Jonathan Powers - Evolution Evolving - iOpening Books - 2013

 

Jonathan Powers - Evolving Evolution ; Part One - Dr Erasmus Darwin - iOpening Books, 2013

 

Dr Erasmus Darwin (1731 - 1802) was grandfather of Charles Darwin and, as the author explains, "articulated his own evolutionary worldview" before his grandson published On the Origin of Species in 1859.

 

Erasmus was not the only early evolutionist to have links to Derby as Robert Waring Darwin and Herbert Spencer were also "linked to the same Midlands industrial town".

 

The author agrees with Paul Elliott that "this `evolutionary perspective` .. was a by-product of the belief in technological progress which accompanied the early industrial revolution - spreading from centres such as Derby, the Derwent Valley and Coalbrookdale to what became the great manufacturing centres of the Midlands and the North." He goes on to argue that "this perspective also influenced the character of their evolutionary views which...were distinctly and unrepentantly progressivist." 

 

The author is at pains to put Darwin into context and spends some time explaining how Darwins` idea fitted in with, or differed from, his philosophical forebears, going back at some points as far as Hippocrates and Aristotle. I believe this is useful, though once or twice I did feel we might be getting too much of a good thing.

 

Looking at the changing times in which Darwin lived, Mr Powers emphasises the social changes engendered by the Industrial Revolution. He points out that in the Middle Ages "it was enturely natural to see everything, as well as everyone, as having been planned to fit into their `proper places`", but argues that "the rise of a `merchant class` and the development of a Market Economy...began to destabilise the assumptions of the old order."

 

He points out that Darwin did not see his `evolutionism` as working against (his version of) Christianity, believing in a deity he variously referred to as The Great Architect, The Cause of Causes and his "celestial guide".

 

Frequent use is made of quotations from Darwins` poetry and while it`s not to my taste, I think it is useful to have these.    

 

 It is outside the scope of this review to discuss all the issues and ideas contained in this booklet so I shall content myself with the observation that Erasmus Darwin was no numpty and neither is Jonathan Powers. 

 

We turn now to reactions to Darwins` beliefs. The most significant of these came when Darwin and like-minded bods formed a group called the Derby Society for Political Information. In the great tradition of these things they  held meetings on licensed premises and eventually produced their `manifesto`, a broadsheet addressed "To the Friends of Free Enquiry and the General Good`. Initially this was not deemed controversial and indeed it was published in the Chester Chronicle with accompanying editorial comment endorsing its` "genuine sentiments of freedom, liberality and truth" which the writer believed would be welcomed by "every friend to the happiness and prosperity of the people".

 

The document appears to have been a philosophical treatise on the nature and purposes of `true government`. While it did accuse the British Government of "deep and alarming abuses" it was careful to qualify this with the observations that "our situation is comfortable, compared with that of many European kingdoms" and that "as the times are in some degree moderate, they ought to be free from riot and confusion". However, the closing paragraph, which invited "friends of freedom...to form similar societies and to act with unanimity and firmness till the people be too wise to be imposed upon" was treated by the authorities as an incitement to rebellion. In truth, the aim of the signatories was only that their followers should seek  "influence in the government"..."commensurate with their dignity and importance". So, campaigners seeking to bring pressuere to bear on  government rather than revolutionaries seeking to overthrow it.

 

They lived in turbulent times, however. Darwin, a Republican, had initially welcomed the French Revolution, and had twice turned down the chance to become the King`s Personal Physician. Some reaction was probably inevitable.

 

When the Morning Chronicle  published the Derby Societys` declaration both the publisher and printer were arrested for spreading "seditious libel". 

 

In a comparable case the previous year Thomas Muir, an Edinburgh lawyer, had been transported to Botany Bay for 14 years when charged with sedition. These defendants were  more fortunate. The jury initially attempted to mitigate the offence by delvering a verdict that they were guilty of publishing the material in question but "without malicious intent." The judge rejected their verdict as invalid, only to have them return a second verdict of `Not Guilty."

 

Although Mr P does not mention it, the case anticipated in many ways the 1794 Treason Trials ( http://en.wikipedia/wiki.org1794_Treason_Trials/ ), a set of cases in which jurors rejected attempts to use the Courts to stifle debate. In my view, these are cases which should be more widely known, though I must admit I was unaware of them myself until a week or two ago ! 

