[news] Autobiography of August Spies

[Ishaq]

 http://victoria.indymedia.org/news/2003/07/15188.php

Autobiography of August Spies

    The rebels were victorious at first, but against the united vassals
    of their oppressors they could not stand. At the foot of this mount
    they were defeated, down there, where you see that big rock,
    surrounded by magnificent oaks, the battle for freedom was fought
    and, alas, lost. No, it was not lost, it was merely interceded by a
    temporary victory of the enemy.


<http://victoria.indymedia.org/uploads/august_spies.jpg>

Autobiography of August Spies

   "Barbarians, savages, illiterate, ignorant Anarchists from Central 
Europe, men who cannot comprehend the spirit of our free American 
institutions,"of these I am one. My name is August Vincent Theodore 
Spies, (pronounced Spees). I was born within the ruins of the old 
robbers castle Landeck, upon a high mountain's peak (Landeckerberg), 
Central Germany, in 1855. My father was a forester (a government 
administrator of a forest district); the forest house was a government 
budding, and served-only in a different form-the same purposes the old 
castle had served several centuries before. The noble Knight-hood of 
Highway robbery, the traces of which were still discernable to the 
remnants of the old castle, had passed away to make room for more 
genteel and less dangerous forms of plunder and robbery, as carried on 
in the modern dwelling under the present government. But while the 
people from old custom designate this and similar old ruins in the 
vicinity as `old Robber Castles," they speak with great deference of the 
present government buildings, in which they themselves are daily and 
hourly fleeced; they would even, I believe, fight for the maintenance of 
these lawful institutions.

   How greatly these "Barbarians" differ from the intelligent American 
people! Tell the Americans to fight for the maintenance of our 
commercial robbing posts and fleecing institutions- tell them to fight 
for the protection of the lawful enterprises of our Board of Trade men; 
Merchant princes, Railroad kings, and Factory lords-would they do it? 
Alas, more rapidly, I fear, than those "Barbarians from Central Europe, 
who cannot comprehend the spirit of our free American institutions."

   Viewed from a historic standpoint my birthplace is quite an 
interesting spot. And this is the only excuse I can offer for my 
selection of the place for said purpose. I admit I ought not have made 
the mistake, ought not have been born a foreigner, but little children, 
particularly unborn children, will make mistakes! However, I find no 
fault with such wise and intelligent men as Mr. Grinnell and His jury, 
for hanging men who were injudicious in the selection of their 
birthplace. Sins of this character deserve severe punishment; "society 
must protect itself against offenses of this kind."

   But speaking of castle Landeck. Follow me there, reader, on a bright 
and clear day. We make our way up the old tower. Take care, or you will 
stumble over the debris. That? Oh, that is a piece of an old torture 
rack; we found it in one of the subterranean walks, together with 
several pieces of old ugly weapons, once used to maintain order among 
the victims but why do you shudder? The policeman's outfit of to-day is 
not quite so blunt and barbaric, it is true, but it is as effective and 
serves the same purpose. So, now, take my hand, I'll help you on top of 
the ruin. Look out for the bats. These winged lovers of darkness have 
great resemblance with kings, priests and masters in general; they dwell 
in the ruins of the "good old times," and become quite noisy when you 
disturb them or expose them to the light; adders, too, made this place 
their favorable habitation in former years and rendered it very 
dangerous for any one to place his sacrilegious foot upon this feudal 
monument; we killed them. They were the companions of the bats and owls; 
their fate has given the latter much uneasiness, and tears were 
entertained that something terrible would happen-that the ghosts of the 
old ,noble knights' and 'noble dames' would come back and avenge the 
rudeless annihilation of the venerable reptiles, but nothing of the kind 
has transpired, I need hardly add that the work of renovation was 
greatly impeded by these venomous creatures; since their extermination 
we have made remarkable progress

