million voters was, however, a rather large
undertaking, and, in any case, Bismarck had his own plans. First he
precipitated a general election, giving the socialists no time to
prepare their campaign. As a result, their members in the Reichstag were
diminished in number, and their vote throughout the country decreased by
over fifty thousand. When the Reichstag again assembled, Bismarck laid
before it his bill against "the publicly dangerous endeavors of
social-democracy." The statement accompanying the bill sought to justify
its repressive measures by citing in the preamble the two attempts made
upon the Emperor, and by stating the conviction of the Federal
Government that extraordinary measures must be taken. A battle royal
occurred in the Reichstag between Bismarck on the one side and Bebel and
Liebknecht on the other. Nevertheless, the bill became a law in October
of that year.

The anti-socialist law was intended to cut off every legal and peaceable
means of advancing the socialist cause. It was determined that the
German social democrats must be put mentally, morally, and physically
upon the rack. Even the briefest summary of the provisions of the
anti-socialist law will illustrate how determined the reactionaries were
to annihilate utterly the socialist movement. The chief measures were as
follows:

_I. Prohibitory_

1. The formation or existence of organizations which sought by
social-democratic, socialistic, or communistic movements to subvert
the present State and social order was prohibited. The prohibition
was also extended to organizations exhibiting tendencies which
threatened to endanger the public peace and amity between classes.

2. The right of assembly was greatly restricted. All meetings in
which social-democratic, socialistic, or communistic tendencies
came to light were to be dissolved. Public festivities and
processions were regarded as meetings.

3. Social-democratic, socialistic, and communistic publications of
all kinds were to be interdicted, the local police dealing with
home publications and the Chancellor with foreign ones.

4. Stocks of prohibited works were to be confiscated, and the type,
stones, or other apparatus used for printing might be likewise
seized, and, on the interdict being confirmed, be made unusable.

5. The collection of money in behalf of social-democratic,
socialistic, or commu