 

All this and more is to be found in Mr P`s worthy tome. In places I personally felt there was a bit too much detail, but there again I`m probably a very different person to the author. Overall, I found it a satisfying read which only occasionally lapses into academic jargon.

 

More importantly, for me it brought to life a person from history who was previously just a name to me. I`m not sure where you can purchase a copy online - I like to think that is sold clandestinely, possibly in a plain wrapper, in secret hotbeds of latter-day radicalism located somewhere near Derby City Centre. That would be quite glamorous in it`s way.

 

If such networks are not available to you, there are a few of Jonathan Powers` I-Opening Booklets for sale in the gift shop at Derby Museum !

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

W R Lester - Unemployment and the Land - United Committee for the Taxation of Land Values

W R Lester - Unemployment and the Land - United Committee for the Taxation of Land Values, 4th edition,  1933

"All great truths are simple truths, and all great problems can be reduced to their simple elements, however complicated they may appear at first sight." - W R Lester

In my previous posting on this blog, we looked at the thoughts of Frank Dupuis and I mentioned that he found the answers to many of his questions in W R Lester`s Unemployment and the Land.

Since I own a copy of said work, it seems logical to look at that now.

W R Lester was, I believe,  William Richard Lester, born 1860, an admirer of American political philosopher Henry George. He was an election candidate for the Liberal Party* in 1910 and the author of a number of pamphlets, most, if not all,  of  which were connected with the question of land value taxation.

If anyone has any further information on the literate Liberal Lester, I`d be glad to hear from you.

Unemployment and the Land is a pleasure to read. Mr L puts his case clearly and succinctly, arguing his points well.

His argument is that unemployment is a relatively modern, artificial phenomenon and that it`s existence shows that "our civilization has taken a wrong turning". The roots of this modern malaise can, he believes, be traced back to the enclosure of common land in the Middle Ages. 

"Unemployment is no part of the natural order as many assume it to be" he asserts.

His arguments and opinions do not easily fit into neat little categories of  right/left politics. He identifies the monopolisation of land ownership by a wealthy few as the source of the problem he wishes to address, but is no opponent of capitalism. He argues that "it is futile to blame Goverments for not `providing` work. They cannot do it." but endorses a statement made by Henry George ;

"If there is want, if there is scarcity, if there are men who cannot find employment, if there are people starving in the midst of plenty, is it not simply because what the Creator intended for the use of man has been made the private property of the few ?"

One area of his thinking will have been of particular interest to Frank Dupuis, which is the effect of imposition of western practises on African societies and, by extension, on other areas of what was then the empire ;

"To-day this process of enclosure, under another name, is proceeding before our eyes among native tribes in Colonial possessions, with the same dire consequences...So long as the natives retained their tribal lands, workless men did not and could not exist."

He goes on to detail hearings on the matter under the name of the Native Labour Commission (Kenya), 1912 - 13 ;

"Settler after settler came before the Commission and demanded in the most precise terms that the natives should be forced out of  `reserves` to work  for wages by cutting down their land so that they should have less than they could live on...The process of reducing men to unemployment and poverty is here stated in all its` nakedness." 

Do his ideas make sense ? For myself, I have to say I am not someone who is readily persuaded by ideas that have never been tried anywhere, or to the glib assumption that a proposed course of action will have no unintended consequences. At the same time, if everyone thought like that very little would ever change ! For the moment then, I count myself as sympathetic but unconvinced.

Assuming one accepts his arguments regarding the enclosure of common land, one`s response could vary quite a bit, from joining, say,  The Ramblers or the Open Spaces Society (my own preferred option) ,  to storming the barricades like some latter-day revolutionary ! Taxing the value of land is only one of a variety of choices one could make.

Nonetheless, Lester is a provocative thinker and an advocate of reasoned and orderly change, so for that reason he is, in my opinion, well worth a read.

Footnote

For a more recent look at the question of land value taxation, this article may be of interest ;

Unsigned - `Land Value Tax "Should be Examined"` - 14 Sep 2013 at www.expressandstar.com

( http://www.expressandstar.com/business/uk-money/2013/09/14/land-value-tax-should-be-examined ) 

* The Liberal Party that Lester knew has two modern descendants, the Liberal Democrat Party ( www.libdems.org.uk ) and the Liberal Party ( www.liberal.org.uk ) .


