Yes, they have banished all the other myths—the “myth of Santa Claus,” the “myth of angels.” You admit that these are myths, but the myth of God you still hold to. Yes, the Russians say it out loud; there is nothing of the hypocritical about them; they see the goal of human freedom and toward that they are striving, and have kept their heads above the maelstrom of the white terror, in spite of the combined force of the rest of the world.
How can you still say: “God’s in his heaven, all’s well with the world”? It sounds well, and people like to say it—but you know it is not true. “His vast purposes and plans”—where are they? He made the Russians—so you tell us—“insects, wasps and gadflies, that sting and buzz and die.” No wonder the Russians have discarded him and his omnipotence!
What you need is a little more real religion, a little more tolerance for a new idea, although it is as old as the idea of Christ Himself. You need less bitterness toward a nation that is leading the way toward a better human relationship.
Sincerely,
KATE CRANE GARTZ.
February 16, 1923.
HEBER F. VOTAW,
WASHINGTON, D. C.
Dear Sir: If what the American Civil Liberties Union says is true, concerning the treatment of Roy Connor now imprisoned at Leavenworth, I want to add my voice of protest. If this sort of abuse of prisoners, politicals as well as others, continues, you will force those of us on the outside to rise up and storm these miserable bastilles. We have tried every other means known to decent, well-meaning human beings; and when the trouble comes, the responsibility and guilt will rest on you and others in high places who are responsible for such outrageous and inhuman treatment of our fellow creatures.
Russia says to us: “Look out how you stir up the people.” Lloyd George says: “Today, January 14th, the thumbscrew brings disastrous results.” How can you and your relative, the President, continue to refuse our supplications, day after day, and year after year, and hope to keep the respect of justice-loving people?
Sincerely,
KATE CRANE GARTZ.
March 3, 1923.
PRESIDENT W. G. HARDING,
WASHINGTON, D. C.
Dear Sir: I am asking you again to release all political prisoners. Especial attention should be given immediately to those two young men, Quigley and Tahib, suffering from tuberculosis as the result of inhuman treatment—solitary confinement, and being obliged to stand for eight hours a day with hands chained to the bars of the cells.
Can you sleep nights, knowing such conditions exist? You, the one man in the United States who has the power to right these hideous wrongs, perpetrated on the innocent by miserable unfeeling wretches temporarily in power! How can you be so callously indifferent? Does it salve your conscience to attend church Sundays and pray to an all merciful God, knowing what inhumanities you are sanctioning by your silence, in the face of pleadings and supplications of men, women and children?
I could not step inside a church unless I knew my conscience was clean, that I had done all in my power to right every wrong that was brought to my notice.
When will we have such men at our helm? Not until then can we stand up before the world and say: Follow me; I am the torch bearer of a civilization that is truly civilized.
Sincerely,
KATE CRANE GARTZ.
A FEW LETTERS TO KATE CRANE GARTZ
Selected by M. C. S.
The Community Church,
New York City,
February 14, 1922.
Dear Mrs. Gartz: I hugely enjoyed your correspondence with the Better American Federation and thank you for letting me see your letters. You certainly hit straight and hard and I know you set them thinking. It does my heart good to see you lighting the good fight in this way.
Believe me, with every good wish,
Very sincerely yours,
(Signed) JOHN HAYNES HOLMES.
FROM MRS. SAMUEL UNTERMYER
Santa Barbara, Cal., February 23, 1920.
My Dear Mrs. Gartz: The nervous strain of the past years, together with the anxiety about Mr. Untermyer’s health, have had their effect; however, I am well again. A few days ago I had a letter from our admirable friend, Zona Gale, in which she speaks most tenderly of you and suggests our meeting. I could only regret that pleasure of seeing more of you was intercepted by our departure, but time and space mean nothing in friend-ship and understanding, and I want you to know that the encouragement I got from your visit, your clear vision, and refreshing courage in these times of drunken hate which seems to flow on endlessly, lifted much of the desolation I felt from me. Believe me, with beautiful wishes and the hope that we may have the pleasure of welcoming you here some day soon, I am,
Sincerely,
MINNIE UNTERMYER.
FROM A LEADING LIBERAL
Los Angeles, Cal., November 18, 1922.
MRS. KATE CRANE GARTZ,
ALTADENA, CAL.
Dear Mrs. Gartz: The fact that such women as yourself exist in the world is one of the hopeful signs of these reactionary times.
I read all you write with great interest and am grateful for the kind words you say concerning me.
Very truly yours,
JOHN R. HAYNES.
FROM A CLERGYMAN, NOW SOCIALIST AUTHOR
Los Angeles, Cal., May 4, 1916.
