THIS book is an attempt to give an historical record of the Socialist movement in South Africa from the beginning of the 20th century, covering about 40 years.
It will be the Socialist movement as I have seen it during that period, therefore first-hand information. People whom I describe as Socialists and Socialist propaganda will. also be as I understand them, and I am not attempting to assume my interpretations to be the last word in what such a fundamental change in our social and economic life will mean.
Discriminations and criticism will be inevitable in my review of our activities, because, like all great movements, they have drifted into various sects in every country. In keeping with the disturbing political history this country has, of course, quite its share of those sects. We originally described ourselves as the Social Democratic Federation, being the name at that period of the orthodox revolutionary movement in England, to which we immediately became affiliated, but that does not mean that this record is in support of the activities of bodies so named in various parts of the world ever since.
Social Democracy is anathema to the modern Communist. It is to them a policy of reaction, and its votaries according to them have been traitors to the cause. There are few creeds, especially of such magnitude, that are void of such people, but the movement as a whole has done its work as a revolutionary force, and those of us who are the remaining advocates of its gospel stand unrepentant and unashamed of our deeds...READ MORE
