CHILDREN AND BOLSHEVISM.
[To THE EDITOR or THr " fietcravoa.") SIR,—I hope you will allow me space to call attention to the existence of a systematic revolutionary and atheistic propa- ganda among children by means of what are called "Proletarian Sunday-schools." The headquarters of the movement is at Glasgow, but similar schools are now being carried on in a number of industrial towns.
Possibly some of your readers will remember the "Socialist Sunday-schools" against which public protest was made some years ago. The Proletarian schools are the advanced descendants of the Socialist schools, to which they bear as much resemblance as the full-blown Bolshevism of Russia does to the academic Socialism of the Fabian Society. On this point I may quote the remarks of the founder of the movement, lir. Tom Anderson, who writes:-
" The school movement selected the hymns (from the Labour Church hymn-book) with charity and love abounding in them. . . . After a few years the young people who had been brought up in the schools started to improve them and broaden out their outlook. The Christian love theory was set back a little, and several points from the Marxian School were adopted."
There is certainly no Christian love in the " Proletarian Song Book " or in the " Ten Proletarian Maxims" which replace the Ten Commandments in these schools. The teaching is frankly revolutionary and materialistic; it preaches revolu- tion, the class war, the abolition not only of Capitalism but of the political State, with the consequent disappearance of patriotism.
As to ethics, I will quote Mr. Anderson again. He writes: " I have always told the children that everything in the world belongs to them, and -whenever the working class stand up it will be accomplished." And he adds with eatisfaetion this idea is becoming "part of the mental make-up" of the young people trained in the schools.
Some of us will be inclined to think that the " mental make-up" which includes a conviction of such complete brigandage and selfishness would prove in practice at least as inconvenient, if not more so, in any Communistic or Co-operative State as under the present regime; but the point I wish to emphasize is that this revolutionary and materialistic teaching is being given to numbers of young people, and that it is for the clergy and the teachers more particularly to consider how it can best be met.
The British Empire Union is working systematically in the industrial areas to explain economic truths to the workers misled by the fallacies of Marx; and we should be extremely glad to co-operate in any endeavour, by means of classes, addresses, or discussions in boys' and girls' clubs, to help the young people to a clearer appreciation of the position of our country and our Empire and its claims on the services of all classes, not only in war but in peace.—I am, Sir. &c.,
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