   You smile! Oh, no, I am not speaking of those other reptiles you seem 
to think of. But here, we have reached the top. Great view, is it not! 
Over there, about thirty minutes walk from here, (west) you see another 
ruin like this; that is castle Dreieck, and over there an equal distance 
(southwest) you see another one, Wildeck. And now look down in the 
fertile valleys, the beautiful meadows and fields and flourishing 
villages! Of the latter you can count a dozen, all located around this 
mount; and do you know that all these villages and others which have 
been laid waste during the thirty years war"' were tributary to the 
robbers who ruled over them in these three castles? Yes, the people in 
these villages worked all their lives from early dawn till late at night 
to fill the vaults of those noble knights, who in return had the 
kindness to maintain 'Peace and order'for them. Par example: If one
of these toiling peasants expressed his dissatisfaction of the existing 
order of things, if he complained of the heavy and unbearable tasks 
placed upon him, 'law and order' demanded that he be placed upon one of 
those racks you have seen a relic of, to be tortured into obedience and 
submission. 'Society had to protect itself against this class of 
criminals.' The noble knights had their Grinnells, Bonfields and 
Pinkertons as well as their descendants have them today; and while they 
were less civilized than their descendants of our time, they got along 
wonderfully well. To accomplish their beneficent objects, they did not 
even require the assistance of a Chicago jury.

   Many of the peasants were put to an ignominious death. Some of them 
would persist in their folly that it could not be the object of society 
nor the intention of Providence to have a thousand good people kill 
themselves in a laborious life for the glory, enrichment and grandeur of 
a few ungrateful, vicious wretches. Such dangerous teachings were a 
menace to society, and their promulgators were unceremoniously stamped out.

   Not more than 200 feet from where we stand there is a perpendicular 
(chasm) hole of volcanic origin; it is about 8 feet in length and 3 in 
breadth; its depth has never been ascertained. The saying goes that 
scores of girls were cast into this terrible abyss by the valiant 
Knights during their reign of peace and good order! It is said that 
these benevolent "respectables" of ancient times kidnapped the pretty 
girls of the villages, carried them like birds of prey to their lofty 
abodes, and then when they got tired of them, or found ,,something 
better," disposed of them in this way.

   Oh, I see, you shake your heads incredulously! Have you never seen 
the dumping grounds of the modern knighthood in our large cities-a 
similar abyss? No? It is more frightful than the one I have told you 
about; its name is prostitution.

   You don't believe the people would have borne all these outrages-? My 
friend, your rebellious spirit carries you away. The "orderly and good 
people" suffered these atrocities just as silently as our "law and order 
abiding workingmen" bear them today. I told you what happened to those 
who showed resistance!

   My words make you sad, turn you pessimistic? Let me show you 
something else. Look through these two mounts; can you see a tower in 
the dim distance-yes? At the side of this tower are yet to be seen the 
ruins of the first chapel built in the realms of the old heathen, but 
free and liberty-loving Germans. It was founded by one of the apostles 
of St. Boniface, in the eighth century; his name was Lullus. With this 
chapel and others that soon followed the poison of Oriental servilism, 
the gospel of man's degradation, resignation and asceticism was first 
introduced. The old Cherutker and Katten, who had in mortal combat 
thrust the Roman eagle to the ground, were less successful in resisting 
the mind infecting poison of pestilential Rome; it came flowing in 
incessantly through the channels of the Christian church. It is true, 
the healthy and robust Germans were not an easy prey to the pessimistic 
belief of a debauched and dying race-(Rome) they never have been good 
Christiansbut they became sufficiently infected to lose their 
consciousness and pride of manhood for a while, to fall into the 
despairing vagaries of the Orient, and as a natural consequence into 
serfdom. If life had no value, why then aspire to liberty? Friend, the 
ruins of yonder chapel is the monument of an epoch that gave birth to 
such robberburgs as the one we stand upon. The people would have raised 
these roosts to the ground long before they did, if the priest had not 
stood between them and "Law and Order." The priest is an essential 
indivisible part of the despot and oppressor; he is the conciliatory 
link between them and their victims.

   These two ruins, once sacred as the pedestals of social order, are 
prophetic monuments. Man will so stand upon the ruins of the present 
order and will say as you say now-"was it possible !"

