constitution. It will be interesting I am sure to consider the details of its organization with somewhat more care.

To begin with there are the Syndicates or Trade Unions. These organizations have existed in Belgium from early times and while almost every type of organization can be found there including a considerable movement called "The Knights of Labor," copied from the American movement, the trade union movement as a whole is weak. The reasons for this are various. In the first place the law has been most unfriendly to their development, and they have not seen the necessity for large dues and efficient well paid secretaries; they have practically no paid organizers. At the time of a strike, they often depend more upon assistance from the Co-operatives than from their own treasuries. Furthermore the trade unions usually have a political or religious bias. There are for instance four types of unions: first: those connected with the Liberal Party; second: those connected with the Clerical Party; third: those connected with the Socialist Party, and fourth: the independents who refuse to affiliate themselves definitely with any party. It is however significant that outside of the Socialist and Independent Unions there is really no movement. There are now about 148,483 Trade Unionists in Belgium: only 17,000 are Catholics, only 2,000 are Liberals and about 31,000 are Independents. In other words about 94,000 are affiliated to the Socialist Party.

It is sometimes said that Socialists do not desire a strong union movement. It is even sometimes argued that Socialists have worked to weaken the force and influence of the trade unions. In answer to such criticism it would be significant if I could take space here to show how much the development of the trade union movement of Belgium has been due to Socialist initiative. But that would take me too far a field; nevertheless it is important to observe that the party is now using all its power to build up a strong and more virile trade union movement. Its propagandists are agitating in all parts of Belgium for paid trade union officials who can give all their time to the affairs of the union, and to the building up of the economic movement. While I have been in Belgium this has been the thing most discussed by the Socialists. If one were to attempt to give a complete answer to those who make these criticisms of the Socialist movement one would only need to mention the remarkable organization of the unions at Ghent. The unions there are closely affiliated with the party and they have realized an immense progress. It is entirely through the influence of the party that the unions have obtained first from the city of Ghent and later from other cities in Belgium an insurance scheme for assisting the unemployed members of the unions. Since 1901 the Municipal Council has given to unem

ployed union men one dollar for every dollar they have put in the trade union treasury. This is an extraordinarily important development, for it means that instead of the unions having to bear the entire responsibility for the unemployed, the various cities in Belgium are now undertaking to co-operate with them to the extent at least of bearing about half of the total expense.

The next group of organisations connected with the party are "Les Mutualités". They are mutual Insurance Societies such as we have in America. They existed in Belgium long before the foundation of the Labour party. A number of these societies became affiliated with the party at the time of its foundation, although many did not affiliate for the reason that they included in their organization both employers and employees. In 1905 according to the report of the Bureau of Labour there were about 7,000 such societies in Belgium. These societies were organized to insure against sickness, old age, death and similar misfortunes. Although this seems a very large number for so small a country there are still many others who do not report their affairs to the Bureau of Labour. One of the most interesting of the latter is the "Bond Moyson" named in memory of one of the original Socialists of Flanders. In 1890 after a long discussion and a rather heated battle all of these Insurance Societies excepting one, affiliated themselves to the group of Socialist organisations centering about the Vooruit. After this affiliation there opened an era of immense prosperity and the members of these Insurance organisations increased from 4,600 in 1897 to 10,323, or including families to nearly 30,000 persons in 1904. Soon after the reorganisation several new Insurance measures were adopted. A new fund was begun to provide insurance against invalidity, and another for ordinary life insurance. The members now of the Bond Moyson obtain three classes of benefits: first: they are given pensions in case of illness, second: a physician and medical help is provided and third: bread supplies from the Co-operative stores with a pension to the family in case of the death of the insured one. Special assistance is also given at the time of child birth. As a part of this whole scheme the Vooruit Co-operative establishment now gives a pension to all those who buy regularly at the Co-operative stores for 20 years. And when they are 60 years old they are given a pension, including practically all their necessary supplies, from the Co-operative stores. The Mutual Insurance Societies have really taken an extraordinary development. Brussels has a system equally remarkable; and organisations similarly constituted and managed are being organized in all parts of Belgium.

The third group of organisations are perhaps the most important. They are the Co-operatives and they comprise almost

every type of associated effort. One sees now in almost all the industrial towns of Belgium handsome stores, beautiful meeting halls, large assembly rooms, cafés and restaurants, modern bakeries and other similar establishments owned and administered by the working people themselves. In addition to the stores, where the activity is largely commercial, there has also developed a series of productive enterprises and almost every industrial town of Belgium has now one or more handsome model bakeries. In all of these bakeries the workmen have an eight hour day with the maximum trade union wage. There are also two or three breweries and cigar making establishments, boot and shoe factories, printing shops, cotton mills and co-operative dairies.

