International for about three hours .sx The late Mr. Wilkinson and the Continental delegates didn't agree on some point of policy and Mr. Wilkinson resigned .sx The whole of the continental nations attending nominated me for the Secretaryship .sx The Lancashire Section protested against it , and the Conference adjourned for lunch .sx During the lunch-time the Lancashire delegates were furious with the position , as they wanted the Secretaryship , so I consulted my own Yorkshire colleagues about it , and when Congress resumed after lunch I declined to accept the post .sx Mr. Marsland , of Ashton , was later on elected , and because of his knowledge of languages , made a better International Secretary than I could have done .sx We visited a few mills whilst in Italy , on that occasion , and what struck me then , and has struck me in foreign countries since , is the fact that for the same kind of machines and the same kind of material , they have a bigger staff of employees than is needed or employed in England .sx I found nearly twice as many in a cotton spinning mulegate than as operated in England , and , strange to say , visiting France and its textile mills again in 1925 and again in 1927 , I found there were more people employed per unit of production than here .sx They don't work as hard in general and there is They may earn less money , but I have not yet found , except in one or two special instances , that they produce a pound of yarn or a yard of cloth on cheaper production costs than do our Yorkshire mills .sx I remember on one occasion coming home from a textile international , calling at textile mills both in Holland and in Belgium , and it seemed some-what amusing to me to see the lackadaisical or the leisurely style of working , and some of the operatives in a mill visited very recently were smoking away at their work a thing never thought of or that should or would be allowed in our textile mills at home .sx At one of our International Textile Workers' Congresses held at Amsterdam in 1911 , I wrote the following anti-war , but international brother-hood , lines .sx I don't put them in as poetry , but as sentiments I expressed in my way , for it has been my lot at most of these international congresses of our trade , as it was at the last one held in Ghent in 1928 , to move a resolution of disapproval of war .sx One of the earliest Socialist Internationals I went to was in London in 1896 .sx It was , I think , the second of the reconstituted Internationals after the breakdown of the Working Men's Inter-national Association .sx What a bear garden it was !sx We met at the Queen's Hall , and the anarchists were determined they would not leave the Congress , even when Congress had declared that anarchists were not eligible to a Labour and Socialist Inter-national .sx Knives were flashing as the delegates got on to the seats to declaim their protests and to expose their passion .sx One man even flourished a revolver .sx There were some noted men at this Congress , but the man who kept calm the most and whose influence by the tact displayed counted most was the late James Mawdsley .sx It took the Congress at least three days to settle down to discuss international problems , but it made the British Trade Union Congress take care that before they went into another one they would have conditions defined and delegations made safe .sx I have been to several internationals under the Labour Party and the Trades Union Congress auspices since then , and they have got things in business fashion , not exactly on the British plan , but on a better plane than they used to be .sx I remember going to one international at Basle , in 1913 , I think it was , and 'twas there that the famous cathedral was used the first time for a Socialist peace demonstration .sx On the Sunday forenoon there was a great procession , and Keir Hardie and I walked in front of the British section , the French leader Jaures walked in front of the French section , and Bebel , I believe , did the same in front of the German section .sx All Europe was represented , and in the afternoon the greatcathedral was packed to overflowing , whilst from the huge stone pulpit the Labour leaders of Germany , France , Italy , Switzerland and Britain spoke to the great assembly .sx It was a glorious gathering , and a year before the Great War broke out we were pledging loyalty to the No More War Movement .sx At the Congress in Basle during the week we were passing resolutions unanimously in favour of a general strike against war .sx Alas , my heart was nearly broken in July and August of 1914 .sx Our own textile workers' inter-national congress was held at Blackpool in July of that year .sx What a joyous time we had !sx There was no disharmony amongst us at all .sx We pledged ourselves anew to peace and against war .sx " Guerre de guerre " was the cry of the French , the spoken message of the Germans ; whilst I , as usual , took the absolute peace line .sx To this there was no disagreement .sx We feasted each other , we played bowls and cricket and had our socials , and yet , within six weeks of our being together , a French delegate and a German delegate had each passed away owing to the war that broke out on August 4th .sx At our last international in 1928 , at Ghent , we all of us , French , Belgian , Danish , German , Spanish , Portuguese , Indian , British , etc. , again pledged ourselves to peace , and my motion against all war was unanimously agreed to .sx I hope we all keep it .sx I shall .sx I have been to various sorts of conferences in foreign lands .sx It was my good fortune to go to the Peace Conference in 1900 , at Paris , when the late Randall Cremer , M.P. , fixed us all up as delegates at some hotel on the opposite bank of the Seine .sx We had a fine reception at some hotel on the