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The Socialist Press in Turn-of-the-Century Argentina

Author(s): Richard J. Walter


Source: The Americas, Vol. 37, No. 1 (Jul., 1980), pp. 1-24
Published by: Academy of American Franciscan History
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THE SOCIALIST PRESS IN
TURN-OF-THE-CENTURY ARGENTINA

Socialism, as expressedby politicalpartiesprofessingthat ideology,


has had only minimal impact on Argentina's twentieth-century
political history.' On the other hand socialist ideas, broadly
defined, have had considerable influence, although often in an indirect
manner. In the political realm, for example, popular presidents
Hip6lito Yrigoyen (1916-1922; 1928-1930) and Juan Per6n (1946-1955;
1973-1974) sought to pre-empt and co-opt socialism's appeal to the
working class by proposing and implementing socialist-inspired reforms
wrapped in nationalist rhetoric.2 Conversely, after the fall of Per6n in
1955 various military governments have based their intervention into
national politics largely on the need to stem the flow of Marxist ideas, to
prevent the growth of socialist organizations-especially those which
would repeat the Cuban revolutionary experience on Argentine soil-
and to protect the principles of free enterprise capitalism.3
The influence of socialism in Argentina is not surprising. Perhaps
more than any other Latin American country, Argentina has been
unusually receptive to European cultural and ideological influences, be
they of the left or the right.4 This has been particularly true for the
population of the capital city, Buenos Aires, itself largely of European
immigrant origin, literate, sophisticated, and home to Latin America's
main intellectual and publishing center for much of the twentieth
century. Because of its orientation towards Europe, the Argentine

1See Robert J. Alexander, Communismin Latin America(New Brunswick: Rutgers University


Press, 1957), pp. 154-176 and RichardJ. Walter, The SocialistParty of Argentina,1890-1930 (Austin:
University of Texas Press, 1977).
2Walter, TheSocialistParty, pp. 135-157 and 228.
3MarvinGoldwert,Democracy,Militarism,andNationalismin Argentina,1930-1966: An Interpretation
(Austin: The University of Texas Press, 1972), pp. 141-210. For more recent developments, see
Juan E. Corradi, Eldon Kenworthy, and William Wipfler, "Argentina 1973-1976: The Background
to Violence," Latin AmericanStudiesAssociationNewsletter,VII, 13(September 1976), 3-28.
4For a summary of the impact of foreign ideas on Argentina, see Jose Luis Romero, A Historyof
Argentine Political Thought (Introduction and Translation by Thomas F. McGann) (Stanford
University Press, 1963).

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2 THE SOCIALIST PRESS IN ARGENTINA

populationhas been keenly aware of and sensitive to externalevents.


One of the most importantfor the flow of socialistideas to the republic
was the BolshevikRevolutionof 1917, which aroused much interest,
stimulatingand encouragingthe left and shockingand instillingfear in
the right.5 From the Revolutionemerged not only Argentina'sCom-
munistparty, but also a growinginterestamongan ever-widercircle of
intellectualsand politiciansin Marxistphilosophy.
In the 1920'sand 1930'sinterest in socialismand communismgrew
despite official attemptsto thwart its spread. Men like the moderate
socialistAlfredo L. Palaciosand the more revolutionaryAnibal Ponce
held important teaching positions in these years, from which they
transmittedsocialistideasto the youth of the country,albeitnot without
considerabledifficulty.6The majorgrowth of Marxistideas occurred,
however,afterWorldWarII andespeciallyafterthe fall of Per6n.Many
opponentsto Per6n, includingjournalists,writers,students, university
professors,and politicians, returnedto their homelandfrom exile in
Europeor Latin America,imbued with ideas formed from their resis-
tance and the growing emphasison the study of social and economic
factorswhich was comingto characterizeLatinAmericanscholarshipin
these years. As they came to assume or to reassumeuniversity,jour-
nalistic, and politicalpositions, to write and to lecture, this generation
contributedsignificantlyto the spreadof Marxistideas. A visit to any
BuenosAires bookstorein the 1960'sand 1970's(exceptduringperiods
of repressionand censorship)would attestto the widespreadcurrencyof
theirthought. Moreover,these same bookstorescontaineda wide range
of works by other Latin Americanwriters and translationsof leading
North Americanand Europeansocialisttheoreticians.7

5Former socialist Jose Ingenieros reflected the reaction of those who at first were favorably
impressed by the Revolution and did much to inform Argentines of developments in the Soviet
Union. In addition to his own observations, published in Lostiemposnuevos:Relexionesoptimistassobre
la guerray la revoluci6n(Madrid: Editorial America, 1921), he also included a number of articles on
the Bolshevik experiment in the Revistadefilosofia,a journal which he edited from 1915 to 1925.
6Palacios, elected in 1904 at the age of twenty-five to the Argentine Congress as Latin America's
first socialist deputy, had a long and distinguished political and academic career. In the 1920's and
1930'she was professor and dean in the law schools of the Universities of Buenos Aires and La Plata.
Quien es quien en la Argentina:Biografiascontemporaneas; adfo1939 (Buenos Aires: Guillermo Kraft,
Ltda., 1939), pp. 325-326. Ponce, a disciple of Ingenieros and also an editor of the Revistadefilosofia,
was removed from his teaching position in 1936 for his Marxist views. This removal became a
subject for debate in the national Congress. See Reptiblica Argentina, Diariodesesionesdela Cdmarade
Diputados,ado 1936 (Buenos Aires, 1937), IV, 817-821.
'For a review of recent Argentine social science literature much influenced by Marxist analysis,
see Gilbert W. Merkx, "Argentine Social Science: The Contribution of CICSO [Centro de
Investigaciones en Ciencias Sociales],"Latin AmericanResearch Review, XIV, 1 (1979), 228-233.

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RICHARDJ. WALTER 3
The introductionof socialist ideas into Argentina, however, is not
strictlya post-WorldWarII or even post-1917phenomenon.Such ideas
were presentedin systematicform as early as the late nineteenthand
early twentieth centuries. They appeared first in newspapers and
magazines,which provedthe most popularandeffectivemediafor their
diffusion.s In this regard, the Argentineexperienceclosely paralleled
thatof other LatinAmericancountries.9In Brazilsocialistand anarchist
publicationsemergedin majorcities aroundthe turn of the centuryand
served to stimulate working-class organization and to lay the
groundworkfor the later development of the BrazilianCommunist
party.10In Chile labororganizerLuis EmilioRecabarrenalmostsingle-
handedlyinitiateda seriesof working-classperiodicalsbetween1906and
1924." In Mexicoradicaloppositionnewspapers,publishedbothwithin
and outside the country, helped underminethe regimeof PorfirioDiaz
and affectthe courseof the subsequentRevolution.12
The developmentof the socialistpress in Argentinahas been lightly
sketchedin a numberof secondaryworks, but is deservingof a fuller
treatmentthan it heretoforehas received. In Argentina these pub-
lications,for the time, had greaterdispersionand influencethan in any
other Latin Americancountry-with the possibleexceptionof Mexico.
Not only did the pressserveto introduceMarxistideasinto the republic,
it also focusedattentionon neglectedsocialissues and problems,served
to rally oppositionto the prevailingpoliticalsystem, and laid out for
debatedifferinganalysesand approachesto the interpretationof Argen-
tine historicaldevelopment,debateswhich continueto the presentday.
A close examinationof these publicationswill serve to show in more
detail how socialist ideas were presentedand interpreted,the issues
whichthey highlighted,andthe rolethe pressplayedin the development
of socialist-influenced
laborand politicalorganizations.