It is again at Ghent that the organisation is the best developed. To begin with there is the beautiful house of the Vooruit which is called "Our House". This house, in addition to being a large department store where almost everything that is required by the working people can be bought, is a working men's club. There are rooms for meetings and for recreation which in many ways resemble those of the University Settlements in America. On the first floor of "Our House" is a large café where about 1000 people can sit comfortably at the tables. No alcoholic drinks are sold although one can always obtain light beers and wines, tea, coffee, milk and similar non-intoxicating drinks. In the evening the café is invariably filled with men, women and children, the weavers of Ghent. Above this room is a large and beautiful library which is used also at times for lectures and meetings. On the same floor there are also several committee rooms. On the top floor there is a large assembly room which is also occasionally used as a theatre. All the rooms are handsomely decorated with Mural paintings, illustrating in ideal forms the subject of Labour. Throughout the town there are many branch stores where all sorts of supplies for family use can be obtained. On the outskirts of the town there is a new model bakery with the most improved machinery. About 200,000 Ibs. of bread are sold per week from this establishment. In addition there are several branch libraries, a large cotton mill and a handsome print shop where two daily papers and most of the books, pamphlets, tracts and other publications of the party are printed. For twenty cents a year every member of the cooperative receives all publications of this print shop, and there are actually about 155,000 persons who regularly receive printed matter on this subscription plan.

Perhaps the most significant move that has been made by the ever enterprising Anseele and the working men of Ghent was the buying of a fine old house with an immense garden in one of the most aristocratic quarters. It was formerly the aristocratic

club of the city; but it was found too expensive to keep up! Suddenly and quite secretly this house was bought by the weavers of Ghent and it is now their club. It has a large café, a library, a handsome theatre and meeting rooms, in addition to a large garden which is used on Sundays and other fête days for the games and assemblies of the socialists. In the midst of this old, aristocratic quarter Vooruit has placed its standard of revolt and the neighbors now hear at close hand the singing of the Internationale and other revolutionary songs and see the working people at their games and dances.

It is of course impossible to give in a short paper an adequate idea of the developement of the co-operatives. The following figures may convey some idea of their extent. The annual sales in Belgium during 1906 amounted to about 32,000,000 Frcs. and out of the profits benefits were alloted to the members amounting to over 3,000,000 Frcs. This latter sum was distributed to about 120,000 persons who were affiliated with the co-operatives. In addition to the above mentioned co-operatives there are the various productive enterprises including breweries, bakeries, dairies and so forth. The total sales from these establishments during the same year amounted to about 1,500,000 Frcs. Their value however is not shown only by the amount of money which they distributed to their members. As I have said elsewhere, they furnish supplies in immense quantities to the strikers when there is any great battle on between employers and employees. In addition to these grants they supply funds in many other directions. The Maison Du Peuple of Brussels for instance during the six years from 1897-1903 gave to the socialist propaganda half a million Francs. And of course this is only one example of what they are also doing in other cities of Belgium. Perhaps á less important but very useful service rendered by the cooperatives is the aid they give to those agitators and propagandists of the Labor movement who have been blacklisted by their employers. These men can always find some work to do in the cooperative establishments and still have time free to carry on their organisation and propaganda.

The fourth developement of the working class spirit is the Labor party itself. It is the bond which ties all of the various activities together. It is meant to express the views and aspirations of the working people politically. The party has now in Parliament twenty-eight deputies and seven senators. In the various municipal councils of Belgium it has about 500 representatives and its total socialist vote is about 500,000. While the unions fight the battles of the workers on the economic field and endeavor to force the employers to accord them better conditions and better wages, the co-operatives endeavor to displace the

middle man in commerce and to gain for the workers immense advantages in buying the necessaries of life. But the workers of Belgium realize that neither of these efforts can accomplish their complete emancipation. They do not under-value these two economic movements, on on the contrary they promote and strengthen them in every possible way; but they fully realize that so long as the capitalists control the machinery of government, they must remain a subject class. They therefore make an immense effort to conquer the Government. In this work the party carries on a tremendous propaganda. It has six daily papers in Belgium reaching 106,000 persons daily, twenty-two weeklies and fourteen monthlies.

I went to see the printing establisment of the Brussels "Daily". I found the paper in possession of a handsome establishment with everything required to produce a first class daily paper. There were large and adequate editorial rooms, light and airy rooms for the compositors and ample quarters for the five large presses. The biggest press was at the time of my visit printing daily papers for the two other towns about two hours from Brussels. These papers as soon as they were printed, were forwarded to these cities where in the morning they would be delivered to the subscribers or sold on the streets. In addition they were printing on one of the presses an illustrated weekly. The Brussels paper sells for one cent while the smaller daily papers sell for two centimes or less than one half cent. The Cooperative establishment has decided recently to issue a new "Daily" for one centime or one fifth of a cent. This will give some idea of the enterprise and business methods of the Belgian Socialists.

Of course there are immense efforts made in other directions as well to promote the propaganda. Countless numbers of the party are speaking and agitating all the time. At the Socialist theatres throughout Belgium Socialist plays are given. There is an extremely clever method of spreading Socialist views amongst the very poorest workers through the medium of several cinematographs. Between every scene there are shown socialist emblems, socialist mottos and short phrases expressing socialist views. Criticisms of politics, words of enthusiasm and of revolt are thrown on the canvass, and in this way the poorest and most illy educated workers gain some idea of the aim of the Socialist party. In addition there is a university in Brussels which is practically in the control of the Socialist party.

After the brief description of the details of organization and of the immense activity of the Belgian working class, the Labor party will mean something to the reader of this article. The members are as a rule simple ordinary working men. Most of