FOLLOWING RAIDS ON FREEDOM PRESS BY SPECIAL BRANCH, AT THE BEHEST OF THE HOME OFFICE, WHICH HAD BEEN REPORTED IN JANUARY 1945 (RECOUNTED IN LAST MONTH’S COLUMN), PRESSURE WAS KEPT UP WITH A SUCCESSION OF COURT CASES, REPORTED ON AT LENGTH BY THE RIGHT-WING PRESS ~ Rob Ray ~ That the February 24th edition of War Commentary, then the paper of the Freedom Press group prior to its relaunch, once again, as Freedom later in the year, came out at all was a minor miracle. The collective had been seriously set back not just by the seizing of its subscriber list and other files, but by the arrest of its entire core editorial team and, just as difficult, a decision by their landlord to kick them out rather than put up with the drama. Up and down the country, using the seized list, barracks and homes were being raided in an effort to gather evidence for the State’s line that Freedom Press was committing sedition by “seducing” the armed forces. Among those having their collars felt was Colin Ward, then a young conscript up in Scotland, who recalled: “I was in a Military Detention Camp at the time and was escorted back to my own unit at Stromness, Orkney, where the commanding officer searched my belongings and my mail and retained various books and papers.” And George Melly, later to become a famed raconteur but at the time serving in the navy, was threatened with a court martial after “subversive literature” was found in his belongings. Nevertheless, there was no break in production, with the correspondence address simply shifting to be c/o Express Printers in Angel Alley. The printing house at 84a had been bought in 1944 as a business that catered both for sewing magazines and radical pamphleteering, and Freedom remains in the alley to this day, albeit across the road (84a was bought and demolished to make way for what is now the western wing of Whitechapel Art Gallery). The issue didn’t skimp on anarchist comment about the issues of the day – its splash remarks on the Crimea Declaration—but these events are well documented. For our purposes there were three stories on the State’s actions against free speech, including hints at what would form as the Freedom Defence Committee featuring a certain Eric Blair. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- JOHN OLDAY AND PHILIP SANSOM JAILED Our comrades John Olday and Philip Samson have recently been sentenced to twelve months and two months respectively and are serving their sentences in Brixton Prison. John Olday is too well known to readers through his two books of drawings The March To Death (ed’s note, the picture above is his cover sketch) and The Life We Live The Death We Die. to need further introduction. He took an uncompromising stand at the Old Bailey where he was charged with stealing by finding in connection with an Identity Card. We shall deal with his case, which dragged on for many weeks, in the next issue of War Commentary. Philip Samson who has designed many covers for and illustrated Freedom Press pamphlets and War Commentary articles was convicted of a minor charge and we reproduce below the report that appeared in the St Pancras Chronicle (Feb. 2nd 1944). “It is quite true that I am not concerned with his political views but I am concerned with his record generally as a citizen,” said Mr. Frank Powell, the Clerkenwell magistrate, concerning Philip Richard Samson (28) an artist, of Camden Studios, Camden-street, NW1. Samson was before the court on charges of obtaining an Army waterproof coat which he said he had bought from a soldier for 25s, and of failing to report a change of address. Inspector Whitehead said Sansom was connected with an anarchist publication named War Commentary, and had been sharing a studio with a deserter who had been sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment at the Old Bailey. Sansom provisionally registered as a conscientious objector in 1940, but his name was removed from the register by a tribunal. He appealed but in 1941 this decision was upheld. He was later granted an indefinite deferment under an agricultural scheme and took up employment as a tractor driver, but he left this and came to London without notifying the authorities. Mr. G. F. Rutledge, for the defence, pointed out that Sansom had no previous convictions, and submitted that the court was not concerned with his political views. Mr. Powell said he was entitled to consider whether any mitigating circumstances were to be found with regard to his behaviour as a citizen. On the contrary he had done his best to avoid sharing the burden which had fallen on everyone else. Sansom was sentenced to a month’s imprisonment on the first charge, and fined £5 or a a month (consecutive) on the second. Readers cannot fail to notice (a) that Inspector Whitehead of the Special Branch was dealing with a case which one can hardly connect with political activity and (b) that no effort was spared to try and influence the magistrate by introducing the Anarchist Bogey which Inspector Whitehead did with more gusto than the local paper report would indicate. Our readers will draw their own conclusions. We also learn that our comrade Tom W. Brown who as reported in earlier issues of War Commentary is serving a fifteen months sentence in Wormwood Scrubs, has recently lost two months remission of sentence as well as his right to receive or write letters for the the same period. It would appear that a letter he wrote which was