   
  

The Philosophy of G Lowes Dickinson

G Lowes Dickinson - Plato and His Dialogues - Pelican - 1947 (Reprint)

I`ve mentioned before that my knowledge of history and philosophy is largely based on old and often second-hand books. This is a case in point.

The book is based on a series of talks given by the author aimed at "men and women who are not and do not mean to be scholars, who have not much time for reading". Sounds good to me !

The author gets off to a strong start, acknowledging that his hero "is in some respects the greaest of revolutionaries, in others the greatest of reactionaries".  He infers that he has some differences with Plato, finding an element of despair in the philosophers` later work "and, even worse, a recourse to intolerance and persecution." He differs sharply with Plato on this issue ("by that road there is no way out") and affirms his own optimism and belief in liberty.

He looks at the time and place that formed Plato`s character, quoting Thucydides ; "The whole Hellenic world was in commotion ; in every city the chiefs of the democracy and of the oligarchy were struggling." Against this background, the young Plato saw his mentor Socrates imprisoned and condemned to death.

After looking at contemporary accounts of the life and character of Socrates he moves on to Plato`s dialogues.

Plato`s works were written in the form of conversations, a little like plays, in which two or more characters attempt to get to grips with the issues of the day. As a tribute to his mentor, Plato always makes Socrates the central character and portrays him as an incisive questioner who exposes inconsistencies in the arguments of others and  makes them question their attitudes and values. 

Disappointingly,the passages Dickinson quotes do not really show us Socrates the opponent of hypocrisy, but often seem to be mere exchanges of courtesies by no means essential to the matter in hand. Terms such as `charming`, `beautiful` and `delightful` are bandied about, but we are no further on with actual questions of philosophy.

Now we move on to a pet hate of mine. Plato`s Republic is the book in which he sets out his vision of an ideal state.  It relates to a form of social organisation that has never existed, almost certainly never will, and which probably wouldn`t be desireable in any case. Many of  Plato`s notions concerning this `ideal` state seem quite ridiculous or unworkable to modern eyes, and there is some debate among scholars  as to his true intentions. It is profoundly anti-democratic, mainly because the one democracy he knew well, his native Athens, was profoundly flawed.

Dickinson then moves on to a later work, The Laws, written by an older and rather more world-weary Plato. At this point, Plato  has effectively turned his back on autocracy and, according to Dickinson, now advocates "a moderate middle class democracy". Dickinson notes that Plato "gives a certain preponderance to the richer classes", but also seeks to avoid too glaring a disparity between rich and poor. Because The Laws is not concerned with an ideal society, but with proposals for a real one, it is open to being reformed or improved in a way that The Republic was not.

Unfortunately, once we get on to detail, Plato`s authoritarian streak runs riot once again. There are stipulations as to who should marry, at what age and a great many other such suggestions, including a proposal for compulsory marriage with a range of penalties for men who remain single !

Dickinson himself was an unapologetic utopian and at times I did question his judgement.

Dickinson explains in his introduction that he has made few amendments to the texts of his original talks, but has expanded on the quotations used. This is glaringly obvious, as his quotations from Plato and indeed other sources are often of inordinate length and could usefully have been trimmed down. Despite this, Plato and his Dialogues is a slender volume.

In my view, this book represents an opportunity missed. While I can see that The Republic and The Laws needed to be discussed, there seems no reason why the author could not have added material on Plato`s other works, and I for one would have favoured a lot more emphasis on dialectic.*

I`ve owned this book for a while and if I`m any judge it had more than one owner before me. I think it may be time for this one to find a new home !


*Dialectic is a method by which two or more peoples seek to establish the truth about a particular matter by means of reasoned argument. It is very different from debate in the formal sense (in which the interested parties arrived with a fixed opinion and the emphasis is on `winning`) or from rhetoric. The phrase `dialectic` is often associated with Marxism, but is not unique to that school of thought, which it predates by many centuries, and indeed some strands of Marxist dialectic are not true dialectic at all.












  

The History of V Gordon Childe

This will be not so much a review as a collection of observations and thoughts of mine inspired by reading V Gordon Childe`s book `History`.

I should probably make clear that, while I am interested in history and philosophy, most of my reading on these subjects has been from old and usually second-hand books and I can hardly claim to be at the cutting edge in these matters. I could not make any useful contribution to a debate on string theory or post-modernism and, indeed, I don`t want to. Anyone with a greater knowledge of history/philosophy will no doubt find my humble efforts laughable, but if it gives them a few moments  of  innocent amusement I do not particularly mind.

