PART III

PUBLISHED REPORT OF FIRST AMERICAN CONFERENCE FOR DEMOCRACY AND TERMS OF PEACE

Before considering the published report of the First American Conference of Democracy and Terms of Peace, held in New York City May 30 and 31, 1917, it may be well to recall that at that time the United States had been at war with Germany for two months; and in an endeavor to make up for some of its unpreparedness had passed the Conscription bill. Patriotic citizens, therefore, realizing that if Germany were allowed to defeat the Allies, this country must inevitably be the next target, willingly accepted any burdens that insured a successful prosecution of the war. There were of course hundreds of thousands of aliens and citizens of German sympathies among us; the newspapers were reporting acts of destruction by them; the air was full of rumors of draft riots; very disquieting news kept coming from the ranks of the Allies in France; and finally, through the Russian revolution of March, 1917, there loomed the added danger of the Russians making a separate peace and joining forces with the enemy. Surely this was a time for every staunch American, every lover of democracy in its true sense to stand by and fight the enemies of all democracy.

The Conference group, however, guided by Lochner and other persons of similar opinions, subtly twisting and perverting the meaning of honest words, chose this time to present a thoroughly socialistic, pro-German and undemocratic program under the name of "Democracy."

In the very foreword of this peculiarly un-American document, in the very act of shrieking aloud its Americanism, we find this sinister juggling of words and motives. After a diatribe against militarism justifying the organization of the Conference, representing the combined Socialist, pacifist and anti-military leagues of the country, we are told that these are "a mighty force demanding that American democracy, American ideals, American peace be preserved inviolate." The foreword then continues:

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"Such an organization was rendered doubly necessary by the revolution in Russia. . . They (the American people) wanted to make known to this free Russian people that the

Page 3, Report of First American Conference for Democracy and Terms of Peace.

feelings of those who dwell in America were not truly expressed by the war-like and undemocratic action of the official government that was elected to represent them. They wanted to show that they stand solid behind the Russian democracy and are ready to work with them until the autocracy of the entire world is overthrown."

In plain words, the Socialists and their pacifist allies of this country, thoroughly in sympathy with the Socialist program of Russia, were preparing to join them in an effort to overthrow the so-called autocracies (our own Government included, as we shall presently see) of the world.

That this program of international Socialism is sounded over and over again in the proceedings of the Conference- and along with it more or less open sympathy with Germany we are about to illustrate step by step. Before doing so, however, it is only fair to give further explanation of some words generally in use by radicals. In the radical dictionary then, the word "autocracy refers as often as not to a genuine democracy, such as our own; the words "democracy", "democratic" and "democrats " are used to connote Socialism, Socialistic and Socialists; and the very word "Americanism" has been prostituted to mean things as wholly un-American as, let us say, the Socialist Party.

In the report of the Conference itself we read:

1. Under the heading of "Peace": "The Conference favors an early democratic peace, to be secured through negotiation in harmony with the principles outlined by the President of the United States and by revolutionary Russia, and substantially by the progressive and democratic forces of France, England, Italy, Germany, Austria, etc., namely: (a) No forcible annexations of territory; (b) no punitive indemnities; (c) free development of all nationalities."

The committee of delegates in charge of these " peace "resolutions were Morris Hillquit, Jenkin Lloyd Jones, Emily Greene Balch, Wm. I. Hull, Randolph Bourne, Anne Withington, Alfred J. Boulton, Leonora O'Reilly, Algeron Lee and Prof. Lindley M. Keasbey.2

2. Under "American Liberties" the Conference protested (among other things) "against conscription, compulsory military training;" and demanded "democratic control of our foreign

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Page 3 of Conference report. (Italics our own),

Pages 7 and 8 of Report.

policy." The committee in charge of "American Liberties read as follows:

Richard W. Hogue, chairman; Lola Maverick Lloyd, Winnetka, Ill.; J. Barnard Walton, Swarthmore, Pa.; Prof. H. W. L. Dana, New York City, now of Boston; Harry Weinberger, New York City; Rev. Norman Thomas, New York City; Victor Berger, Milwaukee; Donald Stephens, Delaware; Alex. L. Trachtenberg, New York City.1

"The

3. Under "Industrial Standards" we find: American people, joining hands with the new democracy of Russia, must lay the basis for permanent world peace by establishing industrial democracy." In charge of this overseas joining of hands project, were Scott Nearing, Toledo, Ohio, chairman; James Bagley, New York City; Edward J. Cassidy, New York City; Henri Bereche, New York City; Owen R. Lovejoy, New York City; Mrs. Florence Kelley, New York City; E. Baroff, New York City; Miss Amy Hicks, New York City.2