'The major emphasis in this essay is upon the spread of socialist ideas through journalism.
However, it should be noted that particularly in the post-World War II era many of socialism's main
tenets were transmitted through fictional literature, the theater, films, and even music. Recent
military governments have been very sensitive to the influence of these media and have tailored their
censorship policies accordingly.
9For information on the spread of radical ideas in Latin America at this time, see Hobart A.
Spalding, Jr., OrganizedLaborin Latin America:HistoricalCaseStudiesof Urban Workersin Dependent
Societies(New York: Harper & Row, 1977), pp. 8-11.
1"JohnW. F. Dulles, Anarchistsand Communistsin Brazil, 1900-1935 (Austin: University of Texas
Press, 1973), pp. 13-15 and Ronald H. Chilcote, The Brazilian CommunistParty: Conflictand
Integration,1922-1972 (New York: Oxford University Press, 1974), pp. 18-21.
"Julio Cesar Jobet, Ensayo critico del desarrolloecon6mico-social de Chile (Santiago: Editorial
Universitaria, S. A., 1955), p. 141.
12JamesD. Cockcroft, IntellectualPrecursorsof the MexicanRevolution,1900-1913 (Austin: Univer-
sity of Texas Press, 1968).

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4 THE SOCIALIST PRESS IN ARGENTINA

Becauseof the richnessandextentof the socialistpressin turn-of-the-


century Argentina,only a relativelysmall numberof examplescan be
consideredhere. However,thosechosenrepresentthe best-known,most
widely distributed,andmostinfluentialof the scoresproduced.All to be
consideredin detailwere publishedin BuenosAires, althougha number
of publicationsappearedin othercities as well. The exampleschosenare
primarilysocialist in orientation.It should be noted, however, that a
substantialanarchistpressalso appearedin Argentinaat this time and is
also worthyof closerinvestigation.13
Beforeturningto an examinationof specificpublications,some brief
descriptionof the historicalcontextin whichthey madetheirappearance
is necessary.Duringthe years between 1890and the outbreakof World
War I in 1914, a period bracketedby two severe economiccrises, the
Argentinerepublicexperiencedrapideconomicanddemographicexpan-
sion. The export of livestock and cereal grains, foreign capital
investment-mostly British-, and extensiveinfrastructure development
spurredeconomicgrowth. Massiveforeignimmigration,primarilyfrom
Italy and Spain, contributedto demographicgrowth, which saw a
doublingof the population,from about four million to eight million,
between1895and 1914. Urbanization,a markedincreasein literacy,and
the beginningsof significantsmall-scaleindustrializationaccompanied
these changes. Politically, a tightly-knit oligarchy of wealthy land-
owners, and their urbancommercial,financial,and professionalallies
dominatedgovernmentthroughintimidation,fraud,patronage,and the
strongcentralizationof authority.
Economicand demographicgrowth produceda sizable expansionof
the middle and workingclasses. The middle classes, with leadership
from dissidentsectorsof the elite, from 1890onwardbeganto demand
greaterparticipationin governmentand a largershareof the expanding
pie of prosperity.The Uni6nCivica,and later the Uni6nCivicaRadical
(UCR, Radicalparty),articulatedand mobilizedmiddleclassdissentand
used alternatingpolicies of confrontationand abstention to force a
change in oligarchical political practices. Eventually, these tactics

13Fora review of the anarchist impact on Argentina's working class, see Diego Abad de Santillan,
La F.O.R.A.: Ideologiaytrayectoria,2nd ed. (Buenos Aires: Editorial Proyeccion, S.R.L., 1971). An
extraordinary collection of anarchist and socialist periodicals is located at the Institute of Social
History in Amsterdam. A listing of the items on file, numbering over 400 and mostly published
before 1930, indicates the size and vitality of the radical press in Argentina. See Erick Gordon,
Michael M. Hall and Hobart A. Spalding, Jr., "A Survey of Brazilian and Argentine Materials at
the International Instituut Voor Sociale Geschiedenis in Amsterdam," Latin AmericanResearch
Review, III, 3 (Fall 1973), 27-77.

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RICHARD J. WALTER 5

provedsuccessfulwhen the oligarchyaccededto Radicaldemandsand


institutedelectoralreformsin 1912, reformswhich alloweda Radical,
Hip61itoYrigoyen,to be electedpresidentin 1916.
Working-class dissentconcentratedless on politicalconcernsand more
on social and economicissues. Greatly influencedby anarchism,labor
groupscommonlyresortedto militanttacticssuchas the generalstriketo
achievetheir aims. The government,representingand protectingthe
interestsof the property-owningclasses, respondedto such tacticswith
forcefulrepression.
In the early yearsof the century there were some officialattemptsat
socialreform,but these were sporadic,ineffective,and designedmoreto
channelandcontrolprotestthanto meetproletariancomplaints.Indeed,
many defendersof the status quo arguedthat workingclass grievances
had no place in an Argentinathey perceivedas essentiallyprosperous
and with unlimitedpossibilitiesfor growth and social mobility. They
believedthat the conceptsof class confrontationand conflictwould not
find fertile soil in Argentinaand they blamedthe introductionof such
ideasandthe developmentof working-classorganizationand agitationon
"foreigntrouble-makers," out of touch with the Argentinereality.14
To a certain extent the conservativecritics had a point. The ideas
which stimulatedworking-classaction, and often the individualswho
promotedthem, did come from abroad. Radicalideologiesfrequently
were broughtto Argentina'sshores by exiles from politicalpersecution
in Europeor LatinAmericawho settledin the republicin the secondhalf
of the nineteenthcentury. Among the earliestto put their thoughtsto
paperwere a Spaniard,BartolombVictory y Sudirez,two Frenchmen,
AmadeoJacquesandAlejoPeyret, andthe well-knownChileanpensador,
FranciscoBilbao, who in 1863 collaboratedto produceEl Artesano,the
first Argentinepublicationto addressitself specificallyto working-class
concerns.15
In the 1870'sand 1880'sa numberof similarpublicationsfollowedEl
Artesano.In 1872severalperiodicalsrepresentedthe views of Argentina's
first labororganization,the Sociedad TipogrdficaBonaerense.In that same

"4Formore information on these developments, see Ysabel Fisk


Rennie, The ArgentineRepublic
(New York: The MacMillan Company, 1945), pp. 152-206; David Rock, Politics in
1890-1930: TheRiseand Fall of Radicalism Argentina,
(Cambridge University Press, 1975), pp. 1-94;James R.
Scobie, Argentina, A City and a Nation, 2nd ed. (New York: Oxford University Press, 1971), pp.
112-216; and, Walter, TheSocialistParty, pp. 3-133.
'5Dardo Ctineo, El primerperiodismoobreroy socialistaen
la Argentina(Buenos Aires: La Vanguar-
dia, 1945), pp. 13-23 and Jose Ratzer, Losmarxistasargentinosdel 90
(C6rdoba: Ediciones Pasado y
Presente, 1969), pp. 33-37.

