The Rise and Fall of Anarchy in America: From its Incipient Stage to the First Bomb Thrown in ChicagoMcLean, George N.
History
The Rise and Fall of Anarchy in America: From its Incipient Stage to the First Bomb Thrown in Chicago
McLean, George N.
Anarchists -- United States; Haymarket Square Riot, Chicago, Ill., 1886
"It is not much I have to say, and I would say nothing at
all if keeping silence did not look like a cowardly approval
of what has been done here. To those, the proceedings of
a trial of justice would be a sneer. Justice has not been
done. More than that, could not be done. If one class is
arraigned against the other class it is idle and hypocritical
to talk about justice and fairness. Anarchy was on trial,
as the State's Attorney put it in his closing speech. A
doctrine, an opinion hostile to brute force, hostile to our
present murderous system of production and distribution.
I am condemned to die for writing newspaper articles and
making speeches. The State's Attorney knows as well as I do
that the alleged conversation between Mr. Spies and me never
took place. He knows a good deal more than that. He knows
all the beautiful works of his organizer, Furthmann. When I
was before the Coroner's jury two or three witnesses swore
very positively to having seen me at the Haymarket when Mr.
Parsons finished his speech. I suppose they wanted at that
time to fix the bomb-throwing on me, for the first dispatches
to Europe said that M. Schwab had thrown several bombs at
the police. Later on they found that would not do, and then
Schnaubelt was the man. Anarchy was on trial. Little did it
matter who the persons were to be honored by the prosecution.
* * *
"As soon as the word is applied to us and to our doctrine
it carries with it a meaning that we Anarchists see fit to
give. 'Anarchy' is Greek, and means, verbatim, that we are
not being ruled. According to our vocabulary Anarchy is a
state of society in which the only government is reason; a
state of society in which all human beings do right for the
simple reason that it is right, and hate wrong because it is
wrong. In such a society no compulsion will be necessary. The
Attorney of the State was wrong when he exclaimed 'Anarchy
is dead!' Anarchy up to the present time existed only as a
doctrine, and Grinnell has not the power to kill any doctrine
whatever. Anarchy, as defined by us, is called an idle dream,
but that dream was called by God a divine blessing. One of the
three great German poets and a celebrated German critic of the
last century has also defined it. If Anarchy was the thing the
State's Attorney makes it out to be, how could it be that such
eminent scholars as Prince Krapotkine should say what he has
said about it? Anarchy is a dream, but only in the present.
It will be realized, for reason will grow in spite of all
obstacles. Who is the man that has the cheek to tell us that
human development has already reached its culminating point?
I know our ideal will not be accomplished this year or next
year, but I know it will be accomplished as soon as possible,
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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