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Page Four

BiG. WOR Kens -

B C WorKERS NEWS

Published Weekly by

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Vancouver, B. C., Friday, March 19, 1937

The Suspension of Stephen

T IS with il-concealed satisfaction that the capitalist press
prints the news of the suspension of Mir. A. M. Stephen from
the-CCE:; and its pleasure can easily be understood in view ot the
approaching provincial elections, for the Tory and Liberal parties
have not gotten over the scare the CCF gave them in 1933. With
an election in the offing, the need for closed ranks in the CCF is
of the utmost importance. Instead of this the CCF proyincial
executive is indulging in heresy hunting and suspensions.

Tt would appear that the offenses for which a man of Stephen’s
standing and attainments was suspended were: his service on’ be-
half of the Spanish people in their life-and-death defense of
democracy against national and international fascism ; his struggle

ainst the counter-revolutionary Trotskyist vipers in the bosom
of the GCE; and his advoeacy of a united working-class front
against reaction.

Tt would also appear that one of the things most needed in the
OGF is a return to inner party democracy and restoration of the
right of CCF members to advocate freely those policies which
they believe to be in the best interests of the CCF. This right
they enjoyed in the earlier days of the CCF and indeed it formed
the basis of the CCF when that organization was formed at Re-
gina in 1933.

Stephen, who before his suspension, was a member of the
GCE provincial executive, has a large and devoted following
throughout the province; he enjoys the respect, the confidence
and the admiration of thousands of people who will be thrown
into confusion by his suspension. His loyalty and devotion to the
CCE and socialism can not be questioned, and he was a tower
of strength to it.

We do not presume or dictate to the CCF, but, regarding it as
representing a considerable mass anti-capitalist movement, we re
gret to see the disintegration, demoralization and GOnTUSION: OG-
easioned by the policy of suspensions pursued by the CCF pro-
yincial executive against the best and most advanced elements in
their party, particularly at this time when the CCF, instead of
weakening its own front in the coming: eeletion, should be draw-
ing into a broad united front with it all its natural allies im a
eommon strugele against reaction.

a)

Elect Miss Gutteridge!

HE voters of Vancouver again have an opportunity to send a
progressive into the city council, this time to fill the vacancy.
eaused by the death of Ald. McDonald. Already the voters who
have had proof of the value of progressives in the services ot
Aldermen Pettipiece and Hurry see the need for another of their
kind in the council. :

Bie business and the bankers will do their utmost to elect
one of their own representatives—anot that they need another
to assure them a majority, but to strenethen their forces and at
he same time discourage the progressive forces.

In the last by-election, which was lield to fill the vaeancy
caused by the disqualification of Anderson, the CCE candidate
had the disadvantage of having as one of her opponents the late
L. D. McDonald, himself a progressive, although not represent-
ing any labor organization.

This time there will be no progressive in the field except
the CCE candidate, Miss Gutteridge. Upon her election all
progressive people can unite in order that the hands of the two
progressive aldermen now jn the council will be strengthened
and the cause of progress further advanced. To this end the
apathy and indifference ot the voters, which was so apparent im

NEWS

March 19, 183%

Im this building in Moscow,

once the English N obility club, is housed the Museum of the Revo- ba

lution, recording in painting and sculpture the history of Soviet Russia.

Engels Distorted In Effort

To Prevent United Front

By BILL BENNETT?

Under the caption “The Voice
From The Grave,” the last issue of
the “Federationist’’ presented its
readers with a bowdlerised version
of a letter written by Engels to
Bebel in 1873. Unfortunately for
the “Federationist,” the voice did
not come from the grave of Engels,
but from the tomb in which the
Trotskyite riff-raff hatch their con-
spiracies, for the distorted and mis-
leading form of the letter was un-
doubtedly inspired by a Trotskyite
pamphlet published by the Tage an
London, dealing with the Spanish
situation today.