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6 THE SOCIALIST PRESS IN ARGENTINA

year El Trabajadorbecame the country's first socialist publication. Other


efforts of varying ideological persuasion, and reflecting the multi-lingual
character of the early radical press, included Le Revolutionaire(1875), El
Petroleo(1875), La Luz (1878), El Descamisado (1879), La Vanguardia(1879),
El Perseguido(1880), La LuchaObrera(1882), and Le Proletaire(1882).16 All
of these were published in Buenos Aires. However, in the 1880's
socialist publications also emerged in the interior cities of Pergamino,
Salta, Rosario, and Tucumain.17
Most of these publications were short-lived. All experienced financial
difficulties. Often they were edited, written, and printed by two or three
individuals who kept the operation going out of their own pockets. Few
contained advertising and distribution was limited. One journal with a
somewhat more solid base was Vorwiirts,which appeared regularly in
Buenos Aires from 1886 to 1901. Representing the views of the Club
Aleman Vorwdrts,a group of German socialists organized in 1882, this
newspaper sought to disseminate Marxist ideas, to urge labor and
political organization, and to encourage immigrants to become Argentine
citizens. The stated aim of Vorwdrtswas "to cooperate in the realization
of the principles and aims of socialism, in accord with the programof the
Social Democrats of Germany.""1 Despite its durability, Vorwiirts,
published in German, had little appeal or following beyond the confines
of the immediate German immigrant community in Buenos Aires."1
The appearanceof these publications paralleled a growing labor union
organization in the republic. In 1890 representatives of various unions
formed a ComiteInternacionalObrero,which promoted the celebration of
May 1, the presentation of a petition for social legislation to Congress,
the creation of a central labor federation (Federaci6n dela
delos Trabajadores
of
Regi6nArgentina), and the establishment of a newspaper reflective
working-class concerns.20 The first issue of this paper appeared on
December 12, 1890. It was entitled El Obreroand subtitled "Defender of
the Interests of the ProletarianClass, Organ of the Federaci6nObrera."At
the top of the front page was the slogan "Workersof the World, Unite!"
El Obrerowas the first publication to introduce and to apply Marxist
ideas systematically to Argentine conditions. This contribution was due

8Ciineo, pp. 13-23.


17Ratzer,Losmarxistas,pp. 51-52.
1"Asquoted in ibid., p. 66.
19JacintoOddone, Historia del socialismoargentino(Buenos Aires: La Vanguardia, 1934), I, pp.
196-197.
20Walter,TheSocialistParty, pp. 16-17.

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RICHARD J. WALTER 7

primarily to the efforts of the first editor, Germain Ave Lallemant, a


German immigrant who arrived in Argentina in 1868. After spending
some time in Buenos Aires, Ave Lallemant settled in the interior
province of San Luis, where he soon embarkedon a successful career as a
mining engineer, typographer/cartographer, and surveyor. In the course
of his professional activities he came to know intimately the plight of the
rural poor, a situation to which he would address himself as a writer in
the 1890's.21 Gradually he began to turn his attention from scientific to
social and political concerns. In the 1880's Ave Lallemant, who was
familiar with the works of Marx and Engels, began to contribute to
Vorwiirtsfrom San Luis.22 In mid-1890 he arrived in Buenos Aires and
joined with other members of Argentina's fledgling socialist movement
to found El Obrero.23
El Obreroappeared weekly from December 12, 1890 to September 24,
1892, when it ceased publication. Its demise corresponded with the
decline of the Federaci6nObrera. Although El Obrero,which was pub-
lished in Buenos Aires and eventually had sales agents in at least sixteen
other cities, appeared more regularly and probably enjoyed a wider
circulation than most of its predecessors, it, too, suffered from a lack of
funds. With regard to format, it was printed in four sheets, with each
sheet containing four columns. The paper had no advertising or photo-
graphs and little in the way of news not devoted to political or social-
economic matters. The front page carried editorials, usually by Germain
Ave Lallemant. A special section was devoted to international items
related to socialist-labor concerns. Another such section reported news
of similar interest from the interior of the republic. Each issue sold for
five centavos.
El Obrero,in its eighty-eight issues, covered a broad range of topics.
Throughout, however, it attempted to place these within the analytical
framework of Marxist theory. In particular, and undoubtedly reflecting

21A sample of some of Ave Lallemant's writings on agrarianquestions can be found in La clase
obreray el nacimientodel marxismoen la Argentina: Seleccidnde articulosde GermanAve Lallemant
(Introduction by Leonardo Paso) (Buenos Aires: Editorial ANTEO, 1974), pp. 83-129.
22Itis not clear just how Ave Lallemant became conversant with Marxist theory or how profound
such knowledge was. Although his own writings display a considerable sophistication in dealing
with Marxist concepts, it is not known, for example, if he ever read Das Kapital. He was, in the
1880's and 1890's, a correspondent for the German Social Democratic newspaper Die NeueZeit, and
it may well have been that through reading that journal he absorbed the ideas which he, in turn,
would disseminate in his adopted land. Ratzer, Losmarxistas,pp. 89-90.
23Biographicalinformation on Ave' Lallemant is from La claseobrera,pp. 15-18; "Los que abrieron
el surco," in Partido Socialista, AnuarioSocialista:Aio primero,1928 (Buenos Aires, 1928), 183-185;
and, Ratzer, Losmarxistas,pp. 79-91.

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8 THE SOCIALIST
PRESSIN ARGENTINA

the influenceof Ave Lallemant,it soughtto analyzeArgentinehistorical


developmentthroughthe lens of dialecticalmaterialism,the class strug-
gle, and the capitalistexploitationof the proletariatthroughthe expro-
priationof the surplusvalueproducedby the workers'efforts.As the lead
firstissue put it, "Wecome to presentourselvesin
editorialin El Obrero's
the republic'spoliticalarenaas championsof the proletariat. . in order
to formthe nucleusof a new class, one inspiredby the sublimedoctrine
of scientificsocialism, whose fundamentaltheories are: the materialist
conceptionof history and the revelationof the mystery of capitalist
productionby means of surplus value-the great discoveriesof our
immortal teacher, Karl Marx .
. ."24
The editorial went on to describe the evolution in Argentina of two
antagonistic classes: the capitalist minority, supported and protected by
the government and living in ostentatious luxury; and the proletarian
majority, exploited by the capitalists, ignored by the government, and
subjected to living and working conditions more fit for animals than for
human beings. The process of class division in Argentina was explained
in the following terms: "The capitalist, at the same time he pays for the
labor-force of the worker with the real value that he [the worker], as
merchandise, has in the market, nevertheless extracts much more than
that which he [the capitalist] has given in the form of salary in order to
acquire merchandise, and this surplus value constitutes the sum of values
from whence is derived the always growing mass of capital accumulated
in the hands of the property-owning classes."25
This first editorial clearly stated that El Obrero'smain purpose was to
represent the interests of the growing, exploited, and ignored proletariat
and to use its pages to develop the consciousness of that class. In the
words of a later statement, "The object of our efforts is to make the
proletariat conscious of the part it should play in the class struggle ...
and to show it the road by which it will arrive, without fail, to ultimate
triumph."26 To this end, and to counter conservative criticism that a
"social problem" did not exist in Argentina, El Obrerodescribed in great
detail the harsh experiences and living and working conditions of the
republic's lower classes, both in urban and rural areas. These often
included personal letters from affected workers.27Also, the paper played

24"Nuestro Programa,"El Obrero(Buenos Aires: December 12, 1890), p. 1.


25Ibid.
28"Laguerra de clases," El Obrero(February 6, 1892), p. 1.
2"See in particular the excerpts from El Obreroprinted in Hobart Spalding, La clasetrabajadora
argentina (Documentospara su historia-1890/1912) (Buenos Aires: Editorial Galerna, 1970), pp.
132-152 and 193-215.