V Gordon Childe was a historian with a particular interest in archaeology and pre-history and is still well-respected today. He held Marxist views and it may be as well if I give a simplified explanation of the Marxist view of history. I am not myself a Marxist and anyone looking to discuss Marx`s politics would probably be better served elsewhere, but I will add a brief footnote on Childe`s approach to Marxism in case it is of interest (see below).

Karl Marx believed, rather grandly, that he had "solved the riddle of history". As I understand it, Marxism is quite a complex belief system incorporating aspects of politics, history, economics and philosophy. For our purposes there are two important aspects I want to mention at this point.

Firstly, Marx  argued that the history of western nations could be understood as a series of incidents in which power was taken from one class by another (in English terms, e.g. the transfer of power between the King on the one hand and the Barons on the other at Runnymede, which was formalised in the Magna Carta).

Secondly, he further stipulated that these changes only came about when prior advances in economic and other forms of development meant that the circumstances for change were fortuitous, i.e. if an old aristocracy were superseded by if a growing and newly assertive middle class of merchants.

Another view, one which I personally find more convincing, would be that the same incidents were all events in which power was diffused more widely as societies evolved new forms of organisation.

Many Marxists have queried how fully Vere Gordon Childe had assimilated Marxist politics into his work. My own feeling is that they had a point. Whether that`s necessarily a bad thing depends on your point of view !

As I understand it, Childe`s thought evolved as he went through life.

Like many Marxists,  for a time he apparently subscribed to a clumsy, mechanistic understanding of Marx - probably believing in a world in which man`s destiny is determined by vast, impersonal forces of history.

Subsequently he developed a more rounded view, arguing that overall patterns of human development could be discerned but allowing for considerable variation at the level of the individual. That seems to be where he was at the time of this book, presenting quite a rounded view of human existence. For instance, although he rejects the old-fashioned view that history is made by  `Great Men` ,  the view championed by Thomas Carlyle, Sir Charles Oman and others, he is careful to acknowledge it`s positive aspects ; "To reject the Great Man interpretation of history, is not to belittle the significance of great men...Men have lived, and do live, greatly, and it is one of history`s functions to preserve this greatness and keep these personalities alive." 

Ultimately,  I gather he went on to reconsider even some of the positions expounded in this book, although he continued to be a staunch believer in human progress. As far as I know, he continued to subscribe to some semblance of a Marxist worldview throughout his life, though clearly within that framework he developed his ideas and understanding as he went along. 

At this point in his life, he had rejected a deterministic view of human development, i.e., he did not believe, as many Marxists have,  that mankind was making it`s way to a pre-ordained outcome. "If history be not following a prescribed route but is making a path as it proceeds, the search for a terminus is naturally vain", he comments. Although he was a member of the original, now defunct, Communist Party of Great Britain, this book does not expound the virtues of  a  socialist utopia in which a classless society has been achieved and which therefore remains static, but looks  more towards "a society in which men consciously and voluntarily co-operate in a collective effort to extend further the productive forces and the creative activities these liberate. Such an order would not be static but consciously and intentionally creative. It might then be regarded as the true beginning of rational history."

In general, Childe`s History is an accessible and thought-provoking overview of human history. It is largely free from Marxist jargon and for the most part his views are not presented obtrusively. Some of the points he makes regarding human history and development have been  shared by non-Marxist thinkers such as Winwood Reade and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Indeed, he makes the point that on one, relatively analytical, matter Karl Marx, right-wing economist Adam Smith and constitutionalist Walter Bagehot were all in agreement !

The last  chapter is rather heavy on the Marxist sources, though as we`ve seen he seems capable of transcending his influences. Some Marxists will find this book disappointing, but I think it should be approached with an open mind. More to the point, you can pick up second-hand copies fairly cheaply (mine cost 99p !) and it does not take long to read !

FOOTNOTE

I don`t particularly feel the need to defend Childe`s political views in every respect, but it may not hurt to give some context.

I`ve  stated that he was a member of the original CPGB (another, quite distinct, body uses that name today). In his day there was no Eurocommunism, no New Left. The party he knew too often supported the Soviet line, even during the Stalin period. For sure, there were periodic internal rebellions but there were no John Pecks or Ray Suttons in those days, no-one (as far as I know) making a sustained and determined effort for change from within. Normally, CPGB members either rebelled over key issues whilst remaining loyal at other times, or left the Party altogether.

