A valuable short history of Socialism in the Middle West during the 1890s. Through the populist People’s Party, the Socialist Labor Party, and into Debs’ American Railway Union, the short-lived but important Social Democratic Party, of which Greenbaum was a leading figure, to 1900 and the formation of the Socialist Party of America just weeks after this was published.

‘Socialism in the Middle West’ by Leon Greenbaum from International Socialist Review. Vol. 1 No. 11. May, 1901.

MISSOURI, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa are four states which best typify the growth of the socialist movement in the Middle West. Some idea of the status of this movement may be obtained from the following comparison: In 1840, there were 7,059 votes cast throughout the United States for James G. Birney, candidate of the Liberty party for president, and this was the political nucleus of the movement which twenty years later resulted in the abolition of slavery. In 1900, Missouri alone cast 7,475 votes for socialism, 416 more than were cast in 1840 for Birney in the nation. During the past ten years Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa have been the chess-board for great political moves in the final struggles between the capitalist class interest represented by the Republican party and the middle class interest represented by the Democratic and People’s parties. The result has been the disappearance of one and the disintegration of the other of the two last named, and what is most significant, the sweeping away of much of the middle-class ideas of economics which have confused the public mind. During the ten years’ conflict referred to the socialist movement has been slowly evolving in these states, through what might properly be called a generative period, reaching its fruition in 1900, when it came forth as a new-born political child with the proportions and strength portending a giant.

Apart from the political death-throes of capitalism and its resultant suffering, there are influences which have directly contributed to the growth of the socialist movement in the Middle West that may be traced back as far as 1878. In this year, as a result of the widespread excitement over the great railroad strikes and Mollie Maguire trouble, there was started in St. Louis a daily socialist paper, Volkstimme des Westens, which had quite a large circulation and came near bringing about the election of a congressman on a socialist platform. “St. Louis Tageblatt” was a daily German socialist paper started in 1888 and continuing in circulation until 1897. In 1888 came Bellamy’s “Looking Backward,” producing a pro- found impression, especially in Kansas, followed in 1890 by the formation, mainly through the Kansas Farmers’ Alliance, of the People’s party. The People’s party, while not a socialist party, nevertheless carried on a propaganda with stump and platform speakers, a numerous press and campaign pamphlets like “Ten Men of Money Island” and “Seven Financial Conspiracies,” which gave a great stimulus to the study of economics and indirectly made thousands of socialists among the farmers and the working class generally in the Middle West.

In 1890 was also established the Labor Exchanges on De Barnardi’s plan, quite a number of which still exist in the Middle West, and on account of their co-operative methods have had a socialistic influence. The year 1893 marks a milestone in the socialist movement in the Middle West. In this year, with the “panic” as an appropriate capitalist background, the publication of “Labor” was begun by the Socialist Newspaper Union at St. Louis, and furnished simultaneously with separate local headlines to thirty-five cities, containing sections of the Socialist Labor party.

Among these besides St. Louis were Lincoln, Neb., Omaha, Neb., Kansas City, Mo., and Council Bluffs, Ia. The publication of “Labor” in 1893 also meant the Americanizing of the movement in the Middle West. In this year Albert E. Sanderson, one of the managing publishers of “Labor,” was nominated as the first socialist candidate for mayor of St. Louis, polling 1,631 votes. “Labor” continued in circulation until April, 1897, when it was discontinued owing to local publishers’ complications and internal differences in the S.L.P. about policy. The Pullman strike of 1894, Coxey’s Army and the trial and imprisonment of Debs contributed to fan the flame of popular but unconscious resentment against the capitalist system and gave increasing virility to the socialist movement.

In August 1895 the “Appeal to Reason” was established at Girard, Kan., by J.A. Wayland, and it has been a powerful factor in making converts to socialism and nourishing the movement in this section. “Coin’s Financial School,” published in 1895, with its sale of a million copies, principally in the Middle West, had a far-reaching influence upon the development of socialism. While not a socialist work, it presented the supposedly dark science of economics in an attractive manner never before achieved by any writer, causing thousands of its readers to go the full gamut of political economy to the extent of finally repudiating the very doctrines advocated by the book and openly avowing socialism.

The People’s party reached the climax of its strength in 1896, when (excepting a small remnant) it was absorbed by the Democratic party. In this year also, owing to unfortunate internal dissensions, the vote of the Socialist Labor party in St. Louis decreased to 596, as from 1,631 in 1893. The announcement by Eugene V. Debs of his conversion to socialism in January 1897, the formation of the Social Democracy in June and the holding of a Labor and Reform Conference at St. Louis in August of that year, mark the period when the labor unions and socialist organizations began to converge, giving a great impetus to the agitation for socialism in the trade unions. This found an expression in the following year in the socialistic resolution adopted by the American Federation of Labor in annual convention at Kansas City in December and which revealed a surprising showing of socialist delegates to that body. The influence of these events on the socialist movement of the Middle West was undoubtedly important.

