Page:Edward Aveling - Wilhelm Liebknecht and the Social-Democratic Movement in Germany (1896).djvu/13

 had been drawn up by Liebknecht. One of the results of the Congress was the formation of the Saxony Volkspartei (People's Party). This Volkspartei had a short life, for the good and sufficient reason that in 1868, at the Eisenach Congress of the anti-Lassalleans, the great Social-Democratic Party of Germany was founded. This at once absorbed the Saxony Volkspartei, and has since absorbed all other sectarian organisations.

In February, 1867, took place the elections for the North German Parliament. Although Liebknecht was a candidate in the 19th Saxony district, embracing the towns of Stollberg, Lugau and Schneeberg, he could not take part in the election owing to the little accident that he was undergoing three months' imprisonment. This particular imprisonment was due to the fact that when, after the Prussian and Austrian war, an amnesty for political offenders was declared, he thought the amnesty covered him, and went to Berlin to arrange certain business matters. Consequence—arrest, and three months' imprisonment. Further consequence—failure at the elections. A failure atoned for in September of the same year when he was elected. In January, 1868, the organ of the party, the Demokratische Wochenblatt, was founded, and Liebknecht was made the editor of it at the princely salary of thirty shillings a month. Then followed more strife with the Lassalleans, ending ultimately in the chief of them coming over to the new Social-Democratic Party.

In September, 1869, Liebknecht, who was a member of the "International," was sent as a delegate to the International Congress at Basel. There he had a brave fight for his resolution in favour of the abolition of private property in all the means of production and exchange. His little work on the land question, written about this time, is still of great value on this subject.

The Demokratische Wochenblatt became the enlarged Volkstatt, appearing three times a week, and Liebknecht was still the editor. Not very long after its starting occured the Franco-German war of 1870–1. Here Liebknecht, along with Bebel and others, both in the newspapers and in the German Parliament, raised their voices fearlessly against the iniquity of the war on both sides. They pointed out that the workers of France and the workers of Germany had no quarrel, and they protested against the annexation of Alsace-Lorraine. Both Liebknecht and Bebel believe to