Dear Mrs. Gartz: I want to say how much I enjoyed meeting your friends, your home and especially yourself. I felt instinctively that you belong to the revolutionary group, and each generation produces about one in a hundred thousand, and the hundred thousand stand around and wonder what we really are trying to drive at. I have no doubt that you are awfully uncomfortable, placed as you are upon the “roof-garden,” and realizing that down below are the great masses of sweating proletarians who only have a little glimpse of the good things of life, and I realize how you want to revolt against the whole rotten system. Well, that is exactly the position I have been in while holding a church: a great surging revolt in my soul, and yet all the time compelled to sit on the lid for fear of offending the crowd who held the money-bags. Night after night I have raved, cursed and kicked myself for all those compromises, but I knew that at least I was doing something. We marched 112 from our church in the suffrage parade; had over two hundred labor speakers in seven years, converted ten young fellows to the Socialist party, and did picket duty in the strikes. But there was so much compromise and bootlicking and apologizing that the whole thing became a nightmare, and you can’t imagine what a joy it was to stand up and tell what you believe regardless of anyone’s feelings.
The luxury of telling the truth of Socialism without fear or favor is infinitely more precious than a gilt-edged salary in the pulpit or the platform, and I am enjoying that luxury to the limit, and I never felt so happy in my life as I do just now.
I don’t see any reason why you shouldn’t be happy when you are taking a lot of conservative and deadly respectable ladies and firing dynamite into them every Wednesday morning. Of course they can’t comprehend really what you are driving at, for with those of the simple orthodox brand it would take a surgical operation to introduce an idea into their minds. But you can’t afford to get discouraged; if you get one out of five to understand the true inner meaning of Socialism you are making a big contribution to the onward march.
I’m glad that you have passed the stage of vague expressions of brotherhood, and that you are democratic enough to work with the Socialist party; for to me, all the ordinary clubs and organizations are rather footless consumers of true energy, and the one thing necessary is to burn home this message of Socialism, allowing no one to dodge or evade the issue. And that can be done only by driving at it over and over again.
Best wishes,
ALBERT RHYS WILLIAMS.
FROM MRS. GARTZ’S SISTER
December 15, 1922.
My Dear Kitty: You have honored me by so many clippings, I am returning the honor and hope you can read them before your 1,000,000 others. I only
send you a couple of samples of a series and an editorial on Labor. We have had a very costly experience with Labor on E’s house. It cost more than twice what it should—and I am sure she couldn’t sell it for half what it cost.
How is Gloria and what do you do for and with her now? You should be interested and companionable in her life now and let up on some of your affairs.
Our love to her and you,
Affectionately,
MAY.
FROM ANOTHER SISTER
Dearest Kitty: I am thinking about you a great deal and have thought of several things. I have seen you crucified; and with what results? An astonishing strength, sweetness, sympathy, understanding, that compels the admiration of everyone who sees you.
Therefore I conclude that we can inflict suffering on people but cannot do them harm. It begins to look to me as if you were not dealt with by a machine, because you have resurrected into something infinitely above what you were. Don’t deny this, Kitty, it wastes your breath.
Your adoring,
FRANCES.
Chicago, February 22, 1922.
Dearest Kitty; I am so proud of you I don’t know what to do. You certainly ought to educate California. Don’t worry about Frederick and Jeanette; they have made a good beginning in that they are trying to be good to each other and good parents to their children. After a while they will realize that they need the whole world to help to take care of their own children, and that all children ought to have the same loving care theirs have, and that really their own are not safe till all others are safe. Pain and suffering are lying in wait for all children these days. We try to ward it off by accumulating money, but even that is a precarious business. C——nearly died the other day with three palaces to live in. Never can we be sure of anything, so all we must do is to try to make all people happier that we have lived and not try to get more than our share of happiness for ourselves.
I have been much impressed always by the Chinese desire to hide their children from devils by making them appear publicly to be undesirable. We do the reverse; we do all we can to advertise our children to the world. The Chinese are more like the lower animals, who hide their children away, and enjoy them secretly, so they won’t be devoured by enemies. There is something in those natural instincts. The bitter poor are bitterer for seeing American children dressed like princes; also the children are made self-conscious and selfish, instead of being their own sweet unconscious selves, like adorable puppies and kittens.
Catherine and Margaret are both very busy starting Liberal Clubs, C. in the university here, and M. at Mt. Holyoke College. They are so excited and happy, and I do hope they will soon have a Young America movement started here that will be analogous to the Young Germany movement and that of the Students’ movement in China. I have great hopes of that awakening of the young people to a feeling of their own power and importance in the world problems.
I am eager to get back to Chicago to see what is happening to William Z. Foster now. They are after him, but I don’t believe they will get him. He is so open and frank and straightforward, don’t you think?
The supine way the unions take whatever is handed out to them is sickening. They must see that he is right someday soon.
Your devoted,
FRANCES.
FROM MRS. GARTZ’S ELDER SON, FREDERICK
Chicago, June 19, 1917.
Dear Mother: Please take a little time off from your muck-raking and general disturbance meetings and give a little service to us.
You have written Jeanette one letter telling her what an angel I am, and another letter cold and practical like the German Kaiser. You are against him, and the system that made him and such wars as this possible. You are down on the United States and the world because they are trying to put a stop to autocracy, and institute new governments and methods that will prevent the recurrence of such a world calamity. The only way to do it is by a war on it; wipe out military power and if we don’t get in and get in quick you and I and all of us will say ‘Hoch der Kaiser’ to every petty officer that wears a German uniform.