During 1898 the “Arbiter Zeitung,” a weekly German socialist paper, was started in St. Louis. It is still in circulation and is doing creditable work for the movement. In November 1898 the socialist vote in Missouri was 2,700, which’ showed gratifying evidence of the socialist propaganda among the trade unions. In June 1900 the Social Democratic party convened at St. Louis in the first socialist state convention ever held in Missouri, with delegates present from St. Louis, Liberal, Kansas City, Poplar Bluff, Union and Washington. They indorsed the nomination of Debs and Harriman and also nominated a complete state ticket, including Caleb Lipscomb, of Liberal, Mo., for governor. As Comrade Lipscomb had a few years previous been the candidate of the socialists of Kansas for governor of that state, he enjoys the distinction of running successively for governor of two different states. National and state tickets were also put in nomination in this year by the socialists in Iowa, Kansas and Nebraska.

The “middle of the road” People’s party also had a ticket in the field in each of these states excepting Kansas, and recent developments show that the rank and file of this party are determined to join the socialist forces. The following table shows the socialist vote and the “middle of the road” vote in the states comprising the Middle West:

In December 1900 the national committee of the People’s (middle road) party held a meeting at St. Louis to decide upon the future course of their party, and as a result of these deliberations they have submitted a referendum to their members, proposing an indorsement (with reactionary qualifications) of the “co-operative commonwealth.” In the meantime quite a number of their party papers have openly espoused socialism and socialist party action, while the rank and file are joining the socialist branches throughout the Middle West and reenforcing the movement with new and capable workers. On January 1, 1901, the Social Democratic party of St. Louis began the publication of “Missouri Socialist,” a weekly English paper. In the recent municipal elections in Missouri the local organizations of the party have published weekly papers during the campaign at Kansas City (where the party owns a printing plant), and at Sedalia, the issue at that point being known as the “Liberator.”

A year ago the number of American-born comrades in the movement in St. Louis was almost insignificant. Today, they constitute a numerous and effective addition to the movement, whose foundation was laid by the German element. During the presidential campaign of 1900 the Social Democratic party of St. Louis raised and expended $700 for literature, speakers, public meetings, etc. Immediately following the campaign they raised over $50 for the Massachusetts movement, and during the recent municipal election they raised and disbursed a campaign fund of nearly $200 besides the separate fund for the maintenance of the English organ.

The Central Trades and Labor Union of St. Louis, consisting of 200 delegates, representing 30,000 organized wage-earners, has the reputation of being a socialist body. A fair-sized minority of these delegates are class-conscious socialists and if they largely influence and at times control that body, it is because of their preeminent ability and integrity and their disinterested and recognized devotion to the labor movement. The socialist movement in the Middle West today includes at least 1,000,000 unattached socialists, most of whom cling to the half-way and “step-at-a-time” measures advocated by capitalist politicians who endeavor to ride into office and emolument on the crest of the socialist wave. On the other hand, there is a marked increase in the number of socialists who demand action along uncompromising party lines, this being due to suffering and impatience under capitalist development and growing lack of confidence in middle-class political measures. In addition to this, the conviction is now rapidly gaining ground among trade unionists that while the trade unions are essential to maintain and enlarge advantages gained on the industrial field, the capitalist system is inherent with economic error and injustice, the conditions of which are constantly aggravating, and which can only be rectified through political action.

The International Socialist Review (ISR) was published monthly in Chicago from 1900 until 1918 by Charles H. Kerr and critically loyal to the Socialist Party of America. It is one of the essential publications in U.S. left history. During the editorship of A.M. Simons it was largely theoretical and moderate. In 1908, Charles H. Kerr took over as editor with strong influence from Mary E Marcy. The magazine became the foremost proponent of the SP’s left wing growing to tens of thousands of subscribers. It remained revolutionary in outlook and anti-militarist during World War One. It liberally used photographs and images, with news, theory, arts and organizing in its pages. It articles, reports and essays are an invaluable record of the U.S. class struggle and the development of Marxism in the decades before the Soviet experience. It was closed down in government repression in 1918.

PDF of full issue: https://www.marxists.org/history/usa/pubs/isr/v01n11-may-1901-ISR-gog-Wisc.pdf