William and Lizzie M. Holmes, “Anarchism: A Millennial Dream,” Instead of a Magazine 2 no 3 (May 25, 1915): 5.
Vol. II, No. 3, Page 5
ANARCHISM: A MILLENNIAL DREAM (Will and Lizzie Holmes)
We have been receiving “INSTEAD OF A MAGAZINE” thru the kindness of some friend who supplied you our address. It is a pleasure to hear again from old intellectuals we used to know either personally or thru their writings. It brings back old times to read Jo Labadie, Parker Sercombe, John Beverley Robinson, Steven Byington, Nellie Carlin, Myra Pepper Weller and Herman Kuehn, all saying about the same things they did back in the nineties in the same old brilliant way.
Of late we have worked with the Socialist Party because we believe socialism will be the next step in the evolution of society. We have both come to the conclusion that it is not best to get so far out of the current of general human thought. — We do not want to be inactive and think it best to keep in touch with the best radical thought available. So, tho we still hold many of the old ideals we temporize by prating of “rights” and majorities and a rejuvenated state. Perhaps we also harbor other “delusions” the knowledge of which would doubtless cause our old “plumbline” friends to smile pityingly. To paraphrase Shakspere: “There are more things in heaven and earth, friend Kuehn, than are dreamed of in your philosophy.” Albeit, when we feel the need of mental stimulant we take down our old copy of “Instead of a Book” and set the wheels going round by comparing plumbline Individualism with the rest of the “isms.” Anarchism is the great as an ideal, but so is the millennium; neither of them present a practical working hypothesis by which we can unite to overthrow capitalism and all its evil brood. All saints and sinner[s] can do about either is to talk about it and descant on its desirability. That is all fine but one never gets anywhere. What good does all your fine, logical reasoning do? You don’t vote, you won’t fight, you can’t convince the numbskull masses, but without the masses you can do nothing.