passed by the prison censors was stopped by the Special Branch, who also read his correspondence. He was put on a charge, which the visiting magistrates upheld. To these comrades who are directly or indirectly serving terms of imprisonment because of their Anarchist ideas, we send our fraternal greetings and our assurance that the work for the new Society will go on in spite of threats and organised attempts to impede its forward march. FOUR LONDON ANARCHISTS ARRESTED OUR comrades Marie Louise Berneri. John Hewetson and V. Richards, were arrested at their homes at 7.30 a.m. on Thursday. February 22nd and taken to West Hampstead Police Station where they were charged with a number of offences under Defence Regulation 39a. They were later taken to Marylebone Police Court where they were joined by comrade Philip Sansom (who, as reported in this issue, is at present serving a 2 months sentence at Brixton). He was charged under the same Defence Regulation. All four comrades appeared before the magistrate, Mr. Ivan Snell. The charges were read out and we reprint them from the Evening News report of the same day: Charges against all of them alleged that between November 1943 and December 1944 , at Belsize Road, Hampstead and elsewhere, they were concerned together with other persons unknown in endeavouring to seduce from their duties persons in Armed Forces and to cause among such persons disaffection likely to lead to breaches of their duty. CIRCULAR LETTER Vernon and Marie Richards were also charged that on December 12, 1944, at Belsize Road, with intent to contravene the Defence regulations they had in their possession or under their control a circular letter dated October 25, 1944, which was of such a nature that the dissemination of copies among persons in his Majesty’s Services would constitute such a contravention. Hewetson was similarly charged with having in his possession or under his control documents dated October 2, 1944, at Willow road, on December 12. Sansom was charged with reference to a similar circular at his studios, dated December 30. Richards and Hewetson were also charged with endeavouring to cause disaffection among persons in the Services on about November II. 1944. NO REPLY Detective-inspector Whitehead, of Scotland Yard, told the magistrate, Mr. Ivan Suell, that when, at 7.30 a.m. today, he told Vernon Vernon Richards and Mrs Richards that he was going to arrest them they made no reply. At 8 a.m. he saw Dr, Hewetson at Willow Road, Hampstead. He made no reply when told he would be arrested. Sansom was charged at Marylebone, and replied: “I have nothing to say” In reply to Mr. Gerald Rutledge, defending, Inspector Whitehead said that Hewetson was the casualty officer at Paddington Hospital. Inspector Whitehead asked that the case should be remanded until March 9th and bail of £100 with sureties of £100 was granted to the three first named comrades. Comrade Sansom was taken hack to Brixton to complete his two months’ sentence. It has been decided to form immediately a Defence Committee and comrades will be shortly notified of its composition, and address. Helpers will he required and we are confident of the response from our comrades and sympathisers everywhere. THE PRESS & CID CHECK ON ANARCHISTS For space reasons is was not possible to reproduce the Press comments on the Freedom Press in the last issue of War Commentary but we promised readers that we should do so in this issue. Readers who may have cuttings which have not been reproduced in these columns are asked to let us have them for our files. The first comments appeared in the Daily Express for February 1st, and the Daily Telegraph of the same date. The Daily Express note was headed “YARD IS WATCHING” and reads: “Scotland Yard’s Special Brunch is inquiring into the origin, membership and activities of a new extreme left wing organisation using the title ‘The British Federation of Anarchists’. Inquiries have shown that there are a dozen leaders and about 150 members. A report is being made to the Home Secretary.” The Daily Telegraph report which appeared only in the 4 a.m. edition was headed “ANARCHY GROUP INVESTIGATION” and reads: “A report (dealing with the activities of a small group of about 300 self-styled anarchists is, I understand, being prepared for Mr. Morrison, Home Secretary, by Special Branch detectives. The group is controlled from a private house in West London. Its members several of whom are believed to be in the Services, are suspected of circulating pamphlets among the troops which Home Office legal experts consider to be seditious.” As readers will see, the Anarchist membership rose by 138 in the night! These two small notes resulted in a visit during the day of an Evening News reporter, a Daily Mirror photographer and a Daily Herald reporter. We declined the offer of appearing alongside the Daily Mirror’s pin up girls and made no statements to the reporters, but that same evening a front page report appeared in the Evening News, with double column headlines: “Files and Papers Carried off In Sacks” “SCOTLAND YARD DRIVE TO CHECK ON ANARCHISTS”, “Army and Navy Units Visited.” “The activities of a small Left Wing Group who are alleged to have been circulating Anarchist propaganda among members of the Forces and war workers arc under investigation by Scotland Yard’s special branch. At the beginning of this month Detective Inspector Whitehead and other officers visited the