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RICHARD J. WALTER 9

a major role in publicizing, supporting, and promoting the activities of


the FederacidnObreraand seconded the federation's main goals: "1) the
possession of political power by the proletarian class; and, 2) the
transformation of individual or corporate property as the means of
production into collective, social, or common property.'"28
Although the ends of the federation were well-defined, the means to
achieve them were not so clear. In the early 1890's there was no
recognized political party which spoke to working-class concerns. El
Obrero'seditors placed little faith in either the Uni6n Civica or the Uni6n
Civica Radical, which they correctly analyzed as movements of the
bourgeoisie and petty bourgeoisie with scant interest in the plight of the
working class. While the specifics were never sketched out, El Obrero
clearly advocated the formation of an organization similar to that which
would emerge shortly as Argentina's Socialist party. Such a party would
articulate the needs of the working class and work within the political
process to push for passage of the social legislation promoted by the
Federaci6nObrera.29
Their emphasis on political organization and activity placed the
socialists of El Obreroand the Federaci6nObrerain complete opposition to
the other prevailing alternative to achieve working-class goals, namely
anarchism. Calling scientific socialism "progressive revolution" and
labeling anarchism as "essentially reactionary" and a philosophy no
intelligent man could accept, El Obrerodrew clear lines of distinction
between the two philosophies: "In no way can socialists and anarchists
march in accord, because the committed anarchist, according to his
fundamental theory, cannot admit of any organization, any rule. On the
other hand we socialists not only form the organized association of the
Federaci6nObrerabut also demand strict discipline and obedience to rules
and regulations, especially each comrade's fulfillment of his duties as a
man and a socialist . . ." The socialists also rejected the anarchists'
favorite weapon, the general strike, which, they contended, only led to
repression and more capitalist exploitation: "The strike as a mere expres-
sion of force is a stupidity! The class struggle can only be decided and
resolved by means of political action.'"31

28"Programade la Federaci6n Obrera Argentina: Proyecto presentado al Primer Congreso Obrero


Argentino de 1891," El Obrero(July 25, 1891), p. 1.
29"Lacuesti6n social," El Obrero(February 21, 1981), p. 1.
30"Elsocialismo cientifico y el anarquismo,"El Obrero(January 17, 1891), p. 1. In this article the
editors forecast the strong emphasis the leaders of Argentina's Socialist party would place on
organization and discipline.
31"Lahuelga universal," El Obrero(February 13, 1892), p. 1.

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10 THE SOCIALIST PRESS IN ARGENTINA

At the sametime the socialiststookon the anarchists,they alsoleveled


heavy barragesagainstthe Argentinerulingclass. The existinggovern-
ment, as El Obrerosaw it, representedonly the interestsof the rich. One
articletook specialaimat the widely-admiredCarlosPellegrini,who had
assumedthe presidencyfollowingthe crisisof 1890and had done much
to restore financial and political stability. According to El Obrero,
Pellegrini,whom the socialistscomparedwith the RussianCzar, had
undertakenfiscal policies which had benefitedthe wealthy and injured
everyone else. In its words, "These measures[of Pellegrini],which
consist of increasing tariff duties on articles of prime necessity, in
creatingnew taxes and indirectcontributions,fall heavily on the inter-
ests of the petty bourgeoisie,the small capitalists,and the proletariat,
andfreemostof the upperclassof greatlandownersfromcontributingto
the expensesof the state."32
Finally, the editorsof El Obrerowere amongthe first to criticizethe
preponderantrole that Britishcapitalplayed in Argentina,the connec-
tion betweenforeigninvestmentand the oligarchy,and the deleterious
effectsof the country'seconomicdependenceupon GreatBritain.In its
firsteditorialthe paperlaid muchof the blamefor the economiccrisisof
1890at the feet of "internationalcapital,"headquartered in London,and
its endlesssearchfor new markets.33The socialistswere also amongthe
firstto perceivethe United Statesas a new rivaland threatto Englandin
the strugglefor Latin Americanmarkets.In an 1891 articleentitled"El
Panamericanismo," El Obreronoted that the Diaz governmentin Mexico
already was in a stateof "absoluteeconomicdependence"on its powerful
northernneighbor.The articlepredictedthat U. S. economicinfluence
would move ever southward, producing increased competition and
conflict with Great Britain.In the long run, the socialistsargued, the
proletariatcould benefitfromthis conflictas it would accelerate". . . the
rapidreductionof markets,the enormousconcentrationof capital, the
growing misery of the people, and . . . [ultimately]the end of the
capitalistorder . . .34
In retrospectthere is much to criticize in El Obrero'sapproachto
Argentine history and society. As Alfredo L. Palacios later noted,
althoughEl Obrero andAve Lallemantpresentedstimulatinghypotheses,
their analysisof Argentinedevelopment,basedon a rigid applicationof

32"Federaci6nObrera:Presentaci6ndirigidaal Exm. Sr. Presidentede la Repiblica-Carlos


(January24, 1891),p. 1.
El Obrero
Pellegrini,"
33"Nuestro Programa,"op.cit.
34"E1Panamericanismo,"El Obrero(October3, 1891),p. 2.

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RICHARD
J. WALTER 11

Marxisttheory, often distortedor obscurednationalhistory.35Also, as


with manyof theircomradesin the Third World,they failedto address
themselvessatisfactorilyto the problemof achievingsocialismaccording
to the Marxistprescriptionin a country which was still basicallyat a
pre-industrialstageof development.
On the other hand,El Obreromadeimportantcontributions.It served
as a stimulatingcritic of establishedways of thinkingand of acting. In
oppositionto the conservativeargumentthat the basesfor class struggle
did not exist in an essentiallyprosperousArgentina,El Obreroprinted
detailedandconvincingevidenceto the contrary.In contrastto historical
analyseswhich stressedmen and ideas, El Obrerofocusedon socialand
economic forces. With its analysisof the effects of foreign capital on
Argentina,El Obreroantedatednot only Hobson and Leninbut also the
postwardependista writers.In tone, style, and content,El Oberero was a
valuableforerunnerfor subsequentsocialistpublications.
Followingthe close of El Obreroseveralof the men associatedwith it
edited a similarjournalin 1893, the short-lived(six issues)El Socialista.
At the same time Frenchand Italiansocialistgroups began to publish
periodicalsin the languageof theircountrymen.In 1893the directorsof
the newly-formed(1892)Agrupaci6n Socialista,including again several
who had been connectedwith El Obrero,met in a BuenosAires caf6 to
found a new journalfor the Spanish-reading socialistpublic. The result
appearedfirst on April 7, 1894. It was entitled La Vanguardiaand
subtitled "Scientific Socialist Periodical, Defender of the Working
Class."It would prove to be Argentina'smost enduringand influential
socialistpublication.36
Parallelingthe growthof Argentina'sSocialistparty, for which it was
the officialorgan, La Vanguardia expandeddramaticallyin formatand
distributionduringthe periodbetween 1894and 1914. Beginningmuch
like El Obrero,La Vanguardiapublished first as a four-page, four-column
weekly (appearing on Saturdays) selling for ten centavos a copy with
monthly subscriptions at 40 centavos. Within a few years the price for a
single issue fell to five centavos. Like El Obrero,the new paper featured
front-page editorials by local socialists, international socialist-labor
news, reports from the interior provinces, and reprints of articles by
noted socialist thinkers. Unlike most of its forerunners, by 1896 La
Vanguardiaincluded a special section of advertisements, a section which

35AlfredoL. Palacios, Lajusticiasocial(Buenos Aires: Editorial Claridad, 1954), pp. 114-116.


36Walter, TheSocialistParty, pp. 17-21.