Lifted out of its historical setting,
applied to absolutely different objec-
tive conditions, divoreed from its
context and with cunningly thought-
out deletions and elisions, one pata-
graph of a letter, more than three
pages long in the Marx-Pngels Cor-
respondence, is produced without
comment aS an argument against
the proposals of the Communist
Party for unity of all progressive
forces in the struggle against world
fascism. A presentation that falsi-
fies in true Trotsxyist fashion the
whole life work of both Engels and
Marx!

Who Provoked Splits?

The letter was written two years
before the Gotha Unity Congress
fhat welded the Lassalleans, the
“Royal Prussian Sosialists” as Marx
ealled them, and the Hisenachers,
into a stmgle socialist party. The
whole tenor of the letter as written
by Engels, is against the influx into
the PARTY of the “rotten elements”
from the ranks of the by that time
defunct First International; “the
traitors to the European proletari-
at,’ the Bakunin anarchists of the
Jura Federation “who provoked all
the splits’; “the people who preach
reconciliation of the workers and
the peity-bourgeoisie” and Proud-
honists “(ike Muhlberger for in-
stance) who want to adulterate the
movement.”

All the characterizations in quota-
tions here are the words of Engels

“When Marx founded the In-
ternational, he drew up the Gen-
eral Rules in such a way that all
working class socialists of that
pericd could join if,—Proudhon-
ists, Pierre Larouxists and even
the more advanced section of the
English Trade Unions; and it was
only through this latitude that
the International became what it
was, the means of gradually dis-
solving and absorbing all these
miner sects, with the excepiuion
of the Anarchists, whose sudden
appearance in various countries
was but the eifect of the violent
bourgeois reaction after the Com-
mune and could, therefore, safely
be leit by us to die out of itsels,
as it did. Had we, from 1864 to
1873, insisted on working together
only with those who adopted our

platform, where should we be to-
day?”

The First International was the
greatestd united front yet estab-
lished against capitalist oppression
Gf we except the united front of the
Russian workers and ypeasants
against their own ruling class).
“For ten years,” says Engels, writ-
ing to Sorge, G@2th and i7th Sept,
1874), ‘the International dominated
one side of Huropean history, and
indeed, the section in which all
future history was contained.” It
was wrecked precisely by the ele-
ments referred to in the letter to
Bebel, as, “those. who scream for
nothing sO much as unity,” the
anarchistic followers of Bakunin,
the political forbears of the present
counter - revolutionary Trotskyite
lumpen-proletariat,

The diversity oi opinion among

ers did not prevent Marx and Engels
from organizing these workers’ or-
ganizations around the aims they
had in common in spite of the shib-
boleths that made sects of them.
During the past week, workers
throughout the world have been

the European and American work- |

the last by-election, must be shaken off and every effort exerted

to elect Miss Gutteridge.

a a)

The Communists in Convention

EGINNING March 20, the

Party of Canada will hold its provincial eonvention, during
the course of which delegates from all
aecount of the objective political
changes and developments therein, an
organize and ite t 4
possible number of progressive people and organizations ag@ainst

tactics calculated to mobilize,

reaction.
The Communist Party in B.

as a political foree to be reckoned with, but has won the respect
class and of other wide sections
of people who, while not accepting the whole programme of Com-
munism, value its work as the leader of the

and admiration of the working

struggle.

With the establishment of socialism in Ganada as its aim
the CP nevertheless takes up the immediate 1ss
from capitalism, realizing that in the day-
which ultimately will sweep away capl-

of all people suffering
to-date struggle the forces

talism will be organized, trained and gam experience for

preat historic task.
Tt does not capitulate to
left sectarianism from the

talism. That is why

front against oppression,

a a)

Reaction in Quebec

' @ L THOUGH the hated Section 98 of the Criminal Code was

repealed under mass pressure of the people of Canada, ihe
uitra:reactionary, pro-faseist Duplessis government otf Quebee
( by provincial legislation
other provinces to join in the _
hunt with the federal government as the assisting and co-ordinat-

is out to erush Communism
methods, and appeals to all

ing force.