Orkneys and look statements from men in the Navy. Visits were also paid to certain military barracks in the North of England where the kits of soldiers were searched for documents. A raid is was made more than a month ago on the offices in Belsize Road, NW, of Freedom Press, which for some time has been publishing a fortnightly newspaper entitled War Commentary — for Anarchism.” FILES SEIZED The police seized files of the newspaper and filled sacks with documents and correspondence. A search was also made at the homes of certain members of the organisation. Detailed reports of the results of the officers’ inquiries have been submitted to the Home Secretory and the Director of Public Prosecutions. The offices of Freedom Press, in Belsize Road, Kilburn, are in a large private house. When I rang the front-door bell there today it was promptly answered by a pleasant faced middle aged woman. On my asking whether I could sec a copy of “War Commentary — For Anarchism” she readily took me to a room on the first floor where a table was spread with a pile of copies of the paper, looking as though they had just come from the printers. TOLD TO QUIT The room was in some disorder and the woman apologised, saying she was packing up as she was moving to a new address. “The landlord has told us to go” she said. “He does not like our business.” To a question whether the office had been used by the Anarchist organisation for meetings, she replied: “Some meetings have taken place here” The woman declined to give her name or say whether she was a secretary. VOLUNTARY WORKER “I am simply a voluntary worker” she said. “All letters should be addressed to the secretary.” In the two latest copies of War Commentary there are references to the police searches and a complaint is made that Freedom Press files and other materials seized have not been returned. In the issue of January 13 appears this statement: “Many subscribers will be without their copies of War Commentary. We have no means of sending out renewal notices.” UNENVIABLE POSITION “We are also in the unenviable position of not being able to send out accounts for money owing to Freedom Press which now runs Into several hundred pounds sterling, nor have we details of payments made and to be made for books received, thereby jeopardising our credit with suppliers.” It is also stated that “Our solicitors have written two letters to the Commissioner of Police, but have obtained no satisfaction.” Reference is made to “our readers in the Services who have been subjected to the indignity of being searched.” Their letters, it is declared, “show a spirit which is a source of inspiration and hope for the future.” The following morning February 2nd the Daily Telegraph had more startling revelations for its readers, but this time it was reserved for readers of its early edition and not of its 4 a.m. edition. Headed “ALIENS SUSPECTED OF SEDITION” it ran: “Special Branch detectives who have been investigating the activities of a group of Left Wing extremists which as reported in the Daily Telegraph yesterday, arc suspected of circulating alleged seditious literature near army camps and naval barracks, have, I understand, discovered that some of its members are of foreign origin. Detectives have visited the homes of some of the members of the group and have taken possession of large quantities of literature and files. When the enquiries are complete a full report will be submitted to Mr. Morrison, Home Secretary and Sir Donald Somervell, the Attorney-General. The post Radical Reprint: Arrests and jail terms for Freedom Press editors appeared first on Freedom News.

A FIERCE WORKING CLASS PROPAGANDIST, MOTLER COULDN’T STAND THE STILTED, ESOTERIC TONES OF MANY ANARCHIST AND SOCIALIST WRITERS – AND WASN’T SHY IN SAYING SO ~ Rob Ray ~ Freedom was contacted, around this time last year, by a small production company interested in doing a documentary for the British Sign Language Broadcasting Trust. What would a small publishing house in Whitechapel have to interest them, you ask? Well the tale, and the subject of today’s reprint, is that of a deaf-mute political firebrand. One of the anarchist movement’s lesser-known figures (bar the occasional historical talk), Leonard Motler was initially brought into the anarchist movement thanks in part to its trenchantly anti-war position and proved an immediate boon to the struggling London scene. A trained printer, talented artist and incisive writer, he was able to essentially function as his own publishing house, though he lent his energies to multiple projects around the movement, including as the printer of Freedom itself. Motler had written in to Freedom a few times previously, but his article in the December 1914 edition of the paper was laser focused on the question of how it had come to pass that the Great Unrest had become the Great War with nary a revolutionary whimper. In Motler’s view the left generally, the anarchists included, was far too fond of talking to its own reflection rather than making the effort to speak in ways the working class would identify with, and had thus talked itself into irrelevance. His pitch was clarity and, while he would go on to be the first of the anarchists to identify Russia’s revolution as a dud (describing it as “running agley” in 1917), he was in step with the radicals there on his quest for blunt, effective language. Like the Russians with their Rosta windows he was a proponent of the striking, illustrated front page. His writing was mostly shorn of references to proletariats and classic literature. An example of this style can be found online in his explanation of anarchist communism. Motler was key to keeping Freedom running during the war even through the State’s attempts to repress and imprison its editorship, and managed to keep Satire printing until April 1918, when it was shut down by the police. Sadly we’ve not heard back from the production team about their project at time of writing (though it is still listed at BSL’s website) so we can only keep our fingers crossed that Motler gets his documentary! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ON WAYS AND MEANS During the last few years the Anarchist movement appears merely to have marked time nearly everywhere. Several reasons for this partial standstill may be put forward. Amongst these the late labour unrest has been conspicuous. This unrest, culminating in the great strikes, brought matters to a head in the industrial world. Conciliation boards had been found out; agreements had proved one-sided; leaders too ready, nay eager, to temporise and compromise. Trade Union discipline broke down; the officials were flouted. In spite of a gradual rise in wages, food prices lowered the purchasing power. A sullen, bewildered policy of despair held sway. Apparently there was no absolute remedy, Anarchism and Socialism were rejected as not being immediately practicable. But shrinking as they did from the prospect of a revolution, Syndicalism with its crude simplicity was almost on the point of being welcomed with open arms. Then the government stepped in; the situation was saved; Capitalism breathed again. How could such a remarkable collapse occur when the workers were so evidently animated with a class-conscious solidarity? The answer lies in the brutal fact that the stomach bulks largely in working-class argument. They prefer the substantial crumb to the somewhat shadowy loaf in the distance. This is the reason Anarchism was — and will yet be — postponed for further consideration. This is the one fault of our propaganda; this is the stumbling-block in the path of our progress. We are idealists, not materialists. On the one hand, the workers see the evil of Capitalism and all its works. On the other, they see the glimmer of the City of Light, as yet to them intangible and unattainable. They understand the contrasts. Their minds readily grasp the fact that however delusive, the future may seem to be, it can at least be no worse than the desolation of the present. But between these two their minds cannot bridge the chasm. This is our work, then. We must bridge that chasm. Our propagandist energies must be devoted to this. We must come down from the clouds and face the problem on solid ground. Anarchism must, at least initially, be explained in terms of bread and butter. Let this be understood. I do not stand for mere Labourist compromise. I do not suggest the movement be side-tracked in favour of plaister and pilules. There is no danger whatever of the main idea being lost in a maze of palliatives. All that is wanted is a little plain-speaking. Let us be frank. We have had enough of the economic cant, We have used the dictionary too often. Exploitation, surplus-value, proletariat, infantile mortality, bourgeoisie — all these are but meaningless catchwords to the man in the street, Shades of Marx and Engels! What is a working man, to know of the “materialistic conception of history”? Let us be frank. We have had enough abuse of capitalists, rent-lords, and financiers. They, at least, do not misunderstand us. We have had enough abuse of the working class. Let us give Carlyle’s “twenty-five millions — mostly fools,” a decent burial — a good long rest. The working class do not understand us, They are not to be caught in the fine web of our verbiage. If we will persist in writing pamphlets and making pretty speeches in polysyllables, they will go on not understanding. Either we must descend to their plain brutality of words or we shall go on talking over their heads. They cannot see the argument for the wrapping of fine phrases. We must be curt, crisp, and to the point. There are two sides only to whom we can make any appeal. The first and largest consists of the working class world. The second consists of those idealists — call them what you will —who are more or less of our kidney. For these latter our present pamphlets and fuller works will suffice. For the former a new literature must be brought into being — plain, large-typed, and cheap. Also let us have more pictures. The workers love pictures. They can see things better with the help of a simple illustration. A symbolic representation of Labour as an armed Don Quixote leaves them cold. A corduroy-breeched labourer is more to their understanding. Finally, we must organise our propaganda. At present it is too scattered. There is no need to drill each group into distributing pamphlets with military precision. What I mean is that there must be some system in what we do. We have plenty of meetings, in sooth, but not enough distribution. The spoken word is readily understood — and as readily forgotten. The printed word lingers. Let us make our pamphlets, our books, our leaflets as plain and as interesting as speech. Let us see to it that the working class is reached by these. Let our propaganda be constant. The movement has marked time too long. Now for the grand march. Forward! ~ L A Motler -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- END OF YEAR NOTE: As we come to the close of 2024, so I will close this chapter of Freedom Press’s history, looking at the events of 110 years ago through our ancestors’ eyes. There’s much more to be said about the paper’s activities during the war itself, but in 2025 I’d like to leap forward a few decades, to the end of World War II. Like 1914, the year 1945 was a key period in the history of British anarchism, though for very different reasons. It includes the infamous War Commentary trial and its aftermath, a split which would characterise many decades to come — and the re-emergence of Freedom itself as a regular newspaper and hub of the post-war movement in London. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Image: A sketch believed to be of Leonard Motler in Satire, March 1918, alongside some of his publications The post Radical Reprint: The frustration of Leonard Motler appeared first on Freedom News.

By the time Freedom‘s September issue hit the streets in 1914 the disaster that was to become known as World War One was already underway, and anarchists found themselves shouting sanity into a world that no longer wanted to listen ~ Rob Ray ~ The edition is a curious beast, mixing a thunderous front page article denouncing the war (today’s reprint) with an otherwise very standard series of essays talking about anarchist literature, a bombing in New York and an appreciation of Edward Carpenter. Most notorious are the articles by Freedom’s famed social commentator Peter Kropotkin, neither of which talk about the war at all with one analysing monopoly in the modern State, and a second musing over communist kitchens. This was in fact the public manifestation of a huge argument going on behind the scenes, in which the influential Russian was calling to aid the French against Germany, in the belief a victory for Prussian ideology would stifle the chances for social revolution. On the other side editor Tom Keell was firmly in the anti-war camp, calling for the public to reject the war and turn their ire on the ruling classes. In the event, Keell won out, at least initially, with RR’s anti-war article taking prime position and Kropotkin filling in with something less controversial. The truce would last only until October, however, at which point the cracks in the Freedom Group would become a gaping chasm. As for who RR was, the most famous figure and one whose views would fit with the article’s tone would be anarcho-syndicalist organiser and Arbeter Fraint editor Rudolf Rocker, who would have just had time to write it before his internment as an enemy alien in December 1914, but this would merely be speculation. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BLOOD AND IRON Who is responsible?, Now, when the red deluge has so suddenly and unexpectedly surprised the whole of Europe, we hear on every hand the same question: Who is responsible? Evidently, each country has its own particular answer to the query. The rulers of every land throw the blame on their rivals, and the Press, whose special concern it is to manufacture “public opinion,” makes the necessary observations and comments. The Kaiser declares that it was the enemies of Germany who compelled him to wage war, and that he was the sole person in Europe who continually strove to maintain peace among the European nations. In England and France,on the other hand, the Kaiser is the “mad dog” of Europe, the only one who continually hindered and disturbed the peaceful relations of its peoples. And the Tsar, the red-handed executioner of Russian freedom, who converted Russia into a huge cemetery, and endeavoured to stifle the last hope of his oppressed subjects in a sea of blood — he talks of a holy war, a just war, in order to ensure the happiness and well-being of Europe! And in all lands the sounding church-bells are calling the pious Christians to come and unite their prayers that the Lord should destroy the enemy, and bless “their banners.” The same God! the same Christians! the same Gospel, whose founder said, “ Love thy neighbour as thyself”! What scandalous comedy! And how deep the ignorance and deception of the people who neither will nor can see this colossal and fraud, and the unscrupulous intrigue of their oppressors. Who is responsible? you ask. Do not look for the responsibility in others. Look for it in yourselves. Seek it in the cursed system whose victims we all are; in the State capitalistic civilisation which is based on organised violence, on the shameful exploitation of all the nations! You do not know, it seems, that we have been living in a state of war for many, many years past; you have ignored the war that is being waged daily in our beautiful society, therefore you now have a real war. You were silent when men, women, and children fell in great numbers upon the industrial field, therefore you now see your sons falling on the battlefield. For the same powers that deprived you of the fruits of your labour, and compelled you by hunger and starvation to create, riches for a minority of privileged thieves and idlers — the same powers will now take away the lives of your sons and brothers, and force you with their guns to die for their interests. In a word, you did not want the revolution, so you now have war — the wholesale murder of the nations. The revolutionaries only