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12 THE SOCIALIST PRESS IN ARGENTINA

grew steadily during these years to cover almostthe entire back page.
Professionalnotices, listing the names, addresses,and office hours of
dentists, doctors, and lawyers, usually socialists, shared space with
noticesfor food stores, pharmacies,and clothingestablishmentswhich
sought to attracta working-classclientele. Variousbrandsof beer and
cigarettes advertised in La Vanguardia,despite the Socialist party's
oppositionto alcoholandthe askancewith which some membersviewed
smoking.By 1897andthereafterpoliticalcaricaturesandcartoons,many
of them masterpiecesof politicalart, lampoonedthe bourgeoisieand the
politicalopposition.By 1914the paperfeaturedfront-pagephotographs
of Socialistpartycandidatesand campaignrallies.
Between 1894 and 1905La Vanguardia remaineda weekly, although
there was a brief experimentat bi-weeklypublication(Wednesdayand
Saturday)in 1897-1898.From 1900 plans were made to convert the
newspaperinto a morningdaily, plans which were realizedon Sep-
tember1, 1905. Publishedsix times a week(exceptMondays),the paper
still numberedfour pages but now containedsix columns a page. The
price of a single issue was five centavos;monthlysubscriptionssold for
$1.25 pesos. With daily publicationthe paperexpandedits formatto
includegeneralnationalandinternationalwire-servicenews, indicatinga
shift from strictly a party organ to one which might attracta larger
readership.On July 1, 1913La Vanguardia grew to eight pages,although
the cost of a single issue remainedfive centavos.In additionto regular
publication,the editorsalso producedlargespecialeditionsto celebrate
May 1 as the day of the worker.These were sometimesprintedon red
paperand usually includedliteraryand artisticcontributionsas well as
political articles. On occasion a largerthan normalJanuary 1 edition
summarizedeventsof the past year.
Althoughfigureson distributionare scatteredand imprecise,circula-
tion reportedlygrew from 1,500 issues in 1896 to 75,000 in 1912. By
1912La Vanguardia had 100 sales agentsthroughoutthe countryand in
neighboringChile and Uruguay.37Beginningwith a handfulof editors
and printersin 1894, La Vanguardia had a staff of 55 (nineteeneditors
and writers,thirty six administratorsand printers)by 1914.38
The paper'sgrowth was steady and impressive,but it was far from
easy. Like its predecessors,the paperexperiencedcontinuousfinancial
difficulties.Its first editionswere printedon a press purchasedthrough

37Spalding,Laclasetrabajadora,
p. 71.
38Repdiblica Argentina,TercerCensoNacional,Levantado el 1P deJuniode 1914 (BuenosAires:
TalleresGrificosde L. J. Rossoy Cia, 1917),IX, pp. 288-289.

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J. WALTER
RICHARD 13

personalsacrificesand contributionsand placedin the basementof one


of its founders.Between 1894 and 1914 the locationof the pressesand
editorialoffices changed at least nine times. Basic funding depended
upon subscriptionsand street sales. Advertisingwas at first difficultto
attract.Pricing was also a problem. Initiallyand mainly aimed at the
workingclass, at leastin theory,La Vanguardia hadto sell at a reasonable
price and still meet expenses. Even five or ten centavos might be too
much for the averageworker.In the early years the editorsrecognized
this problemand urged subscribersto lend or give their copies, once
read, to friends and co-workers. Eventually, with the election of
Socialistdeputies after 1904, men who contributeda large portion of
their legislativesalariesto meet the costs of publication,La Vanguardia
achieveda firmerfinancialbase. By 1914a growingcirculation,regular
subscriptiondrives, and increasedadvertisingallowed the party organ
not only to balanceits own booksbut alsoto contributeto othersocialist
activities.39
In additionto financialstringencies,La Vanguardia sufferedfrom the
politicalrepressionof the period, particularlyduringthe firstdecadeof
the twentieth century. Respondingto the militant labor agitationof
these years, and the revolutionarytacticsof the UCR, Argentinegov-
ernments often enacted states of siege which temporarilysuspended
constitutionalguarantees.As a consequence,freedomsof speech and
presswere restrictedand the socialistLa Vanguardia, althoughnot at the
forefrontof this anti-government activity, nevertheless paidmuchof the
price. States of siege forcedthe suspension of La Vanguardia for varying
periods in 1902, 1905, 1909, and 1910, although the editors often
circumventedthese restrictionsand publishedclandestinespecialbulle-
tins. The worst interruptionoccurred in 1910, during the so-called
"Strikeof the Centennial"(referringto the centennialcelebrationof
Argentina'sdeclarationof independencefrom Spain), when a groupof
right-wingvigilantesransackedthe newspaper'sofficesanddestroyedits
presses.After a three-monthinterruptionthe presseswere restoredand
publicationresumed.40
In its first twenty years La Vanguardia had over twenty different
editors.41 The first and most influential,however, was Juan B. Justo,

3"LaVanguardia:Ndmerodel cincuentenario de su fundaci6n;7 de abril de 1894--7 de abril de 1944


(Buenos Aires, 1944), pp. 98-141.
40These events are detailed in La Vanguardiafor September 30, 1910, the day the state of siege was
lifted. See also, Oddone, Historiadel socialismo,II, pp. 75-81.
"These are listed by name in La Vanguardia:Ndmerodel cincuentenario,p. 98.

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14 THE SOCIALIST PRESS IN ARGENTINA

principalfounder of the paper and the acknowledgedleader of the


Socialistparty until his death in 1928. Justo served as editor in 1894,
from 1905 to 1910, and from 1914 to 1916. Even when he was not
actuallyeditorhis ideaspermeatedthe paper.LikeAve Lallemant,Justo
was well-groundedin Marxisttheory, having made the first Spanish
translationof Das Kapital.As the translatorof Marx, and as a careful
studentof Europeansocialism,Justo, for his time, was one of the few in
Argentinato be fully conversantwith Marxistphilosophy.Muchof the
diffusionof Marxismin the republicbetweenthe 1890'sand WorldWar
I was throughJusto'spoliticaland journalisticactivities.
The Marxismof Juan B. Justo was eclecticand flexible.Althoughhe
employedsuch conceptsas dialecticalmaterialismandthe theoryof class
struggle, Justo attempted to avoid the rigid theorizing which had
characterizedEl Obreroand mold Marxistanalysisto his perceptionof
the Argentine reality. He disagreedwith Marx on several mattersof
interpretationand emphasis and found much inspirationfrom such
decided non-Marxistsas Herbert Spencer.Justo identifiedhimself, La
Vanguardia,and the Socialist party closely with the evolutionary
socialismof EduardBernsteinand JeanJauresand sought to mold the
Argentine party along the successful lines of the pragmaticGerman
SocialDemocrats.42
ArgentinepoliticalhistorianJose Ratzerhas arguedthatJusto repre-
senteda clearbreakbetweenthe morerevolutionaryeditorsof El Obrero
andthe morereformisttendenciesof the Socialistparty.43Nevertheless,
therewere manycontinuitiesin style, content,and approachbetweenLa
Vanguardiaand its predecessor, particularlyin the early years. La
Vanguardia's first editorial,for example, written by Justo, underscored
the evolutionof classconfrontationand strugglein the republic.Tracing
Argentina'srecent economicgrowth, Justo noted that "All, then, con-
tributes so that here two classes already have formed, from whose
antagonismsocial progress must result. Already on one side of the
capital we have the Avenida Alvear [principallocation of oligarchical
mansions] and on the other side an immense barrio of conventillos
[tenements] . . . On one side a rich and indolent class, whose only
occupation is to vary and display its insolent luxury, contrasted with a

42For more on Justo's Marxism, see Dardo Cuineo,Juan B. Justoy las lucbassocialesen la Argentina
(Buenos Aires, 1956); Anierico Ghioldi,Juan B. Justo: Sus ideasbistdricas;Sur ideassocialistas;Sus ideas
filosficas (Buenos Aires: Ediciones Monserrat, 1964); and, Luis Pan,Justoy Marx: El socialismoen la
Argentina(Buenos Aires: Ediciones Monserrat, 1964), pp. 24-25.
43Ratzer,Losmarxistas,pp. 167-175.