The elementary democratic rights of the people to put forward
to be denied if Premier
He states further that he will padlock
all halls and other meeting places against Communist gatherings

candidates in elections are
permitted to have his way.

and will use police to break
and violence:

up

ean be taken as an invitation, under :
to assassination

gangsters and fascist thugs
leaders.
Tt would be a grave mistake

Duplessis as directed only against Communists. Quebee province

difficulties nor stand aloof in lotty
day-to-day struggles through which
concessions can be gained—even within the limitations of capi
the CP is becoming
the leader in the great and difficult fight for a progressive people's
yeaction and imperialist war. |

He also urges “getting rid” of Communists,

B.C. Section of the Communist
over the province will take
and economic situation, the

and work out a program and
unite the greatest

G. has not only established itselt

movement for unity 10

issues, however small,

that

a. party of the masses,

and illezal

Re a

Duplessis is

Communist meetnigs with force
which
covernment protection, to
of working-class

to regard this latest outburst of

himself taken from the same letter
as the vagrant paragraph from the
“sraye’; they brand the type of
‘anity” that Engels is opposed to,
but they are carefully expunged in
the version published in the “Red-

commemorating one of the glorious
pages in the history of our class,—
The Paris Commune. The Com-
mune was defeated. In 1872, at a
public meeting that closed the ses-
sions of the Hague Congress of the
International, Marx explained the

erationist.”

Even the PARTY unity accom-
plished at Gotha was only made
possible, says Engels in a letter to
Bernstein (Oct. 20, 1888) “when
the gang of ruffians whom Tha-
salle had deliberately cultivated as
tools had worked themselves out”;
their “unity” was based on “the
hope that the most stupid and mean
actions would be permitted them.”

“Qnity” That Is Not Unity

The real attitude of Engels and
Marx to the question of CLASS uni-
ty, we have in a practical demon-
stration at their own hands—The
First International. Of that first
gathering of the worxers under an
international banner, Engels wrote
to Florence Wischnewetsky (Jan. | race, symbolized today in the united
27, 1887) as follows: front program of the working class.

reason why. He said, “The revolu-
tion must be made with solidarity;
we learn this from the Paris Com-
mune, which only fell because this
solidarity was lacking amongst the
workers of other countries.” (Volks-
staat, Oct. 2, 1872).

Solidarity is another mame for
unity; not the unity of the Baku-
ninists, the Muhlbergs, the Trotsky-
ists, which wreck the movement of
the working class and make the
victory of reaction certain, as in the
Gommune, but the unity of Marx
and Engels, of the Communists,
which welds together all the pro-
gressive elements to defeat all re-
action and makes possible the fur-
ther advancement of the human

is notorious for its exploitation and speed-ip of its workers, the
wages paid being far below the average for Canada as a whole.
The rise of the CIO. and its success in organizing workers and
securing wage inereases aud more decent conditions of employ-
ment has alarmed the textile and other big interests whose tools
Duplessis and his government are.

3eine in the lead in promoting more effective trade union
organization, as in all other activities im the interests of the plain
people, the Communist Party, naturally, bears the brunt of the
attack. But the attempt of Duplessis is the concern of the trade
unions, of the CCF, and of all people who value and wish to pre-
serve what democratic rights we possess, and to gain that which
our foregathers suffered and bled and died.

It is but a step from the theory of washing our hands of
strugeles in Spain and elsewhere to the theory that the problems
of Quebec are of no concern to the people of B.C. A victory for the
pro-Fascist Duplessis on this issue would encourage the forces
of reaction here in British Columbia to do likewise.

Tt will be remembered that Duplessis and his party secured
power by taking adyantage of the dissatisfaction of the people
with the corrupt Taschereau government, and with demagogic
promises to the electorate concealed the reactionary wolf under a
false progressive skin. Signs are not wanting that in B.C. the
worst reactionaries are preparing to use the same methods and
employ the same tactics. Already the Conservative leader, Dr.
Patterson. is taking advantage of the people’s resentment against
the extravagance and waste of the Pattullo government to eall for
“economy” in government, in order that a worse set of reac-
tionaries will rule at Victoria.

The anti-democratic proposals of Duplessis must be opposed
by all people of Canada who prize their hard-won democratic
liberties, and especially by the trade union movement whose yery

existence is threatened by them.