Turning to Wikipedia, we learn that Childe`s biographer Sally Green believed his views "were never dogmatic, always idiosyncratic and were continually changing throughout his life" and that "Childe`s Marxism frequently differed from contemporary `orthodox` Marxism."

Marxist Neil Faulkner is quoted in the same piece as describing Childes as someone "heavily influenced by Marxism"  but not a true Marxist as he (Childes)  did not think in terms of class struggle as an agent of social change. For what it`s worth, that`s the impression I formed from my reading of History.

I don`t know if this footnote really clarifies things much but  hope it`s of interest anyway.

"A People`s Leader" - W E B Du Bois and Philip Foner on Frederick Douglass

`A People`s Leader` was the headline given by Masses and Mainstream magazine (May 1950) to a review by W E B Du Bois of the first two volumes of Philip S Foner`s The Life and Writings of Frederick Douglass, which had been published by New York publishing company International.

Du Bois opened his review by saying that Foner`s book "puts all America under deep obligation" and was "in happy contrast to the neglect of Douglass by American historians".

He commented "It has been difficult for America to see Frederick Douglass in his correct perspective : he was a Negro and therefore in a special category ; he was certainly an unusual Negro, but how was one to compare him with white folk ? There were no accepted standards of comparison."

He quotes an (unnamed) editor`s account of hearing Douglass speak in 1841;

"This is an extraordinary man. He was cut out for a hero...As a speaker he has few equals. It is not declamation - but oratory, power of debate. He has wit, argument, sarcasm, pathos...His voice is highly melodious and rich, and his enunciation quite elegant, and yet he has been but two or three years out of the house of bondage."

Du Bois indicates that this opinion was shared by many, in many parts of the word, but feels that in itself it tells us little ;   "But oratory is in a sense superficial ; what was the man beneath ? Foner traces his intellectual growth, with perhaps not enough  emphasis on the continuous study that gave Douglass more than a college training within seven years after learning to read."

Du Bois quotes Douglass` shocked reaction to the poverty and misery he saw in Ireland ; "The scenes I witnessed were such as to make me `blush, and hang my head to think myself a man`. I speak truly when I say I dreaded to go out of the house. The streets were almost literally alive with beggars."

Du Bois takes up the story. "Soon he was developing into a man who could see the evils of the world and not simply the plight of his own people", and quotes with approval his comment "I am not only an American slave, but a man, and as such, am bound to use my powers for the welfare of the whole human brotherhood."

"Particularly was his growth helped by meeting men and being treated as an equal" Du Bois remarks, "He talked and ate with some of the great figures of his day and returned to the United States, not only a Negro, but a world citizen."

Without wanting to play the `armchair psychoanalyst`, it is clear that Du Bois is becoming sidetracked here from reviewing the book and it seems likely that Du Bois was identifying very strongly with Douglass.While a spirit of academic detachment can be a good thing, his close identification with his subject gives us something of an insight into WEBD`s own character and thinking, as well as into the character of Douglass.

Returning to the matter in hand, he comments that in Foner`s book "one can follow details of  (Douglass`s) life and compare them with what he was thinking and saying...Those of us who have always thought of Douglass principally as a speaker will be amazed at the virility and clarity of his writing". In support of this he quotes Foner`s contention that Douglass` "editorials, speeches and letters...are among the most penetrating and eloquent of any American."

"He grew as he worked and he wrote," says Du Bois, "from the lecture platform he went into the editor`s chair ; he assumed more and more the leadership of free Negroes, a difficult and intelligent group." Is it too much to think he was having a little wry joke with us, as Douglass`s story begins to sound more than a little like his own, and he reflected on the difficulties he himself had experienced ?

"He was active in the temperance movement", Du Bois continues, "he announced himself a Chartist and endorsed the land reform movement...he opposed capital punishment and was a pioneer for women`s rights."

He touches on Douglass` falling out with his former ally Garrison, apparently because Douglass had indicated he would approve if slaves used violence to free themselves (it`s worth reminding ourselves here that slaveowners were not slow to use violence to keep their slaves, and that the slave trade was inherently violent from start to finish), but points out that Harriet Beecher Stowe had been quick to write to Garrison defending Douglass` new views as "a genuine growth of his own convictions."

