Page:Jean Jaurès socialist and humanitarian 1917.djvu/106

 implacability of the theoretic formulæ, with which our eminent comrade, Kautsky, will supply you to the point of vital exhaustion." "And then," he added, " the adoption in this International Congress of the Dresden resolution signifies that international Socialism associates itself in all countries, in all its parts, in all its force with the momentary but formidable, with the provisionary but forced inaction of the German democracy."

This was very straight speaking, and more recent events have emphasised the weakness which Jaurès saw in the position of the German Social Democrats.

But all Jaurès' eloquence failed to overcome the natural conservatism of men who had spent years of their lives in spreading abroad Socialism from the Marxian point of view, and who regarded with apprehension the real danger of absorption in the older political parties. There were not many men who felt within them the strength that Jaurès had, not many who were born to lead and had no need to fear the power of others. And so the vote went against him.

When Jaurès found himself beaten by the majority of the Socialists he decided to leave the bloc. This was the less difficult because the special combination of parties which had worked under M. Combes was at this time falling to pieces. The idea of separation from