WHY HE WAS FOR THIS WAR

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 9, 5 October 1918, Page 8

WHY HE WAS FOR THIS WAR

RUSSO-AMERICAN REVOLUTIONIST ON

PRESIDENT WILSON

HATRED OF PRUSSIA

(By Mr. Lemuel Parton, Pro-War Sooialist, and one of the Editors of tho San Francisco "Daily Bulletin.")

Nikolai Tclieniovich. was going off shift when I met him nt tho gate of the Union Iron Works. In eight hours he had driven 4200 counter-sunk rivets in the shell bottom of an 8800-ton freighter. His face was grimy, and ho pawed t,he sweat out of his eyes with his big fist. It's easy to pile up a big count in "snap" riveting, but when you rani home 4200 counter-sunk' rivets, and calk them with a flush die, you're doing a day's work. When I used to know "Nirk" up-in the placer country, ho' called himself an internationalist. He's a big, shaggy chap, with a pitted face—like Mirabeau's, perhaps—and he has the burning eyes of the zealot. His hand rests lightly on his gun pocket, whore ho always enrries a copy of Kropotlcin or Turgenef. He was in tho Russian revolution of 1905, and knows the phraseology of all the noncoinformist cults of the world. Ho is inclined to bo a bit bookish, but he is eloquent and resourceful in argument, and lias great influence in his union. Ho told' me why he's for this war, and why he heliovos we've got to boat Germany. "Some of tho boys in the union were against these riveting contests, and all this speeding ijp on shipbuilding. They were afraid wo couldn't koop the nac'e, after the war. I said: 'To hell with" all that, , and I told them why. I don't bolieve in war .any more tf.ian any other man who is in his right mind but I believe we've, got to win this war. I admit I was against our gointr into the war at first. I thoujzht wo could keep out of it. President Wikon got me. From tho proletarian viewpoint I regard President Wilson's speeches and riiossncvsas tho most smuino and searching formulations of"democracy evor voiced by nny man in a similar position of authority in the history of the world. I have studied everything lie has put out, and I am convinced that he understands.. One big thing tbont this war is that it is not only going to make' people understand the moaning; of the word democracy, but what ,is jnore important, ty is going to make them believe in. dea lot of poople who talk ahout it do not. Furthermore, it may actually make labour believe in labour.

"If revolutionistn want something to shoot at, I can't imagine n better embodiment ■of all thnir antagonisms than Prussia, ns it stand?.- stripped before the, world tn-day. The German Scoiiil Democrats have shown that, under no cireumstmw! O n.i tbev makn common cause with tho libertarians of the world. 0n,.,,-,, j s f e ii<lal to th« core. Prnssinnism has got to go. and J m ready to drive'rivets from floomed?v to brine; about her downfall And I don't want to lioav any talk nhout bonuses, or ntandardisatiori of labour outnut. But, we've Mt« understand the President ps well is iicht for nun. Guns nlone won't the argument. At ;>■ uninn meetim?' the other night, I rnarl some of tbn l, ovs t ], o Inst chapter of 'Tim Revolt, of the Angels'— you know-force muri 1>«. vindicated bv ideals siiKhi'iderstoHincr—ml tliev im't me. -too. T wish I em-M make" this point to thß.iv.opl" of Rue-sin. Thev can undersold, if we can only M to.-them. I was up in El Dorado .l.minty workup on ,1' strain shovel when this tlim K pfjirtod. 'After T nqi swung over. I went nn to g nn Francisco awl tried to enlist, nut n> v teeth we-e bad and they wouldn't take me T knew the riveter*; 4 riK l 0 and so I jumped into ,t. At *b< I wnnt to »'«t into the. fichtinc if T get iy nnaiicGermnnv t-o-tlny is just, mv Idea of Romefltino: that I tave wanted to put out nf the v-nrld -ver since I can remember anything."