   But now turn around-along this mountain chain, northeast, there, 
where the earth dips mistily into the horizon, the periphery of our 
view-do you see yonder gray spot, it looks like a small cloud? Yes? 
That's the Wartburg, you have heard of Wartburg. It was here, where Dr. 
Martinus Luther lived and worked, an instrument of the revolutionary 
forces; the revolutionary forces, my friend, that gradually had 
developed in these villages.

   It is our custom to attribute great movements to single individuals, 
as being their merit. This is always wrong and it was so with Luther. 
The Germanic race could not digest the Byzantinian philosophy as 
embodied in the Judaic and Christian teachings. The idea that this world 
was calculated to be simply a purgatory and our life a martyrdom was 
repulsive to them, was that servitude and despotism were growing from 
the seed of the new religion and developing, where once had been the 
habitation of liberty; developing at such a rate, that patience ceased 
to be a virtue. The rebellious spirit of the people. their animosity to 
the doctrine of self-abnegation, imposed upon them by the church, had 
been successfully calmed and suppressed by the priests for several 
centuries. But as the iniquties of the "nobility," and the domestic 
burdens of the people grew unbearable this spirit burst out in flames, 
and in Luther found a crystallization point.

   From the Wartburg then the mighty wave of the reformation rolled 
forth. It was the Occident struggling in self- preservation against the 
Orient. The love of liberty which had been lying spellbound in the 
people's heart for generations, now flowed out in lucid streams; the 
magic spell was broken But the "nobility," while they wanted liberation 
from the despotism of the Roman Church, they liked the privileges the 
latter had given them; the patent to rob the peasants of their labor too 
well-they scorned the idea of the common people aspiring to economic 
freedom. Was not "spiritual liberty," a change of certain religious 
notions, enough for any common man? Luther soon became the tool of these 
cheating knaves, and wielded his pen in condemnation of the objects 
contended for by the people. He denounced the true and brave leaders of 
the people, the fearless Thomas Muenzer and his associates, worse than 
the Pope had denounced him shortly before.

   And when the liberty-thirsty people finally took up their scythes and 
axes and forks, and drove the "noble Knights" from their robbers' 
roosts, it was Luther who brought about a vast conspiracy of the latter 
against the people. It is characteristic that now all religious 
differences were set aside and all petty tyrants combined to subdue the 
people. Papist or Lutheran, all were instantly united in the crusade 
against labor. (America at this time presents an analagous spectacle: 
Republicans and Democrats "embrace each other as Nectar and Ambrosia," 
wherever labor rises for emancipation.)

   Of course, the people were conspirators and incendiaries. Hear what 
Thomas Muenzer said:---Lookyou, the sediment of the soup of usury, theft 
and robbery are the Great, the masters. they take all creatures as their 
property, the fish in the water, the birds in the air; and the 
vegetation of the earth. And then they preach God's commandment to the 
poor; 'Thou shall not steal.' But this is not for themselves. They bone 
and scrape the poor farmer and mechanic until these have nothing left, 
then, when the latter put their hands on the sacred things, they are 
hanged. And Doctor Liar says, Amen! The masters do it themselves. that 
the poor man hates them. The cause of the rebellion they won't abolish, 
how then can things change to the better. And I say this, I am an 
incendiary-let it be so!" No, these words were not spoken in Judge 
Gary's court! You make a mistake, reader, the language is not modern, 
it's 400 years old And the man who used it was in the right. He 
interpreted the Gospel, saying that it did not merely promise blessings 
in heaven, but that it also commanded the equality and brotherhood among 
men on earth. The champions of law and order and Christendom chopped his 
head off.

   The rebels were victorious at first, but against the united vassals 
of their oppressors they could not stand. At the foot of this mount they 
were defeated, down there, where you see that big rock, surrounded by 
magnificent oaks, the battle for freedom was fought and, alas, lost. No, 
it was not lost, it was merely interceded by a temporary victory of the 
enemy.

Fulle letter by Spies:

http://www.dwardmac.pitzer.edu/Anarchist_Archives/haymarket/augustspies.html 
<http://dwardmac.pitzer.edu/Anarchist_Archives/haymarket/augustspies.html>


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