OPEN
FORUM |

CCF Replies
To Criticism
Editor, B.C. Workers’ News.

Dear Sir: We are instructed by
the Vancouver Centre Council of the
CCF (BC Section) to draw your at-
tention to an editorial appeanng in
your paper under date of February
26, as we feel sure that the writer
misunderstands the object of the
meeting criticized or has been ereat-
ly misinformed in regard thereto.

To eall peopie “assassins” and
dbther abusive names is either a de-
liberate attempt to cause trouble or
implies a lack of knowledge on the
part of the writer. Since’ we hope
it is the latter, this letter is written
to inform you of the facets, with re-
gard to the objective of the meeting
and what really happened.

In accordance with the request of
our national executive a committee
was set up to make arrangements
for a provinee-wide protest, agaist
the action of the federal government
in appropriating thirty-five millions
for defense purposes.

The Vancouver Centre district
council was instructed to arrange
protest meetings in Vancouver

Centre area, and in accordance with
such imstructions arranged a mceet-
ing for Sunday, February 21, in the
Moose Temple.

Qur speakers were Dr. Lyle Tel-
ford, C@F president; the chairman
of the meeting, H. Gargrave, pro-
vincial secretary; Don Smith, editor
of The Federationist; Miss Sheena
Smith and Harvey Ladd, represent-
ing the Youth of the CCH; Mrs.
Sarah Colley of New Westminster,
representing the women of the
provinee, and rank Roberts, a well
known educational propagandist of
the CCE.

All speakers confined themselves
to protesting the thirty-five miullion
dollars appropriation, giving as their
reason the many arguments familiar
to yourself and the readers of your
paper. They drew attention to the
fact that preparation for war by the
inerease of armaments had a close
relationship to war flaming into
actuality.

The rest of the remarks were of a

Fe

They Say.

XX
@
f
ae |

“The mass production industries
haye opened the door to collective
barzaining."—Pres. David Dubin-
sky, International Ladies Garment
Workers’ Union.

“Tt is the most important victory
in recent years for the principle of
eollective bargaining in this coun-
try’—US Sec. of Labor Frances
Perkins, commenting on the steel
agreement,

“The ‘National’ government has

connived at German ctearmament
because of its hatred of Russia. It
has sown the wind and is reaping
the whirlwind.’—C. R. Attlee, Brit-
ish Labor party leader.

“Wever mind if we sometimes run
short ,of butter and eggs- Before
we are dislodged, the whole remain-
ing world will have become Fascist
or National Socialist.’’—Nazi Propa-
ganda Minister Goebbels.

“The ‘neutrality’ which gives aid
and comfort to the bombers of
Madrid is twin sister to the neutral-
ity which allows labor spies and
tear and sickening gas in the US.”
—Former Rep. Vito Marcantonio of
New York.

“T Jost 20 pounds because I
stopped eating butter and If feel
better than ever.’—Nazi War Min-
ister Goering.

‘We have reached the point as a
nation where we must take action
to save the constitution from the
court and the court from itself.’’—
President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

“Phe great majority of citizens of
the U-S. think that only in Europe
is there danger of a dictatorship,
‘put there are forces growing in our
American life that are striving to
curb free speech.’’—Bishop Paul B.
Ikern, Durham, NC-

“Wo one will deny that we have
lone been using an autocratic edu-
cational system to educate for life
in a democracy, and we perhaps
should ask ourselves if democracy
ean long endure under these condi-
tions.’—M. E. Hurst, Oklahoma
director of the National Educational
Association.

“The sitdown strike is the com-
ing technique for social adjustment
jin the industrial sphere.” — Inil.
Vice-Pres. Morris Watson, Ameri-
can Newspaper Guild.

ing CPR and ONR strike, as one
explanation governs both as far as
the writer’s point goes. Being an
ex-railroad man, many a time I
claimed the same point, but never
wrote it, -

First, obey laws and rules of
company. Second, obey laws and
rules of government concerning

same. If the men would only do
that much, as far as railroads are
concerned the companies could
scarcely get one train a day to move
out of one given point. The country
would be tied up from coast to
coast. _ PXRERATLROADER.
Cumberland, BC.