Saturday night , and it was on this occasion .sx that I heard Jaures for the first time .sx What an orator he was !sx I don't know the French language , nor do I know what he said , but his spirit touched mine and my British colleagues' , and we felt richer by his talk .sx Here I had a little touch of loneliness that was soon dispelled .sx My three colleagues were folks who knew a bit of French , but not enough to know they didn't know it .sx One of them guided us miles out of our way , and I had become so tired with the hot causeway that I jibbed , and , going to a gendarme , pointed to a card and said , " I want to go there .sx " This was in the Montmartre district , to a special cafe recommended in a guide book written by " Dangle " of the Clarion .sx The gendarme pointed out the street , and we went in two minutes , after our expert home-made linguists , with map and enquiries , had trailed us miles out of our way .sx At this cafe they had to pay for their lunch as they went in , and they gave us each a ticket for the table at which we were to sit down .sx Alas !sx I was at one table along with a stranger , and my three friends were at another table .sx There were six or seven courses , and I didn't know what the man said when he served me with soup or with fish or with salad , but at about the third course I said , sotto voce , " Oh , damn it .sx " Immediately a lady at my left said , " I think you come from York-shire .sx " Wasn't I glad to find an English tongue !sx This lady kept a shop in Montmartre , but came from Shipley , in Yorkshire .sx After the meal we all had a chat , and she gave us guidance and instructions how to go on to the places we wanted to visit , and my little bit of profanity was in itself very useful .sx I remember being a bit nonplussed one day at Zurich .sx I was attending our International Tex-tile Workers' Congress there .sx It was terribly hot , and the sun poured down mercilessly upon us .sx My friend Gee and I had hard bowler hats in those days , so we decided we would buy a straw hat each .sx I asked Miss Ford , of Leeds , who was often a co-delegate with us , what I must say to the shop woman to get to know the price .sx It was .sx I put on my finest behaviour , and , after choosing the .sx hat , I said to her , in dumb language style , " - .sx " I guess I mullocked it , for she only shrugged her shoulders and said " Nein , nein .sx " I tried again , but more methodically and much slower , and again she failed to comprehend , so , in my despair , I said " Hang it all , hah mich ?sx " In an instant she replied , " Seven marks , " and , by jove , she was an English-woman , and I had been practising a kind of dead language upon her !sx I always try folks in English first now , and if that doesn't do it , some-times the Yorkshire language as well .sx CHAPTER XV .sx FOUNDATION OF THE I.L.P. .sx I HAPPEN to be a foundation member of the Independent Labour Party .sx Prior to its formation I had taken part in developing Labour Party work , but when the call came to appoint a delegate to the first I.L.P. Conference at Bradford in January , 1893 , our Batley Labour Party , which always met at our house , appointed me to attend .sx For many years our house was the official centre for all the local Labour movements , both industrial and political , and for over thirty years it has been an open door to all the advanced movements .sx I went to this conference with anticipation and hope for we were all imbued with the need of Independent as distinct from Liberal Labourism .sx The meeting was held in the Labour Hall , Peckover-street , Bradford , a building that was becoming historic in so far as it was the centre of Bradford Labour activities arising out of the Manningham strike , and also because it was the centre for our own Trade Union in the Bradford area .sx The Congress appointed Keir Hardie its first Chairman .sx Another Scotchman was fixed upon as Secretary , and a standing orders committee was later fixed up to examine into the credentials of delegates .sx This had been made necessary because the Fabian Society had sent two delegates , the late W. De Mattos and George Bernard Shaw .sx Some of the delegates objected to their status as delegates , and they were asked to with-draw until the point was reported upon .sx As a consequence , the delegates were given an address from the visitors' gallery by G. B. Shaw on why and wherefore he and De Mattos should be accepted as delegates .sx It was a rare treat , but many of us were serious and did not like the " Liberals " wanting to join in the formation of an Independent Labour Party .sx However , later in the day the Standing Orders Committee dealing with credentials gave in their report and recommended their admission .sx I know I voted against their admission , and whilst I think I did right then , I am glad we have had G.B.S. helping all these years to preach and teach Socialism and the development of the I.L.P. .sx The movement spread into various parts of the realm , and up to three or four years ago was a big power in the councils of the Labour Party .sx It can be again with the I.L.P. stopping nagging at our leaders and with ceasing to include in their mission debatable topics like Birth Control , Sex complexities and things that are extraneous to a political Labour Party whose prime function is to teach , preach and develop Socialism and not overwhelm the movement with fanciful fads that are distracting and in many cases nauseating to refined minds and ordinary decent family traditions .sx I helped to form very many branches of the I.L.P. , especially in Yorkshire .sx It was the strongest area in the country , although Lancashire and Scotland ran it a good second .sx I never regretted those days .sx They were the days of soap box and street corner oratory .sx There .sx