Though a Southern city, Louisville, Kentucky had for many years a vigorous labor movement thanks to its large German population and relative strength of industry. Much of that German population, like neighboring Cincinnati, was southern German and Catholic giving both cities long histories of sectarian strife. In this article A.P.A. refers to the secretive anti-Catholic American Protective Association formed in the late 1880s. Here is a report of Socialist Labor Party work in the city from the fall of 1897.

‘Work of the Socialist Labor Party in Louisville’ from The People (S.L.P.). Vol. 7 No. 29. October 17, 1897.

LOUISVILLE, Ky., Oct. 7-The campaign in Louisville is daily getting hotter, and the old parties are recognizing the fact that all their so-called political “issues” are losing ground among the intelligent workingmen. Therefore they have about decided that the best thing to do is to work the “religious” question for all it is worth, and in consequence we find that the Republican party turned into an A.P.A. party, and the Democratic party into a Catholic party, both party organizations, however, controlled by capitalists and their tools. Between the two we have the Socialists to show to the workingmen the fallacy of allowing their respective religions opinions to sway their sound judgment, when only economic questions should be considered. There is not ONE candidate on any old-party ticket (the labor fakirs included) who is in favor of abolishing the infamous capitalist system of wage slavery, without which the working class can never hope for a betterment of their conditions. This fact is admitted by hundreds of workingmen in this city, and yet the majority of these workingmen will probably still vote for either Todd or Weaver, simply because the one is an A.P.A. and the other an anti-A.P.A.

The suicidal tactics pursued by the old parties give our speakers good opportunities to spread the Socialist gospel, and although for the present appeals to the religious prejudices of the workers may still keep them apart, it is only a question of a short time until A.P.A.ism will have to take a back seat with the other exploded “issues.”

Saturday, September 25, a mass meeting was held at the Court House steps to protest against the Hazleton massacre.

The meeting was under the auspices of the S.L.P., and in spite of the fact that it had not been properly advertised, fully 600 people were present.

It was the most determined crowd ever seen here, quiet and orderly, every man present seemed to have come for business, and when the resolution was read scoring capitalists and their tools the labor fakirs, and pointing to the class-conscious Socialist movement as, the ONLY relief, the same was adopted with a mighty shout, which was heard several squares away.

Our street meetings are well patronized, despite the many counter meetings of the old parties, and we intend to keep them up to the close of the campaign. During the last week of the campaign we will hold a final big rally at the Court House steps, at which we intend to boil down all the hard facts of our present conditions, economic and political, and in a condensed form bring out all the strong points of Socialism, being a clincher as it were, to the nails which we have been driving in during the campaign. We desire, in this letter, to publish an account of the most brutal and murderous attack made for many years in this city upon an industrious and peaceable workingman by a capitalist brute.

The victim referred to is a member of the Brewers’ Union, who recently came to Louisville and obtained work in the Stein Brewery.

After working several weeks, during which every week a portion of his wages were withheld, he finally concluded to stop work and ask for the balance of the money due him, amounting to about $15. The vice-president of the company, Nic Bosler, the brute referred to, wanted to give him only $7, which the worker promptly refused, as he was entitled to every cent the company owed him.

This fellow, Nic Bosler (ignorant and brutal, like most of the brewery bosses), thereupon struck the workman squarely in the eye, knocking him down a half dozen steps, and, not content with this, followed him down and kicked the prostrate man, inflicting painful bodily injury.

A warrant has been sworn out for this scoundrel’s arrest, and it is to be hoped that the Brewers’ Union will vigorously prosecute the case. This incident is another of the numerous object lessons which are necessary to teach the working class the hard facts of the class struggle.

Beginning with the month of October, the Socialist Labor Party (American Section) will hold two regular monthly meetings at Zimmermann’s Hall, 124 W. Jefferson street, as follows: Every second Sunday of the month agitation meeting at 2 o’clock P.M.; every fourth Sunday, business meeting at the same time.

We also desire to call the attention of all Comrades and friends to the fact that our Comrade A. Schmutz has opened a news and cigar stand in the Equitable Building, Fourth and Jefferson streets (Jefferson side), where THE PEOPLE, Vorwärts, New Charter and all kinds of Socialist literature will be kept constantly on hand. Respectfully, THE PRESS COMMITTEE.

New York Labor News Company was the publishing house of the Socialist Labor Party and their paper The People. The People was the official paper of the Socialist Labor Party of America (SLP), established in New York City in 1891 as a weekly. The New York SLP, and The People, were dominated Daniel De Leon and his supporters, the dominant ideological leader of the SLP from the 1890s until the time of his death. The People became a daily in 1900. It’s first editor was the French socialist Lucien Sanial who was quickly replaced by De Leon who held the position until his death in 1914. Morris Hillquit and Henry Slobodin, future leaders of the Socialist Party of America were writers before their split from the SLP in 1899. For a while there were two SLPs and two Peoples, requiring a legal case to determine ownership. Eventual the anti-De Leonist produced what would become the New York Call and became the Social Democratic, later Socialist, Party. The De Leonist The People continued publishing until 2008.

PDF of full issue: https://www.marxists.org/history/usa/pubs/the-people-slp/971017-thepeople-v07n29.pdf