Notice To :

Carpenters
Editor, BC Workers’ News:

I have been informed that some
person or persons who handle the
truth in a rather reckless manner,
Aare advertising in the Vancouver
dailies for carpenters to come to
Quesnel. Lots of work! Well there
are about twelve or more carpenters
and near carpenters who make a
precarious living hereabouts who
would like to get in on some of this
work, but at present there Simply
is none. The advertiser gave no

“

purely educational nature. dealing
With the exploitation of workers in
relation to capitalist wars. The na-
ture of these are perfectly familiar
to yourself, and is unnecessary to
repeat them here.

Trusting you will give the publie-
ity to this letter that will correct
the impression conveyed by the edi
torial referred to.

We are yours truly,

HELENA GUTTERIDGE,
For Committee: P. Woodrow,
P. Casey, H. R. Gutteridge.

We publish the above letter in
order to correct any errors which
may have appeared in the article
complained of. It would appear that
in the article the nature and pur-
pose of the CCF meeting was inad-
ventently misrepresented, for which
we tender our apology.

Any meeting for the purpose of
protesting against the King gov-
ernment’s huge appropriation for
Military, naval and air expenditure
is worthy of support, and the CCF
is to be commended for its opposi-
tion to such expenditures for war
purposes.

While, unfortunately, errors may
have appeared, on the whole the
article, which was directed against
counter -revolutionary, pro-Fascist
Trotskyism whose disruptive work
in the labor movement is looked
upon with too much complacency
by the CCF, is substantially cor-
rect.— Hditor.

Here’s a
Schution!
Editor, BC Worsers’ News:
After reading in several papers

that BCER motormen are being
fined, some in fayor, some against,
it prompts me to write, re the pend-

FRIDAY, MARCH

——— AUSPICES COMMUNIST

MASS MEETING

LESLIE MORRIS, Editor “Daily Clarion

Speaking on €
“WHO ARE THE ENEMIES OF THE PEOPLE?”
VICTORY HALL

535 Homer Street

SRE EEE CEE OSSSSSSSSSSSS ta

name or phone number.

By
OL’ BILL

= > “Man Change
They Might Be Sse shen
Chamelons. writes the So—
wiet novelist, Yasienke. He speaks,
however, of men in general, not in—
dividuals, not even of indiyiduat
families. For mankind in general to
ehange his skin it is necessary that
some individuals and some families
shall die out absolutely.

Qne family of this kind appears
to be the Planta family of Nanaimo,
of which Clive Planta, MLA for
Peace River is the latest shining
example. While BC is faced with 2—
multitude of life-and-death prob—
lems, this scion of the Planta family,
is fishing in the muddy waters of
race hatred, displaying all the
fancied superiority of Hitler’s Aryan
hordes in his antics against the
Chinese and Japanese people of
British Columbia.

Race hatred and hatred of the
working class link this chauvinisic
demagsogue with his family in the
past and with Fascism in the pres—
ent. His grandfather, J.P. Planta,
was mayor of Nanaimo in 1877. The
Wellington miners were on strike
for an increase of 20 cents a tom
wages and lesS cheating on the-
weights. Mayor Planta read the
Riot Act and threatened the mimers-
with a British battleship.

His father,
mayor of Nanaimo in 1914. Bowsers
Expeditionary Force of 1913 had
peen recalled, their dirty work being-
finished and a couple of hundred
miners locked up in jail.