appeared to you as Utopians, dreamers, unpractical men. Your rulers were more practical, and the thunder of cannon, lacerated human bodies, and rivers of blood now speak to you of the results of their practicability. Who is to blame? Capitalism and its twin brother, the modern State! You yourselves are to blame, because you ignored the great doctrine of a new social culture, because you would not prevent the catastrophe while there was yet time to do so. No-one knows what the future has in store for us. One thing, however, is certain: Capitalism is war — Socialism means peace among the nations. So long as the producing classes will allow a minority of privileged robbers to monopolise the fruit of their labour, and to condemn millions of human beings to a state of eternal misery, just-so long will you have war among the different races and nationalities. The immense fortunes that are today accumulating within the hands of a few do not arise merely from the usual exploitation of the workman by the master or — manufacturer, but are the result of international speculations in the great hunt for the domination of the world’s markets. That is why Capitalism in every country was obliged to increase the power of the modern State, and to develop militarism to such mad proportions. For a strong military and centralised State is the only guarantee for the realisation of the modern Imperialistic tendencies of Capitalism everywhere. Bat Imperialism means nothing else but the economic exploitation of other nations upon the basis of the exploitation of its own people. In other words, militarism is the inevitable result of the capitalistic regime, and therefore the cause of ceaseless strife. The great misfortune is that the majority of people cannot see this connection, and many will gauge the culture of a nation by the strength of its armies and its external technical improvements. But this is one of the greatest mistakes ever made. Germany offers us the best instance for this. The national unity of that country, under the supreme rule of Prussia, upon a basis of, extreme militarism and an all-powerful bureaucracy, has certainly not produced what we call German culture. On the contrary, that unity has proved the greatest hindrance to the development of a true popular culture, and has always endeavoured to force the spiritual powers of the German people down to the level of the barracks. The finest examples of German culture were produced before the military system and the renowned unity came into being. The classical philosophy of Germany, her wonderful art and literature — all that developed when the country consisted of separate little kingdoms, and had not yet come under the influence and domination of Prussian culture-hating militarism. The so-called national unity and the conversion of Germany into a military State have no doubt been a great gain for German capitalism, but by no means for the culture of the German people. Under the rule of militarism, Germany has become a peril to the intellectual development of Europe/and a German victory in this war would be a great blow to every libertarian movement in Europe, a blow to the German people themselves. The violation of France in 1870, and the annexation of Alsace- Lorraine, were the real causes of the crazy development of militarism in Europe. It is also known that Bismarck and the Prussian Junker class intended to make of France what has been made of Poland. To this end Bismarck carried on secret negotiations with England, and France was obliged to throw herself into the bloody arms of the Tsar in order to maintain her existence as an independent State. As a result of this we have witnessed the frightful development of Chauvinism all over Europe, the weakening of revolutionary and libertarian Socialism, and the triumph of the dread reaction under which the European peoples are groaning to this day. The present war, the most outrageous crime mankind has ever seen, is but the last word of this reaction, tie last-word of Imperial, capitalist and the military State. And not only in Germany, but wherever this system exists, the same results will follow. The best Constitutions and most glorious traditions of liberty will not prevent these evil consequences. “You cannot combat militarism by means of Parliament.” This sentence was already pronounced as far back as forty years ago by the old democrat Johan Jakobi. A new revolutionary renaissance of the European people is the only means against this deadly enemy of mankind. And it is not unlikely that the present bloody catastrophe will at last awaken the people from their indifference. The bitter pain and fearful suffering will perhaps make a deeper impression than the words of the revolutionaries. It is possible that the Social Revolution will be the last act in the present tragedy; possible that murderous, militarism will be drowned in the blood of its numberless victims; that the people of the different countries will unite against the bloody regime of modern Capitalism and its institutions, and finally produce a new social culture upon the basis of free Socialism. At the same time, the progressive elements must not lose courage, however great the disaster that has befallen us. We must be on our guard, and, if necessary, risk our lives for the triumph of a new social order. ~RR The post Radical reprint: War arrived, and with it the anarchists despaired appeared first on Freedom News.