 be organised in a National Industrial Federation having charge 

 of the special interests of the industry, while local federations 

 and industrial federations will be organised in one great 

 National Federation of Labour, which will take care of matters 

 national in scope and importance. 



SOCIALISM V. SYNDICALISM. 



The essential conservatism of the Socialist thinker 

 has been demonstrated by his refusal to be tempted 

 by the weapon of Syndicalism. Mr. J. L. Engdahl 

 contributes an article to iheTwenlieth Century Magazine 

 affording ample evidence that, as in England, so in 

 America, the Syndicalist propaganda is doomed to 

 failure. The recent 

 convention held at 

 Indianapolis resulted 

 in a definite endorse- 

 ment of the old So- 

 cialism as against the 

 new lure of Syndical- 

 ism. The dilYerence 

 between the schools 

 is well expressed by 

 the writer : — 



The Socialist cries to 

 the worker, " Vote as 

 you strike 1 " or " Strike 

 at;the ballot-box ! " The 

 Syndicalist changes this 

 phrase to read " .Strike 

 at the ballot-box, but 

 strike with an axe ! '' 



The attention of the 

 Syndicalist is centred 

 entirely on economic 

 action. He appears to 

 believe that it is possible 

 for the workers employed 

 in every industry lo walk 

 into factory, workshop, 

 mine, or warehouse some 



fine morning, to send for the employer or manager, and to 

 inform him that they propose to conduct the business for their 

 own benefit. 



Syndicalism is the gospel of the bludgeon, and its 

 anarcliic appeal is its own sure condemnation and 

 justification of the saner method of Socialism which 

 seeks to " leaven the lump." " An argument put 

 forth against Syndicalism is that if all the workers 

 in any industry' secured the absolute control of that 

 industry they would then proceed to exploit the 

 remainder of society for their own gain so far as that 

 industry was concerned." 



Syitiey Bullet in.\ 



Tom Mann assails the Temple. 



Australia's old friend, Tom 

 Mann, is going to devote himself to 

 a war against society ; but it is a 

 long job, and iManu isn't so young 

 as he used to be before he became 

 as old as he is now. 