Under "Permanent Organization and Future Activities" we have in Point 3: .. "To create at once a committee on international co-operation representing all the democratic forces in the United States field, to work in co-operation with the democratic forces of other countries both during and after the war," and further; "that the committee arrange for a similar conference on democracy and terms of peace in Illinois immediately and in California as soon as practicable thereafter." The committee appointed to look after these matters was James Maurer, Harrisburg, Pa., chairman; Frank Stephens, Arden, Del.; Mary Ware Dennett, New York City; Crystal Eastman, Croton-on-Hudson, N. Y.; Job Harriman, Los Angeles, Cal.; Rebecca Shelly, New York City; Daniel Roy Freeman, Grand Rapids, Mich.; Willard C. Wheeler, Boston, Mass.; Rose Schneidermann, New York City; Arthur Fisher; Adolf Germer, Chicago; Max Pine, New York City; Max Eastman; Edward Hartman, Boston, Mass.; Harold Rotzel, Worcester, Mass.; Fola La Follette, New York City; Harry W. Laidler, New York City; Louis P. Lochner, Chicago, Ill.; Joseph Schlossberg, New York City; Daniel Kiefer, Cincinnati, Ohio; Charles W. Ervin, New York City; Elizabeth Freeman, New York City; Margaret Lane, New York City.3

Other persons who gave valuable assistance were Frank Stephens, Arden, Del.; Lewis A. Maverick, San Antonio, Tex.; Marian B. Cothren, Brooklyn, N. Y.; Darwin J. Meserole, Brooklyn; Jacob Panken, New York City; Ludwig Lore, New York City, and Job Harriman.1

The speeches delivered at the first session of the Conference on May 30, 1917, are extremely illuminating. The chairman, Rabbi Magnes, said in his opening appeal that their purpose was "to rededicate ourselves to the cause of democracy and international brotherhood." Later he makes the veiled threat: "America must understand that the Russian armies will have the spirit to continue the war on one condition that their own idealistic war aims be made the war aims of their Allies." A little later Rabbi Magnes puts this in another way: "We want them (the Russians) to know that the American democracy does not intend to lag behind the Russian in the development of political and economic internationalism, and in all the constructive arts of peace.'

Following Dr. Magnes, Mr. Algernon Lee, of the Rand School, spoke on "Forces Making for Democracy and Peace in Europe," confining himself to the workings of the International Socialist Bureau and the Socialist parties in the various countries of Europe. In so doing he brought out that the Socialist movement in Europe was largely that of organized labor and that in many countries "numerous and influential non-Socialist elements are earnestly working in the same direction so far as concerns the effort for a general, democratic and lasting peace," especially mentioning the co-operation of the Union of Democratic Control of Great Britain and pacifists on the order of Bertrand Russell. Mr. Lee went on to tell in detail of the activities of the Societies abroad during the war to submit their peace platform beginning with the familiar "no punitive indemnities," including a demand for the "democratization of governments "- taking care, however, not to draw attention to the fact that our own government was to be no exception to the rule. He referred with pride that the Socialists of Great Britain in the summer of 1916 were responsible for "the Union for Democratic Control and similar organizations, getting more than a hundred thousand signers within a few weeks to a so-called 'Stop the War Petition.' "3

After Mr. Lee had finished his own address he read one by Morris Hillquit which had to do with international Socialist Conferences during the war and a coming one to be held in Stockholm to which Mr. Hillquit had been denied passports. We find a peculiar significance in his statement:

"As far as the Socialist Party of the United States is concerned it called such a conference as early as September 24, 1914, and renewed the suggestion on several subsequent occasions. As a result of these movements some conferences of neutrals and some separate conferences of the Socialists in the Allied countries and in the central powers were held."

For it proves beyond doubt that the many conferences of neutrals recorded in this report (those on paper as well as those which actually came together) were directed by the Socialist Party.

Mr. Hillquit also reported on "Efforts during the war to bring a general International Conference of Socialists for the purpose of working out a peace program acceptable to all parties to the conflict and particularly to the Socialists of all countries." Here at last we had plain speaking; for Mr. Hillquit not only refrained from using the "democratic" camouflage for socialistic doctrines, but he stated bluntly that the "peace program" devised by the Socialists would be particularly acceptable to Socialists all over the world.

Mr. Alexander Trachtenberg, the next speaker, took as his subject merely a variant of the preceding ones in "The Russian Situation." After announcing that the revolution in Russia was effected by the workers and soldiers rather than by the liberals, he emphasized the fact "that the entire Russian Socialist democracy now in control of the affairs of Russia is completely international. The whole Russian working class is imbued with internationalism. It has been taught so from the very beginning." Mr. Trachtenberg wound up his address with the rather illogical remark: "As a fugitive myself-one who has found a haven here in America as a political refugee-I wish to invite to free Russia all those working for peace who find themselves uncomfortable here."2

1 Page 25 of Conference report.

· Pages 28 and 29, Report of Conference, May 30, 1917.