Douglass, we learn, "moved into politics ; into both the Liberty and Free Soil parties and finally, with some reluctance, voted with the Republicans." He regarded his association with John Brown to be "among the highest privileges of my life."

Here the first two volumes of Foner`s work end, and here Du Bois` review ends also. "These first two volumes are clear, exhaustive and convincing" he concludes. "The figure of a great man rises from them."

I hope this proves helpful to those who might not otherwise see the review (though you should be able to pick up the appropriate back issue of M and M quite cheaply on http://www.abebook.com/ or http://www.marelibri.com/ if you want your own copy).

 I also  hope the late Dr Du Bois would forgive me my poor punctuation and rather brutal pruning of his review in an effort to  keep this article reasonably concise !

Lastly, if you were interested in this article, you may also be interesed in some of my other efforts ;

Civil Rights Showdown Revisited  - 17 April 2010
Blasts From the Past ; Angus Cameron on McCarthyism -  11 April 2010
Fighting Slavery and Climate Change in Yorksire  - 2 April 2010
Civil Rights Showdown - 13 March 2010

all to be found at http://masses2mainstream.blogspot.com/

Cheers,

Nick

Book Review #3 ; Kathryn T Cryan-Hicks - W E B Du Bois : Crusader for Peace

Kathryn T Cryan-Hicks (author) , David H Huckins (illustrator) - W E B Du Bois : Crusader for Peace - Discovery Enterprises, Lowell , Massacussets, 1991. In the Picture Book Biography Series. Contains a message from Benjamin L Hooks.

I make no apologies for including a book aimed at youngsters in this blog, particularly one as good as this !

Kathryn T Cryan-Hicks has a nice writing style, very clearly expressed, but still obviously well-researched and informative. There is no sense of her `dumbing down` for a younger audience. Interestingly, I notice at the front of the book, under the heading A Word on the Literature, a few suggestions on further reading for adults interested in Du Bois. I have to say her selections are very good and include some I would have mentioned myself ( Shirley Graham Du Bois - His Day is Marching On, Manning Marable - W E B Du Bois : Black Radical Democrat, Mark Stafford - W E B Du Bois : Scholar and Activist).

The book is enhanced by a number of excellent full-page colour illustrations by David H Huckins. These are done to a high standard and the images complement Ms Cryan-Hicks` words nicely.

It`s interesting to see how the use of simple words can actually be more effective than a heavily embellished style ; 

"Some people said W E B Du Bois was ahead of his time. They called him a prophet because he saw things that others didn`t see. One thing is evident. While other people hid from the world, afraid of different cultures, different ideologies, Du Bois was not afraid to seek the truth, and to look it squarely in the face. He was not afraid to act upon his new insights and to discard ill-fitting philosophies. His life manifested this search to understand people and the world, and to find a way for all people to live together peacefully."

A pretty good epitaph I should say !

NOTES - A bit of googling has produced the fact that Kathryn T Cryan-Hicks is Assistant Director of Programs and Community relations at Chelmsford Public Library (Chelmsford, Massachusetts, not Chelmsford, UK) and a member of Chelmsford Climate Action Network ( http://www.chelmsfordcan.org/ ) . I didn`t find anything about David H Huckins other than a passing reference which seemed to indicate a connection with the world of music. I had little luck finding out more about Discovery Enterprises, though I note they did publish a series called Perspectives on History which included one called The Lowell Mill Girls : Life in the Factory by Jo Anne B Weisman which I thought sounded interesting. In addition to his many other activities, Benjamin L Hooks has been a lawyer, a businessman, a Baptist Minister and was Executive Director of the NAACP from 1977 - 1993.  He is founder of the Benjamin L Hooks Institute for Social Change.

Book Review # 2 ; Albert E Kahn - Agents of Peace

Albert E Kahn`s Agents of Peace was a title in The Hour Publishers` Pamphlets for Peace series. A small, slim  (16 pages) booklet, it was intended to raise support for the defendants in the 1951 Peace Information Center trial, including, obviously, Dr Du Bois. I assume it is fairly rare, though I have to say my copy was inexpensive (I sometimes think I should re-title this blog Collecting Du Bois on a Budget, as you`re not likely to find any expensive items described here in the foreseeable future !). My copy still has it`s erratum slip (Duke Ellington was listed on page 8 as being among a number of American signatories to the `Stockholm Appeal` , actually called the World Peace Appeal, when  in fact he had not signed it at all. The erratum slip just points out this error).

