Page:Boris Souvarine - The Third International.djvu/17

 ing weight of the organisations crushed down the minorities in whom were incarnated the Socialist conscience. Nevertheless, these minorities grew and increased in strength in proportion to their power to deliver themselves from a discipline whose letter killed the spirit.

In Germany, some weeks after the declaration of war, Karl Liebknecht began his fight against the Empire, the capitalist régime, and German imperialism, and also against the treacherous Social-democracy. Supporting him were Rosa Luxembourg, Franz Mehring, Otto Ruble, Paul Levey, Clara Zetkin, Karl Radek, and many others less known, who undertook the historic task of destroying in the German people the militarist spirit, patriotic submission, and docility to the suggestions of the renegades of Socialism: and of leading them on to the revolution. The annals of international Socialism, and of human progress will blazon among their greatest the names of these heroes.

In France since November, 1914, Pierre Monatte denounced the war policy of Syndicalist leaders, and resigned from the Confederal committee. With him Merrheim, and later Bourderon and other Syndicalists who had remained faithful to the International, to its ideal of peace and solidarity between nations, to its principles of struggle against the possessing class, attempted the renewal of international relations, and the restoration of its original tactics.

On the occasion of the convocation of a conference of Socialists from neutral countries at Copenhagen (November, 1914), of Liebknecht's declaration in the Reichstag (2nd December, 1914), of the Socialist and Syndicalist conference of Allied countries (London, February, 1915), they did their best to echo the pacifist appeals of Denmark and of Germany, and to make of the Allied conference the first step towards the International conference.

In the Socialist Party there were with Bourderon, Fernand Loriot, Charles Rappoport, and later Louise Saumoneau and Alexandre Blanc, seconded by militants less known, but of absolute devotion, who constituted the opposition group.

By the side of these artisans of the new International,