work, and society forgets him. He is a bum, a tramp, or hobo. No one has a good word for him. Every effort to improve his condition is looked upon with disfavor. This little poem expresses the feeling of many of these men: “The world is housed, and homed, and wived, It takes no note as I pass by. Nobody shared in the life I lived, Nobody’ll share in the death I die. “East, west, north, and south I’ve hiked, Seen more things than I’d care to tell; Part of the world that I’ve seen I liked-- None of it liked me overwell. “I cheated once--or twice--in my time, But the joy of crime I never could see, So I never went the way of crime-- No pull-and-haul with the cops for me. “I never was low like the hobo crew, Though I’ve begged my bread on many a day, But I always worked when they asked me to, To pay for a meal or a bed in the hay.” There has never been any great success in the attempts to organize the vagabond workers. The membership in the I. W. W. and similar organizations rises or declines so rapidly that it is almost impossible to quote any figures that are dependable. Professor Parker reported the results of a careful study made in California in 1915 and which showed that there were at that time 4,500 affiliated members in that state. The membership fluctuates, however, because when trouble arises in any industry in the West the membership in the I. W. W. always doubles or trebles. In one strike in Washington the organization claimed membership of 3,000, but there were about 7,000 on strike. The organization of these workers and the explosive quality of their teachings form a real menace to society. The philosophy of the I. W. W. is expressed in the words of one of the leaders who explained that according to their code there is no such thing as right or wrong. He said, “We know what people mean when they discuss these questions but they have no significance in our lives. The only principle that we acknowledge is the principle of expediency. It is better not to break windows because it will get us into trouble with the authorities, but the abstract principle of breaking windows and destroying property being wrong makes no appeal to us whatever.” The man who gave utterance to this statement was formerly a Presbyterian minister. He was in charge of a church in a steel city and his contact with the workers gained for him a clear understanding of the poverty and despair that grow out of their conditions. This vision and the sight of the people on the other side of the social gulf, who were living most recklessly in the midst of their luxuries, led him to become one of the leading radicals in the labor world. The philosophy of the I. W. W., and the power of this organization are increasing just in proportion as we fail to correct the abuses that now destroy the lives of men.