The Struggle in England

From Libertarian Labyrinth

Vol. 01	September 20, 1895 — pdf.	No. 01

The English workpeople are said to be very sleepy. In the mass, I am afraid, this is true, but the last fifteen years has seen a really wonderful awakening. An industrial transformation, it seems, has been in rapid progress for the last century and is still going on. At first, and for some time, the workers were bewildered by the whirl and the strangeness. Now they have become accustomed to it, and there was a danger sonic year back of an apathetic, cynical indifference taking its place. But this danger is passed, and new ideas and aspirations have grown up, and are growing, as few could have imagined only a short while ago.

This has been helped a lot by the repeated industrial struggles of the last few years, in which time workers have had to sacrifice so much to gain so little. Socialism, which only ten years ago was scouted and laughed at by the workers themselves, is now being pushed forward with feverish activity. The unfortunate thing is that just as it is making headway, quite a number of political adventurers are striving to put themselves at the head of the movement, to divert what is an economic, class struggle into a political channel.

The Socialist movement grew up here without them, except in a few isolated instances, where an individual or two, backed tip by the Social Democratic cranks, make blathering idiots of themselves by going to the polls and getting a few stray votes cast for them. Now that the movement has grown to considerable proportions, the politician wants to creep in and gather where he has not sown. He cannot harm it by his opposition—it is far too strong for that—but, like the priest in all past struggles, when it has outgrown his opposition, he places himself at its head for the deliberate purpose of diverting it from its proper course, for he knows lie is otherwise unable to do so. Not that all who take part in tile political movement are deliberately dishonest, but that those who manipulate it are so, for the most part, few will deny, while a goodly portion of the rest are craven cowards.

But it is in the ranks of the workers themselves, with their sturdy common sense, that the hope of the future lies. In the factory, on the farm, in the mine and the workshop the workers, away from priest and politician, are—perhaps sometimes crudely—thinking and working out a new industrial and social basis.

And these workpeople, whom their governors despise and yet fear, only need initiative and audacity to be able to put into operation, in practical fashion, the new ideas which seem to them, and to all honest people, right and moral. It is just this spirit of go and daring that we Anarchists have to give to the slow thinking and moving mass of the workers. Our work: to tear the mask from the face of all those who would mislead and turn back time revolutionary current now at last so rapidly rising; for should any attempt on the part of a considerable body of work- people, to take from property the power to plunder them, once be successfully established, it would be such an object lesson to the rest of the wage working world, that a new feeling would be generated among them—a determination to imitate their fortunate fellows at aim cost, since they would have seen it possible in their case; and the knowledge of their power would give them courage.

The fact is the most radical among property holders are getting nervous, and agonizing efforts are being and have been made to stem the tide of the revolutionary movement. The recent political reaction shows to what an extent the feeling of want of security has taken hold of capital. All the little shopkeepers—believing, poor fools, what their press tells them about the movement—have helped the reaction, to save themselves, as they think. They do not comprehend they are doomed anyway. The authorities have imprisoned our comrades and suppressed our papers—but in vain—our ideas spread the more rapidly. In the bulk nearly 100 years imprisonment has been meted out to us Anarchists in England. A movement is on foot for a mitigation or remission of some of the sentences, which were scandalous in their severity, varying from 5 to 20 years penal servitude. But the cause goes marching on, and nothing now can stop it. The conspiracy of the capitalists to starve the workers into submission and then brag about organizing industry is being exposed. The workers now wish to organize for themselves without masters or rulers. It is for us as Anarchists to transform this desire into action. And a "merrie England" and a moral England will develop from our work.

London, England.

Source.

Turner, John. "The Struggle in England." The Rebel. 01, 01 (September 20, 1895). 6.