National Convention, Socialist Labor Party Volume 1900 (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1901 edition. Excerpt: ...and then; you know that. Now, as to the various amendments that have been made. They do not affect the central principle involved, they merely take away or add to. But there are some of them that add to only for the purpose of making things more cumbersome, of creating a situation where you must set the whole machinery of the Party in motion so many more times than are necessary. I heard one delegate argue it in this way: that we should not have the National Executive Committee elected for four years. He seems to lose sight of the fact entirely that the seven persons elected now will surely not be the same persons four years hence, not with the National Executive Committee of a labor party, the members of which are workingmen, the members of which are often compelled to leave town in search of a job. There will be a constant change of persons, and when the four years are up, perhaps with one or two exceptions, you will have an entirely different Committee from what you elect to-day. It has also been said that if the Party membership rejects the choice of the convention, then we would have no Committee. That is trotting out an impossible hypothesis. This convention as truly reflects the spirit of the Party as any convention that has ever been held, and if this convention chooses a certain Committee to do a certain work, it is almost impossible, in my opinion, that the Party membership at large would reject the choice of this convention. The objection is purely theoretical; practically it has no value whatever and is of no value. But so long as the central principle is maintained, I care not so much for all these amendments whether they are adopted or not. They will make a little more trouble, a little more work and a little more...