A point of interest is `How to Aid in the Defense` on the inside rear cover (suggestions include lobbying President Truman and Attorney General McGrath, sending donations, forming local groups of supporters).

Although clearly it is a propaganda piece, intended purely  to support a particular campaign, it is written and produced to a high standard. There is quite a bit of information packed into this tiny booklet, and it does make interesting reading. Mostly, it is concerned with fact and opinion, rather than analysis, but none the worse for that. I did have reservations about  one paragraph, which unquestioningly assumes a connection in a case where a man who had signed the Appeal "was hurled from a second storey window". No evidence is adduced to connect the two incidents, which would seem to me to call into question whether it should have been mentioned at all.

However, I have to say this is a nice item of memorabilia and would also be useful to researchers etc. If you can track down a reasonably-priced copy in decent condition, you`d be wise to acquire it pronto.

Sorry, but my copy is not for sale. In the unlikely event I have any Du Bois material to sell, I will mention it, but at present, this blog is basically an eccentric fans personal tribute to Dr Du Bois and a guide to imformation and items that are around.   

Book Review #1 - W E B Du Bois - In Battle for Peace

W E B Du Bois - In Battle For Peace : The Story of my 83rd Birthday - New York , Masses and Mainstream , 1952

Dr Du Bois` later writings present the reader with the best and worst aspects of his thinking, often in the course of the same short piece of writing. Time and again, his sharpest insights jostle for the reader`s attention alongside some of  the most deluded sentiments it`s been my misfortune to encounter. I don`t know what it says about me, but for that very reason this period of his life has always fascinated me !

This book is something of a case in point. I had wanted a copy for some time and eventually decided to treat myself to a hardback copy of the first edition from a bookseller in the USA. I understand that there was a numbered limited edition printing initially, with red binding and possibly illustrated. Sadly, these are very hard to trace now and I imagine would cost a small fortune. My copy is a blue hardcover with gold gilt lettering to the spine and is regarded as the first edition, though I suppose a purist might argue that it`s really only a `first in this form` , given the existence of a previous edition.

The book gets on to a strong start, with chapters from the doc on such subjects as About Birthdays, The Council on African Affairs, The Peace Information Center,My Campaign for Senator, and naturally enough, marriage to Shirley Graham. The book contains additional comment from Shirley herself, which appears in the form of supplementary sections at the end of certain chapters and an additional postscript to the Appendix, rather than as a separate section at the end of her husband`s book as I had expected. After these preliminaries, we move on to the question of the indictment and trial of Du Bois and others as a result of their activities within the peace movement.

One thing that surprised me was how low-key some of his later activities were. Who would have guessed that he drew no pay for his work at the Council on African Affairs ( he seems to have felt it was generous of them to provide him with an office and a secretary, the thought of being paid never seems to have entered his head, even though he makes it clear he was not a rich man) or that the Peace Information Center mailing list comprised only 6,000 people. As regards his campaign for Senator, he makes plain his thoughts on his role in political life generally, though here there are no surprises ; "respectable participation in political life as voter, thinker, writer and, on rare occasions as speaker, was my ideal". Having been persuaded to stand for office, as candidate for the short-lived American Labor Party, partly to show support for fellow member/candidate Vito Marcantonio, he pronounces himself reasonably happy with the outcome, given that he never expected to be elected ; "I had slapped no backs during the campaign which I had not slapped before ; I had begged no man for his vote as a personal favour ; I had asked no vote simply because I was black. It was a fine adventure."

The trial is interesting on many levels. Du Bois and others involved in the Peace Information Center were accused of `failing to register as a foreign agent`. In this case, the meaning of the word `agent` was the legal one - `a person who acts on behalf of ( i.e. as an agent of ) a third party`. The suggestion that the PIC acted on behalf of a foreign principal (in this case, an organisation known as the World Peace Council,) seems to have come about in part because one of their activities was to circulate a low-budget newsletter called a `Peacegram`, which informed subscribers of the activities of the peace movement elsewhere in the world. Unusually for a publication involving Du Bois, it contained no articles or editorial comment, just the name and nationality of the groups concerned, plus a sentence or two summarising the recent activities of each one. Strictly speaking, there was no suggestion that the defendants were `agents` involved in espionage, but it`s pretty clear the authorities expected the public to draw that inference. As far as the case goes, the wheels began to drop off at an early stage and the judge eventually halted the trial altogether as it was clear the prosecution was ill-conceived.