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RICHARDJ. WALTER 15

working class, which, after a lifetime of labor, has only the prospect of
more misery." La Vanguardiapromised to be on the side of the poor and
to struggle for improvements in their conditions: "We appear to combat
all privileges, all laws made by the rich to their own advantage, [which]
are no more than means to exploit the workers . . ." And, reflecting the
philosophic eclecticism of Justo, "We appear to spread the economic
doctrines created by Adam Smith, Ricardo, and Marx, and to prepare
ourselves for the coming great social transformation."44
Like El Obrero,La Vanguardiaencouraged labor union organizationand
sought to represent the interests of the working class. To counter the
conservative argument that social problems were more fabricated than
real, the paper regularly printed the specific details of on-the-job work-
related accidents, including the name of the injured worker, the extent of
his or her injuries, and the employer at fault. Although the socialists
often objected to many of the strike actions of these years, arguing that
they were poorly prepared and often worsened rather than bettered
existing conditions, they nevertheless gave full coverage to these and
wrote strong editorials condemning police-government repression. The
paper also detailed and supported union organization, especially organi-
zation under socialist influence.
While the main focus was on the urban worker, La Vanguardiaalso
described the living and working conditions of the rural poor. In the
1890's La Vanguardialed a campaign against the "conchavo" system,
whereby workers, principally on the sugar and yerba mate plantations of
the North, signed contracts which placed them in perpetual indebted-
ness. This campaign eventually led to the alleviation of some of the more
flagrant abuses of this system.45 In mid-1912 La Vanguardiagave exten-
sive coverage and backing to a two-month strike of small tenant farmers
in the province of Santa Fe.46
The editors of La Vanguardia,like those of El Obrero,saw the formation
of a political party and political action as the most efficacious means to
improve the lot of Argentina's working class. Early editions consistently
advocated the establishment of such an organization, which was ac-
complished in 1895 with the founding of Argentina's Socialist party.

""Nuestro Programa,"La Vanguardia(Buenos Aires: April 7, 1894), p. 1.


45"Lossiervos de las provincias del norte," La Vanguardia(June 2, 1894), p. 1; "La esclavitud en el
norte de la Reptiblica,"La Vanguardia(July 28, 1894), p. 1; and Oddone, Historiadelsocialismo,I, pp.
183-184.
46See issues of June, July, and August 1912. See also Carl E. Solberg, "Rural Unrest and
Agrarian Policy in Argentina, 1912-1930,"Journalof Interamerican Studiesand WorldAffairs, XIII, 1
(January 1971), 23-25.

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16 THE SOCIALIST PRESS IN ARGENTINA

From this date forward La Vanguardiareported every step of the party's


progress. Each issue carried the party's statutes, principles, and pro-
gram. Party congresses, which frequently featured lively, impassioned,
and sometimes bitter debates, were usually covered in full. The titles of
affiliated groups were printed regularly. Notices of special events,
ranging from picnics and concerts to serious lectures, appeared in every
issue. For most of this period La Vanguardiaalso published in full the
Socialist party's monthly accounts, detailing the sources of income and
expenditures.
As the Socialist party grew, La Vanguardiabecame an important tool
by which to attract new members. During the early years the paper
listed the names and addresses of private homes where interested
individuals could join the party. Potential recruits often first became
aware of both socialism and the Socialist party by reading a copy of La
Vanguardia.Many of the party's leading figures progressed from readers
to contributors to editors.47
Increasingly, the most important activity of the Socialist party was
participation in elections, particularly elections to the national Congress.
La Vanguardiaplayed a key part in this process. From 1896 the paper
announced when and where candidates were to be selected, detailed the
conditions necessary both to be a candidate and an elector, and then
described the process of selection. These candidates usually were chosen
several weeks before election day. In the interval La Vanguardiadevoted
itself almost totally to the campaign, pushing other items, including
labor news, to the inside or back pages. These issues featured informa-
tion on the candidates and their qualifications, repeatedly printed the
particular planks of the party's platform (it was the only party during
this period to run on a specific program), and carried lengthy articles
analyzing these planks and their applicability to current circumstances.
The paper also repeatedly printed relevant sections of election laws and
sought to provide thorough and detailed information on just how the
voter should proceed to cast his ballot, a useful service at a time when the
dominant political machine made voting not only difficult but also often
hazardous. La Vanguardiacoordinated campaign activity, publicized
political lectures, listed the name and amount of individuals who made
campaign contributions, and covered in great detail the mass rallies
which concluded pre-election efforts.
After elections, the paper followed closely the counting of the ballots,

47Walter,TheSocialistParty, pp. 35, 60-63.

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RICHARDJ. WALTER 17

usually featuring the tally on the front page. When socialists were
elected from Buenos Aires to the Chamberof Deputies in 1904, 1912,
1913and 1914and to the Senatein 1913,La Vanguardia gave prominent
play to their activitiesin the Congress.Frequentlythe paperreprinted
lengthy excerpts from the Diariode sesiones(CongressionalRecord)in
which socialistlegislatorswere featured.
In conjunctionwith a concentrationon campaigns,La Vanguardia
throughoutthe year focusedon issues relatedto politics and elections.
Of particularconcernwas the need to convinceforeigners,who madeup
the bulk of the workingclass and potentiallythe electorate,to become
naturalizedcitizensand henceeligibleto vote. As an early articleput it,
"It is now time for Europeanworkersestablishedhere to recognizethat
to becomecitizens is the surest meansto influencethe progressof the
countryand to betterthe situationof the workingclass. We ought not to
leavea meansof struggleas powerfulas politicalrightsfor the exclusive
use of bourgeois foreigners. . ."48 Despite La Vanguardia's persistent
efforts in this direction, few foreigners actually became citizens in these
years.49
La Vanguardiaalso sought to educate the proletariat on the major
political issues of the day. These often involved complex economic
matters, which the paper tried to explain in clear and straightforward
language. An article in the first edition, for example, analyzed the rising
cost of gold in Argentina and the resulting inflationary pressures on real
wages.50 Another article detailed the effects of tax and tariff policies on
the ever-higher cost of basic necessities.51
Like El Obrero,La Vanguardiaconcentrated heavy journalistic fire on
competing movements and groups. Various articles and editorials at-
tacked anarchism as reactionary, utopian, and counter-productive.52
The socialists were equally critical of the Uni6n CivicaRadical.An 1894
article called the members of the UCR "capitalistrevolutionaries"of the
"petty bourgeoisie" who lacked any program other than the institution of
"bourgeois democracy."53In 1905 the socialists urged the working class
to abstain from participation in a Radical revolt of that year. The
uprising, they argued, was primarily a struggle for political power

48"Nacionalizaci6nde extranjeros,"La Vanguardia(April 24, 1894), pp. 3-4.


49Walter,TheSocialistParty, pp. 30-3 1.
50"Porque sube el oro: Para hacer bajarlos salarios,"La Vanguardia(April 7, 1894), p. 2.
51"Contralos impuestos indirectos," La Vanguardia(November 3, 1894), p. 1.
52Forexample, "Los socialistas en la politica argentina,"La Vanguardia(May 26, 1894), p. 1.
53"Lasituaci6n actual: Crisis; radicalismo y democracia,"La Vanguardia(July 21, 1894), p. 1.

