Our ideal is to fulfill a less brilliant and grandiose task, but a more lasting one. Instead of confining our efforts to capturing people through sentiment, we seek above all to win them through logic and reason. We certainly do not want to underrate those whose ability consists in winning people through an appeal to feeling. To each his task, according to his temperament and his conceptions. But for ourselves we prefer securing conviction rather than belief. All those who take part in the propaganda should know what difficulties await them, that they may be ready to meet them and not be discouraged by the first obstacle in the way. Long and arduous it stretches out before our gaze; and before girding one’s loins for the march it would be well to consult one’s powers of endurance; for there will be victims whose blood will dye the rugged places and the turnings of the road, and corpses will mark its stages. Let those whose courage is weak remain behind; they can only be a hindrance to the advancing column.
Another very generally accepted prejudice among Anarchists is to consider the masses as plastic dough, which may be moulded at will and about which there is no necessity of troubling oneself. This notion comes from the fact that, having made one step in advance of the rest, these people consider themselves in a way as prophets, and as much more intelligent than common mortals. “We shall make the masses do so-and-so,” “we shall lead them at our backs,” etc. Verily a dictator would not talk differently. This way of regarding the masses is an inheritance from our authoritarian past. Not that we wish to deny the influence of minorities upon the crowd; it is because we are convinced of such influence that we are so concerned. But we think that, in the time of revolution, the only weight the Anarchists can have with the masses will be through action: putting our ideas in practice, preaching by example; by this means only can the crowd be led. Yet we should be thoroughly aware that, in spite of all, these acts will have no effect upon the masses unless their understanding has been thoroughly prepared by a clear and well-defined propaganda, unless they themselves stand on their own feet, prompted by ideas previously received. Now, if we shall succeed in disseminating our ideas, their influence will make itself felt; and it is only on condition that we know how to explain and render them comprehensible that we shall have any chance of sharing in the social transformation. Hence we need not be afraid of not obtaining followers, but rather to be on the watch for hindrance from those who consider themselves leaders.
In times of revolution its precursors are always outdone by the masses. Let us spread our ideas, explain them, elucidate them, remodel them if necessary. Let us not fear to look the truth in the face. And this propaganda, far from alienating the adherents of our cause, cannot but help to attract thereto all who thirst after justice and liberty.
Endnotes
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We shall not cite the facts in question here, having no intention of making a resume of them and more particularly desiring to explain how we understand the family of the future. Those readers who wish to study the question more deeply may refer to the works of Letourneau: Sociology and Evolution of the Family; and to that of Elie Reclus: “Primitive Folk, in which they will also find references to the sources from which these authors have drawn. ↩
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Logically, the explanation of the manner of raising children in future society as we understand it, should be inserted here; but this question being treated in Society on the Morrow of the Revolution, we refer the reader to the article: “Children in the New Society.” ↩
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I do not know whether Jean Grave had seen Prof. Lombroso’s article on the “Physiognomy of the Chicago Anarchists,” one of a series on “Criminal Anthropology,” published in the Monist, Chicago, April, 1891, wherein he admits in a footnote that his analysis was based upon portraits in Capt. Schaack’s book, which, as he had learned later, were incorrect! —Translator ↩
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G. de Molinari, Political Evolution in the Nineteenth Century. This work must have appeared in book form since its publication in the Journal des Économistes. ↩
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G. de Molinari, Political Evolution in the Nineteenth Century, page 70. ↩
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G. de Molinari, Political Evolution in the Nineteenth Century, page 63. ↩
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G. de Molinari, Political Evolution in the Nineteenth Century, page 68. ↩
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G. de Molinari, Political Evolution in the Nineteenth Century, page 68. ↩
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These exploits have a worthy counterpart in the present brutal war of the Americans against the Filipinos. —Proofreader ↩
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Since the above was written the famous Zola trial has given a farther demonstration of the government’s intention to make Dreyfus the scapegoat of its Judases in high places. —Translator ↩
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In the United States army this pleasing little ceremony does not take place at roll-call, but at “inspection,” and if anyone be sent to the guardhouse for “clothes offenses” he is fined by the captain or given so many days incarceration. —Translator ↩
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The hospital inspection has been abolished in the United States army. —Translator ↩
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This officer corresponds most nearly to the sergeant of the guard in the United States army, I believe, whose term, however, lasts only twenty-four hours. —Translator ↩
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I have here substituted United States army terms for the French translations as being more adapted to American soldiers. —Translator ↩