Du Bois and associates viewed the whole thing with mounting paranoia. Undoubtedly, they had quite valid reason to feel embittered and suspicious about the trial itself and about the mounting hysteria of McCarthy-era America. Against that, it`s pretty clear that the Judge, a noted conservative, was not only fair but increasingly impatient with the hapless prosecutors.

Some, like David Levering Lewis, have suggested that the Judge, Judge McGuire, stopped the trial to save the state embarassment. Superficially, the timing of his anouncement may seem to support this.  As the prosecution had closed its` case, it was now time for the defence to have their day. Du Bois` friend  Marcantonio, a lawyer as well as a politician, was acting for them without pay and had been ahead on points throughout the trial. Albert Einstein was scheduled to appear as a character witness for Du Bois, and the defendants  would now have the opportunity to make memorable statements concerning the case. Additionally, one prosecution witness had fallen to pieces under pressure and the case against one defendant, PIC employee Sylvia Soloff, had been dropped early on, creating the impression of a case falling apart, a very accurate impression you might think. However, it seems more likely that the Judge had  allowed the prosecution to complete their case before he ruled on its` merits. He had indicated early on, in an exchange with Marcantonio, that he would allow the prosecutors to make their case in full, but that a `directed verdict` would be in order if things did not improve. In my view, he was essentially an honourable man intent on fulfilling his duties properly regardless of his own personal views.

So far so good. An interesting account of a troubled period in American history and in the life of a great Civil Rights leader. On the negative side, we have to consider the political views expressed by Du Bois. There are so many dubious sentiments expresed by him in this book that it`s hard to know where to start. Certainly the authorities were neurotically anti-Communist and quite prepared to sacrifice the very freedoms they sought to defend. The McCarthyites were a bunch of cowardly bullies who ruined lives in their zeal to stifle debate. Some, as we now know from other sources, may not in fact have been believers in democracy themselves. Nevertheless , the picture Du Bois paints of a remorselessly efficient police state is hardly accurate given that the case against him and his co-defendants collapsed. In other areas of life, such as restrictions on his foreign travel, he is on stronger ground, but given that he continued to address international gatherings by the simple expedient of posting his speeches to well-wishers abroad who read them for him, he obviously found this simple to circumvent. In point of fact, the  USSR of the `50s was much worse than America in these areas, but he continued to present the Soviet Union of those times days in a glowing light.

A telling observation here comes in the chapter headed Interpretations. The good doctor begins with some perectly reasonable observations. He concedes that not all of his supporters were Communists or democratic socialists, "many who supported us were liberals, progressives, and even some conservatives who believe in peace and free speech". He further concedes that "there is no socialist or communist program that does not advocate use of capital and individual enterprise as freely as is consistent with real social progress". All good, sensible stuff. Before long however, we enter the realms of political fantasy as he comments "the Soviet Union is desperately trying to evolve a nation working under severe discipline so as to evolve a people as free as abolition of poverty, ignorance and disease makes possible".  I`m no supporter of anti-Communist hysteria, but let`s be honest, the USSR of the `50s was not engaged in anything as high-minded as Du Bois suggests, and I think most people would have grave doubts about that "severe discipline" even if that had been the case.

It is difficult to know why he turned to Russia as his beacon later in life. True, he had sometimes  romanticised other cultures. His second wife may have influenced him. On the other hand, he was close to Trinidadian George Padmore, who, after a lengthy period as an influential Communist had turned against his mentors in the `30s, earning the hostility of the Stalinists. Du Bois also lived through the Earl Browder period of the CPUSA`s history (party leader Browder attempted to take the CPUSA in a new direction, eventually losing his post as a result).  With his own background, Du Bois more than anyone was well aware that not all socialists are Marxists, not all Marxists are Communists and that not all Communists were `orthodox` Communists.  I do not believe his mental faculties were failing him, he seems to have been reasonably sharp and lucid well into old age. At the end of the day, he was wrong, and I`m certainly not about to make excuses for him.

Against that, there is one passage that rings true ; "If, however, the democracy we are losing can be restored and made alive, because of our natural resources, technique, intelligence and science, why are we not undertaking this task immediately...? In such an effort here and now I long to help".

That seems a worthy aim to have and I believe he was quite sincere. If we`re looking for a positive legacy from Dr Du Bois` later writings,  that seems a pretty good one to me.