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18 THE SOCIALIST PRESS IN ARGENTINA

among two sectors of the bourgeoisie little concerned with the social-
economic position of the proletariat.54
La Vanguardiasaved its heaviest and most persistent criticism, how-
ever, for the conservative governments of the period, which, the
socialists charged, represented solely the interests of the country's
bourgeoisie. For La Vanguardia,the bourgeoisie in preindustrial Argen-
tina meant the wealthy land-owning classes: Those ". . . 1,120 great
landowners [who] presently possess 950 million pesos of the 1,423
million which represents the sum of private national wealth, and [who]
govern, legislate for, and command absolutely the four million inhabi-
tants of the country in the manner most convenient to their own
interests."55The socialists viewed each president of this period as either
directly of this class or subservient to its interests and subjected each to
scathing comment. For example, President Jose Figueroa Alcorta
(1906-1910) was described as one who carried out a militaristic foreign
policy, introduced laws which violated the Constitution, unduly sup-
pressed the labor movement, and perpetuated political fraud.56
The socialists also underscored the relationship between foreign capi-
tal and the Argentine bourgeoisie. One article claimed that government
ministers were often ". . . more representative of the foreign-owned
railroads than of the opinion of the Argentine people."" 57Their overall
attitude towards foreign investment, however, was somewhat more
moderate and ambiguous than that of El Obrero.A 1910 article on "Pan
Americanism," printed almost two decades after El Obrero'spiece on the
same subject, noted the enormous economic expansion of the United
States in Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, and northern South
America. On the whole, however, La Vanguardiaviewed this penetration
with only mild alarm and indeed seemed to regard the spread of U. S.
influence benignly, pointing to the future economic benefits of the
Panama Canal.58
At the same time La Vanguardialambasted the opposition it also laid
out for all to see the many tensions, dissensions, and disagreements
within the ranks of the Socialist party itself. In 1899 the paper presented
all the gory details of an embarrassing incident wherein the party
expelled its recently-elected secretary-general, Honorio Pineau

54"Lapolitica criolla y el motin militar,"La Vanguardia(February 11, 1905), p. 1.


55"Sobreel origen del capital y del proletariado argentino,"La Vanguardia(April 14, 1894), p. 1.
56"Elocaso de una mediocridad,"La Vanguardia(August 26, 1910), p. 1.
57"Alpueblo de la repdblica," La Vanguardia(February 26, 1914), p. 1.
58"Pan-americanismo,"La Vanguardia(September 1, 1910), p. 1. For more on the socialists'
attitude toward foreign capital, see Walter, TheSocialistParty, pp. 165-168.

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RICHARDJ. WALTER 19

Aparicio, because he had failed to substantiatepublic charges that a


fellow socialistwas a thief.59 Also in the 1890'stwo young firebrands,
later among Latin America'smost renownedliterary and intellectual
figures, LeopoldoLugonesand Jose Ingenieros,drifted away from the
party in disagreementwith what they considered its moderate ap-
proach.60In 1906 a faction attractedto syndicalismleft the party. In
1913 Manuel Ugarte, who had been an importantcontributorto La
Vanguardia and the party's 1912 candidatefor senatorfrom the federal
capital,also left the socialistranks.61All of these incidents,and others,
La Vanguardia reportedfully, albeit more from the viewpoint of those
who remainedratherthanfromthat of those who left or were expelled.
In 1897 Ingenierosand Lugones, reflectingtheir disagreementswith
those who controlledthe party andLa Vanguardia, publishedtheir own
journal entitled La Montaia which enjoyed considerable notoriety. Its
main featureand claim to fame was a relentlessand sometimesruthless
attackon the Argentinenationalleadership.Rarely had the country's
bourgeoisiebeen subjectedto such imaginativecriticallanguage.In La
Montafla's first issue Lugonesbegan a series on "The Politiciansof this
Country,"in which he focused on Carlos Pellegrini, ". . . the most
complete bourgeoispersonification. . . [in whom] is discoveredonly
one revealingthing: the fury to spend, to spit out money . . . who
desires the presidency[for a second term]with undisguisedambition,
but fearsit at the same time, like an adolescentin heat beforethe open
thighsof a prostitute.He doubtshis virilityin full erection,a phenome-
non experiencedonly by those inferiorin heartand mind."62Ingenieros
followed these observationsin the second issue, where he began a
column on "Los reptiles burgueses."These "reptiles,"he pointed out,
"already parade through the administration,commerce, charitable
societies, the Church, the parliament"and their "immoralityought to
be displayedto the people .. ."63
The mayorof BuenosAires, however, did not agree. Soon afterthe
firstissuesappearedhe initiatedjudicialproceedingsto haltLaMontaiia's

59"Endefensa de la moralidad y de la armonia,"La Vanguardia(January 21, 1899), p. 1.


60See Sergio Vida ejemplardeJose Ingenieros:Juventudy plenitud (Buenos Aires: Colecci6n
Bagti,
Claridad, 1936) and Mario Bravo, "Leopoldo Lugones en el movimiento socialista (1896-1897),"
Nosotros,2, nos. 26-28 (May-July 1938), 27-47.
61For a thorough biography of Ugarte, including information on his difficulties with the Socialist
party, see Norberto Galasso, ManuelUgarte(Buenos Aires: EUDEBA, 1973), two volumes.
62LeopoldoLugones, "Los politicos de este pais," La Montafia(Buenos Aires: April 1, 1897), 5.
63JoseIngenieros, "Los reptiles burgueses," La Montafia(April 15, 1897), 5.

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20 THE SOCIALIST PRESS IN ARGENTINA

publication as "offensive to morality" and "dangerous to the present


social order," which was, of course, exactly what its editors intended.
Despite facing a possible 300 peso fine and five-months imprisonment,
the two young socialists continued to caricature the oligarchy unmerci-
fully. Lugones added the portrait of the incumbent President Jose E.
Uriburu to his gallery of political leaders, noting that Uriburu was "a
politician without biography, or perhaps a biography without personage
Ingenieros exercised his fertile imagination to compare
"..64
bourgeois intellectuals with pigs who should be cremated, too disease-
ridden even to be barbecued.65
La Montafia'sattacks upon the bourgeoisie were obviously intended to
arouse attention through outrageous language and blunt statements.
Ingenieros and Lugones clearly enjoyed taking apart the oligarchical
leadership which they saw as egotistical, unimaginative, materialistic,
and completely blind to the needs of the working classes. But La Montafia
had another purpose-to try to move the Socialist party to a more
radical, even revolutionary position. Ingenieros wrote in La Montafiathat
socialism and revolution were inextricably linked. Socialism was
characterized, he argued, by " . . . the socialization of all the means of
production and the elimination of social class distinctions; the logical
result of this process is the withering away of the state and of false
bourgeois morality." The achievement of these goals, he claimed, repre-
sented profound revolutionary change, and he castigated those socialists
who sought to play down the revolutionary consequences of their action
simply to attract petty bourgeois elements to their ranks. He warned that
this perception implied " . . . a fundamental error whose outcome will
some day weaken the socialist movement." "Socialist and revolutionary
are two inseparable qualities," Ingenieros concluded, "and real socialists
are those who accept revolution .. ."66
Two years later Juan B. Justo produced his own publication, El Diario
del Pueblo, which also attacked the national leadership. The tone of these
attacks, however, was considerably more measured than that of La
Montafia.67In addition, Justo's emphasis, as was to be expected, was on
the achievement of socialist goals through non-revolutionary means.

"4LeopoldoLugones, "Los politicos de este pais," La Montadia(May 15, 1897), 5.


e5JosIngenieros, "Los reptiles burgueses, IV: Los padres de la patria,"La Montafia(August 15,
1897), 5.
6eJos Ingenieros, "Socialismo y revoluci6n," La Montaia (July 1, 1897), 5.
67For example, "El predominio del PAN [PartidoAutonomistaNacional,the dominant party of the
oligarchy]," El Diaro del Pueblo(Buenos Aires: November 12, 1899), p. 1.