Mother, I love you, and Jeanette would, too, if you gave her half a chance, but please get away from that bunch of agitators, that live off the fat of the land, in one of the most beautiful spots on earth, and kick and kick and never do anything to change conditions. The last few years you have been going around with so many cranks and kickers that you can’t see any good in the world.
I suppose I should not write to you like this, but you can’t go on forever crabbing and kicking and expect to get any pleasure out of life. Mother, please take a vacation and get away from that gang. Write and tell me what you are going to do, and don’t think that I don’t love you and admire your big heart; but, Mom, you’re away off the track. Love,
BUD.
FROM MRS. GARTZ’S FATHER
Pasadena, 1899.
I think one great mistake you make is trying to do too much, and taking others’ troubles too much to heart. You will find that you cannot afford to do this. I would try and do your duty to others, but not worry over things that you are not responsible for or cannot help.
Your affectionate father,
R. T. CRANE.
Chicago, 1908.
If you want to give money, give it to charitable institutions. You cannot take time to investigate these people, and even if you did investigate them, you are liable to be imposed upon. It is very easy for you to do your duty towards the public through relief societies, so you can turn these people over to those societies if they want help.
Your affectionate father,
R. T. CRANE.
FROM A JEWISH WORKING-GIRL, ILL WITH TUBERCULOSIS
Often since I came to the desert I have wanted to write to you, but have hesitated.
All I should probably say is that I think of you quite often. I wonder about you and your doings and if you are well. I would tell you if I could that the thought of you is full of tenderness, appreciation, and love.
I never forget those who have helped me when I needed help most. You did more. You were good to me. You were beautiful. I cannot help it, as I write my eyes fill with tears.
Always you have filled me with a wonder about you and a sadness because of the sadness that I feel lurking in the depth of your eyes.
With love,
B.
FROM MRS. GARTZ’S BROTHER
Washington, D. C., April 15, 1918.
Dearest Katherine: You are mistaken. I read your letters with great interest and understand we have the widest fundamental sympathy about what we should like to see accomplished but may differ very much as to means and especially persons through whom we look to see the millennium brought about. While you are radical, I am more inclined to progressive processes, especially since I have seen the frightful disaster brought on Russia by the Utopians. But with the world being wrecked and people being killed, maimed and enslaved by millions by the insane Kaiser leading his hypnotized nation and using all of the resources of civilization for the destruction of civilization, it is impossible to stop along the way to right the minor injustices done to individuals. That is only one of the crimes of German Kultur, that the old process of amelioration has been arrested and set back many years. But if we do not stop the Germans, this earth will not be a fit place for human habitation.
Much love to you, Katherine, dear. Let the world take care of itself for a time and write to me about the kids.
CHARLES.
FROM MRS. GARTZ’S MOTHER
November 18, 1879.
My Dear Girls: We had a nice time at the reception. It was the finest thing ever given in Chicago. I had my hair dressed, and wore my black velvet and new white bonnet. Perhaps I told you before. There was a great deal of dress. Mrs. Grant wore white satin. You, of course, will see it all in the paper I sent you.
I saw Minnie at church Sunday morning. Poor girl—she is without father or mother now, and must have a sad life of it. You must do all you can for her. And think how
much you have to be thankful for, and try and live as near right as you can, and do all of the good you can. The truest happiness you will find in this life is making others happy. Forget yourself.
Don’t find fault with your teachers; think what a hard life they have. Take these things home to yourself, and they will look very differently to you. And don’t talk about each other unless you can say something good. Girls are too apt to get into that habit, and it is a very serious one.
Your affectionate
MAMMA.
LETTERS FROM MRS. GARTZ’S YOUNGER SON, CRANE, AT THE FRONT
July 26, 1916.
Dear Mother: Remember what Sherman said about War? Well, when I am far from the lines I think he was right, but when I get up where the cannons roar an unexplainable change takes place in me and I seem to feel like I am in a game with the Germans, and that I am going to win, and I almost feel that Sherman was wrong. I am not quite so positive about it when I get back here, but if I had written last night, up within two thousand metres of a French attack, with the cannons being fired from the side of the road and going so close that we feared our own artillery more than the German, expecting rather than hoping that a big German search-light not far away would raise its light from the advancing Frenchmen for a second and locate us just for the experience; because we were going too fast for their artillery to get their aim—well, if I had written from there I would have told you, Mother mine, that I almost loved it, and did not want to go away. It is wonderful, the illuminating rockets over the trenches blinding one for a few seconds on one side, and the flash of the French artillery making us look close for the road on the other, for, of course, we do not use lights; not even cigarettes are allowed. Probably I liked it so much last night because the Germans were so concerned with the trenches that they sent very few shells our way, and the danger was “null.” I am very well, remarkably happy and perfectly satisfied, except that I want a bed, and expect to get one for 44 francs in a day or so, that folds up, so then everything will be fine.
Kate Crane Gartz Page 9