Re * % +
A Typical Tory In 1914, the Na-—
SoS naimo miners,
Politician. who were still

on strike, proposed to celebrate May
Day with a parade and meeting im
one of the parks. They were pro-

tia were brought in again to do alk
the parading that was allowed 1m
Nandimo on May Day. Notwith—
standing, the miners held their
meeting under the suns of the artil—
Jery.
Questioned in the House at Vic—
toria, a few days later, Bowser an—
swered that the militia were sent
to Nanaimo at the request of Mayor
Planta (the same Planta that rose
to be a Tory senator and finished
up by going to jail for two years
for stealing money belonging te
some of his clients).
In fanning the flames of the al-
most extinct anti-Chinese senti-
ments that haye troubled BC for
70 years, he is establishing 2 basis
for-the srowth of a Fascist move
ment here, in line with Tom Mc-
Innes and the scoundrelly Citizens”
League. Planta must be routed out,
thrown into the garbage can with;
McInnes.
= = see aad

A further proof

Priestly that changing the
Resistance skin is a slow pro-
To Change. CoS comes from the

Soviet Union, re-
ported by one of the worker cor-
respondents of Prayda.

During the recent census, some
of the priests who are sull wearing:
the same skin they had in Tsarist

times attempted to prevent the
census being fully successful. In
the questionaire, everybody was

ONE OF THEM.
* Quesnel, BC.

‘North Shore
\CP of C Meets

@ditor, BCG Workers’ News:

The North Vaneouver Section of
the GP of © sat in conference last
week to review past work and pre-
pare for the coming district con-
vention of the party.

Clear understanding and a grow-
ing maturity was evidenced by the
discussion of the tasks of the CP
fenerally and the North Shore in
particular

Reports from the central commit-
tee and the provincial executive
were adopted unanimously and a
strone section committee was
elected, with instructions to build
the party, intensify the fight for
unity against reaction and for the
betterment of the lives of North
Shore people. Ape ES Ep

Help Cook
This Goose

Editor, BC Workers’ News:
As a reader and regular sub-
seriber to your paper I am sending
in a few lines which I hope you
will find space to print in your
columns. I see by your issue of
March 12 the P. Burns lockout is
still going strong. As I am cook-
ing for a small camp in Stanley.
on the Cariboo highway and have
refused to handle any products of
the P. Burns Co., I hope all my
eld cook friends in BC and Ontario
who read this will do likewise.
Sincerely yours,
JOB KEENAN.
Stanley, BC, Feb. 25, 1937.

PARTY OF CANADA ——_—

19th at 8:00 P.M.

asked whether or not, they believe]
in God. This is where the priests
shone.

In several different places, which
showed that it was an organize@
effort, priests who have thrown i
their lot with collective farms re-
ceived letters from God. im which
they were addressed as “Dear Com-
rade” and which were signed “Com-
rade God.”

In between was the usual anti-
Socialist slush, advising the peas-
ants to break up the collectives ange
to be true to their early religious
training. It did not click so well,
however. In one place, one of the
peasants examined the letter closely
and remarked, “God has been using
the paper of our eollective.” The
priest had written the letter him-
self on the paper of the farm and
had it mailed from some distant
point. There are more tricks in class
war than Bennett and Pattullo have
to use.

* * * =
Lagi The big, fat slob,
Not Hell-Fire Qocrins, Hitlers
Hither! chief lieutenant,

is squawkine over the air that there
are some who would overcome Ger-

their gang of cut-throats. He warns
them, “Woe to him who dares play

with fire.’ ‘They are to “blazing
burn’ in fire. Goering should be 2
competent authority on playing

with fire. The Leipzig trial did not
wiring 2 Trotskyist-like confession
from Dimitroff but it proved that
the dope addict, Goering, organized
the burning of the Reichstag.
Individual terrorism will never
solve social problems. This is 2
method the Communists leave to
the anarchists and the Trotsky-
ites. But personally I will be the
jast to condemn the individual who
rids the world of carrion like Hitler
and Goering.
= = = a a
. Anna «Louise Strong is
Anise one of America’s greatest
Again. journalists. She is not
only gifted with keen powers of ob-
servation but has the intellectual
equipment to appreciate the value
of the data she acquires in her
travels. Along with which she has
a highly developed faculty of pre:
senting her conclusions in a2 simple

~< SS
aS

and convincing manner.

A. BE. Planta, was =

hibited from parading and the mili- ~

many “by murder and cowardly
attempts.” By “Germany,” he no
doubt means Hitler, himself, ana