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J. WALTER
RICHARD 21

Appearing as a four-page morning daily selling for five centavos, El


Diario, for the few months it appeared, was virtually a carbon copy of La
Vanguardiain format and content. In it Justo repeated many of the
themes and issues he already had delineated in the party organ and
provided an example and stimulus for La Vanguardia'seventual daily
publication.
In addition to these independent efforts, other sectors of the Socialist
party also produced publications aimed to disseminate the socialist
message. As the party grew it established centros(centers) in each of the
twenty electoral districts (circunscripciones)
into which the federal capital
was divided. In the early 1900's the largest and most active centros,either
individually or in conjunction with another group in another section,
published their own newspapers. These were intended to supplement La
Vanguardia. They appeared more irregularly than the party organ,
usually on a monthly basis. They were also smaller in size and scope of
coverage. Although they printed news of general party concern, and,
like the larger journal, usually published the party's program and
declarationof principles, their major attention centered on local matters.
They might describe a strike in circunscipci6n four (which elected
Alfredo L. Palacios to the Congress in 1904), a party and concert in
sections fourteen and twenty, or an electoral campaign in the eighth
circunscripci6n. They also aimed to spread socialist ideas and to recruit
working-class adherents to the party.68
All of the publications examined so far, with the exception of La
Montatia, could be classified generally as newspapers. In the period
between the turn of the century and World War I a number of socialist
magazines also emerged. One was VidaNueva: RevistaSocialista,which
was not a party organ per se, but which sought to describe in particular
the social problems of the working class.69 Most ambitious, in terms of
format, was Nueva Era: RevistaSocialistaIlustrada, a bi-monthly which
produced its first issue on May 1, 1914. Firmly connected with the
party, the editors of Nueva Era featured extensive coverage and analysis
of the socialist delegation in the Congress. Most striking, however, was
its concentration on graphics, including photographs, caricatures, and

68Some centronewspapers, consulted in the Biblioteca Obrera "Juan B. Justo" in Buenos Aires,
included La Luz: PeriodicoSocialista,
(1901-1905), located in circunscripcid6n
four;ElSocialista:Organodel
Centro SocialistaJuventud Obrera;Circunscr*pci6n Ha (1903-1904); La Antorcha: Organodel Centro
Socialistade la Circunscripci6n
2a (1903);El Alba: OrganoSocialistade la
Circunscrci6n 20a (1904); and,
Adelante:Organode la Circunscripi6n10a (1904-1911).
"6VidaNueva appeared twice monthly between January 1906 and February 1907.

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22 THE SOCIALIST PRESS IN ARGENTINA

cartoons. In terms of layout and presentation, Nueva Era was the most
sophisticated and attractive socialist publication of the period.70
The best-known and most influential of the socialist magazines was
the monthly Revista SocialistaInternacional,which appeared regularly
between 1908 and 1915.71 The Revista'sdirectors and contributors were
mostly those associated with La Vanguardiaand the party. The first
editor and guiding force was Enrique Del Valle Iberlucea, who would be
elected senator from Buenos Aires in 1913 and later leave the party in
disagreement over the socialists' failure to support the Bolshevik Revo-
lution and join the Third International.72 Del Valle Iberlucea forecast
these disagreements in his first Revista editorial, in which he attacked
Bernsteinian reformism and urged that the socialist movement be one of
"criticism and action," criticism not only of capitalism but also of the
movement itself. He promised to use "scientific socialism" to explain the
economic development of the republic and to make the new periodical
". .. a living archive where the actions of the world-wide working-class
movement would be recorded."73
True to his word, Del Valle Iberlucea included in the pages of the
Revista many articles, from home and abroad, which discussed the
application of Marxism to historical conditions in Europe and America.
The magazine also repeated many of the functions of La Vanguardia.It
reported the details of party congresses and chronicled strike actions and
resultant repression. However, the Revista tended more to analytical
"think pieces" and to allowing contributions by critics, both within and
outside the party, than did the official socialist newspaper. In 1909, for
example, the Revista published in full the responses of those socialists
who opposed the party's attempt to accommodate itself to growing
nationalist sentiment in the republic and in the process, so the critics
charged, abandoned the Marxist concept of an an international socialist
revolution.74 A prominent feature of the Revista's early years were
articles by Martin Casaretto, a member of the local printers' union, who
charged the Socialist party with moving too far away from working-class

70The complete run for 1914 was examined in the Biblioteca Obrera "Juan B. Justo."
71In 1910 the title was changed to HumanidadNueva:RevistaSocialistaInternacional.
72For biographical information, see Benito Marianetti, EnriqueDel Valle Iberlucea:Una bonrada
conductafrente a la revolucidnrusa (Buenos Aires: Ediciones Silaba, 1972), pp. 7-11.
73Enrique Del Valle Iberlucea, "Critica y acci6n: Nuestro programa,"RevistaSocialistaInterna-
cional, I, 1 (Buenos Aires: December 15, 1908), 1-7.
74Formore details, see Walter, TheSocialistParty, pp. 67-70.

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J. WALTER
RICHARD 23

organization and too close to an exclusive electoral-political concentra-


tion.75
Del Valle Iberlucea himself participated in critical debate at this time,
usually in defense of the party. In 1908, when visiting Italian socialist
congressman Enrico Ferri made a strong attack on the socialist move-
ment in Argentina, Del Valle Iberlucea joined Juan B. Justo in a firm
response. Ferri argued, essentially, that the appearance of a socialist
movement in Argentina was premature since the republic's economic
development was based on agriculture, not industry. The Revistapub-
lished Ferri's comments and Justo's rejoinder in full. Then, in a series of
articles of his own, Del Valle Iberlucea, in a sophisticated and convinc-
ing manner, traced the significant growth of an industrial proletariat in
the republic.76 Other articles by the editor sought to counter the
advantages conservatives saw in Ferri's analysis and their attempts to
portray socialism as an "exotic plant" in Argentina.77
In sum, by the outbreak of World War I a substantial socialist press
was firmly established in Argentina. The most influential publications of
this period were El Obreroand La Vanguardia.Through their pages
theories and analyses based on Marxist interpretations were diffused
throughout the republic. The main interpreters were Germain Ave
Lallemant and Juan B. Justo, both students of Marx and other European
socialists. Particularly with Justo the emphasis was on a moderate and
reformist socialism. The press itself, however, reflected the tensions
within the socialist movement over how best to proceed; whether to
focus strictly on working-class organization or on political action;
whether to take a reformist or a revolutionary road to the achievement of
socialist goals.
The contributions of these publications were many. For the first time
in the history of the republic newspapers and magazines devoted to the
cause of the majority of the population, the working classes, attempted
to inform the general public of the actual working and living conditions
in Argentina. The socialist press also played a crucial role in rallying the
working class to protest and to organize to improve these conditions.

75Forexample,MartinCasaretto,"El movimientosindicalen la republica:Reflecionessobreel


movimientoobrero,"Humanidad Nueva,III, 5 (May 1, 1910),246-252.
76Theseappearedin the editionsof February15 (195-199),March15 (272-273),and April 15
(336-353)of 1909.
"For example,EnriqueDel ValleIberlucea,"NotasEditoriales:De la revoluci6nal centenario,"
HumanidadNueva,III, 5 (May 1, 1910), 233-236.

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24 THE SOCIALISTPRESS IN ARGENTINA

Moreover, by introducing analyses which criticized capitalist economic


development from a Marxist perspective and approached the study of
history and politics with an emphasis on economic factors and the class
struggle, the socialist press helped to enrich subsequent Argentine
thought. These publications posed new and alternative ways of looking
at Argentine society, ways with which many might disagree but few
could ignore.
RICHARDJ. WALTER
WashingtonUniversity
St. Louis,Missouri

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