SOCIALIST CONVENTION

Gisborne Times, Volume XXV, Issue 2163, 20 August 1907, Page 2

SOCIALIST CONVENTION

United Press Association —Copyright Received August 19, 9.34 p.m. BERLIN, August 19.

Nino hundred delegates representing 25 nationalities attended the International Socialist Conference at Stuttgart, the United States sending 21, Germany 300, Britain 130, including 59 representatives of the Social Democratic Federation, 38 of the Independent Labor Party, 16 of the Fabian Society, six trade unionists and two members of the labor party. South Africa and Australia were also represented. Herr Bebel on rising to address the inaugural meeting in the Leaden hall, which was draped with red, was received with frantic enthusiasm and was cheered for fully two minutes. He reviewed. the progress of the movement, claiming much progress in France, Finland, Austria, Holland and Switzerland. He complimented the English proletariat on their brilliant victory. Though the clever bourgeois Government had taken Mr. John Burns into the Cabinet they had not succeeded ill changing the' fighting factors of the workmen s party. Continuing, he said, that though the number of Socialist seats in the Reichstag was reduced the party had gained a quarter of. a- million more votes over last election, so that Rayolty failed to ride down social democracy. He rejoiced at the brilliant acquittal of William Haywood from the scandalous prosecution by the capitalist classes in connection with the murder of Steunenberg, the former Governor of Idaho. He hoped the Socialist Conference would do better than The Hague Conference which was destined to bring forth a most ridiculous still-born mouse. Herr Ringer w r as elected President. The first plenary sitting is on Tuesday. A hundred thousand attended a mass meeting in tlip fields at Cannstalt, a suburb of Stuttgart. The meeting was quite orderly, though the speeches of Herren Bebel, Ringer, James, and Ferri inspired immense enthusiasm.