The Bending Cross: A Biography of Eugene Victor Debs

Ray Ginger's absolutely authoritative biography of the great man, Eugene Debs, deserves as wide a reading audience as can possibly be achieved. In this marvellous, well-written and well-researched book, the life and times of Eugene Debs are made accessible to the people of today (or rather, 1947, but it is equally readable now), and thanks to the Haymarket Books reprint Debs can continue to inspire all men of good will even now.The book describes every detail of Debs' life: his upbringing in a petty bourgeois merchant household in Terre Haute, IN, where he was taught the German and French romantic classics by his father (the name Eugene Victor comes from Eugène Sue and Victor Hugo), his first jobs and union involvement on the Vendalia railway, his early leadership in the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen, his subsequent higher and higher promotions in the union ranks, holding office in Terre Haute in between, then the formation of the American Railway Union, the general strike and destruction of the same, his periods in prison and conversion to Marxism, and finally his political career in the Socialist Party where he made himself immortal in the annals of radical history by winning 6% of the vote in 1912, and also being the only person in American history to win a significant amount of votes while in prison (1920).Some of these events may well be known to many Americans, but many of them probably are not, and all depict the absolute humanity, loyalty, intelligence, cordiality, and charity of Eugene Debs. Indeed sometimes it is astounding how one man could unite so many virtues and be so utterly uncorruptible, leading one to become suspicious whether Debs' reputation is not exaggerated, but fortunately biographer Ray Ginger is always careful to substantiate the claims when true (which is almost always) and to apply criticism where deserved.Less known in general perhaps, even to people with an existing knowledge of radical history, are the many connections Debs had with other important people of his time: Lincoln Steffens, Robert Ingersoll, Victor Berger, John Altgeld, Susan B. Anthony, and even a short conversation with Warren Harding in the White House. Debs was never much of a theoretician, and did not read any of Marx' own works (though he knew the popularizers like Kautsky), but he had an infallible sense of the failures of both extreme left sectarianism and excessive reformism in radical movements and labor unionism, and it is rare in the course of this history of Debs' union activities that one can conclude he made the wrong decision. Moreover, much unlike many radicals today, Debs had a supreme capacity for personal love and charity, and was capable of opposing the political decisions and strategies of many other union activists without in any way lessening his personal loyalty or affection for them, or blaming them in person for their views. While an inveterate opponent of all capitalism, he was at the same time by no means a rabid sectarian, and could make himself loved and respected even by his enemies - once he so effectively inveighed against a railroad director in his own office that the director started offering him high level jobs in the company!Debs of course made American political history, not just with his prison campaign in 1920, victim to Woodrow Wilson's political terror; but also with the first campaigning train tour through America (the "Red Special"), with the highest percentage of votes in a Presidential election any left-wing candidate has ever received, and last but not least with his fierce opposition to American participation in World War I, when all tides were against him. This alone would make him a hero of socialism. But he equally deserves recognition for his remarkable goodness in his personal dealings: he refused all offers of careering and high wages, refused all attempts of union federations to lavish gifts or praise upon him, and was known for giving away large amounts of his money even when he could not afford it. When the ARU collapsed under the military terror of the American government, he personally took all the debts of the union on him, which it took him 18 years to pay off. He was even loved by all the inmates of the Atlanta prison during his stay there. Add to this his visionary and consistent support for the rights of women, blacks, and immigrants, when such things were radical even among radicals, and Eugene V. Debs indeed is nothing but an example to us all. If I had but one-tenth of the quality of Debs, I would have much to be proud of.

Ray Ginger’s intention of writing this book was to make a biography on Eugene V. Debs. This book set out to eloquently write the origins of Debs from his early personal life and into his political life. Ginger’s book has become the standard on which biographies of Debs have been written. Ginger is successful in writing a well-articulated biography of the great labor leader Eugene V. Debs.Ginger begins the book with a background on Debs’ life starting with his father in the 1820’s and moving quickly to the early life of Debs. The book is separated in four parts that detail major points in Deb’s life. The book outlines key themes and shows the humanity, loyalty, and charity of Debs throughout his lifetime. The book is organized chronologically from the beginning of Debs’ life and places much of the focus on the political life of Debs. The main thesis of this book is that Debs’ Midwestern values coupled with his upbringing led him to be a humanitarian. It also made him an excellent organizer and orator for the common person. This book contributes to the wealth of knowledge by being the first major biography of Eugene V. Debs. There are other biographies written about Debs since, but this is considered to be the backbone of other writings.Ginger wrote this book from an unbiased historical perspective. The book is written with a great deal of respect to Debs and his career. Ginger was a labor historian and he wrote from a place of sympathy for Debs, but he also highlighted the not so glamorous side of Debs. Ginger highlights very early in the book that Debs was known for his regular appearances at the saloon, his fondness of racial humor and even his bigotry. Ginger does not let his bias for labor history or Debs cloud his overall body of work and the presentation of the material.This book is a very readable book. The book has a great flow that is not hard to follow mainly because it is written in a chronological order. Ginger penned this book for the average reader. This is not to say that the book is not helpful for any historian or student. This book was written for everyone from a historian to a general railway worker. Ginger’s book is impressive because he offered many different sources including thirteen pages of primary, pamphlets, selected letters, and secondary sources. Most of the sources mentioned are primary documents and letters. However, Ginger does not offer footnotes. Rather, Ginger places “selected chapter sources” at the end of the book. These chapter sources are not meant to substitute for footnotes but they are given for specific quotes or important facts (460). Ginger sites the reasoning for this is for readability and for length. Much of the research was done at, University of Chicago Library, Chicago Historical Society, Library of Congress, Fairbanks Library of Terre Haute, Indiana State University as well as many other Universities and libraries. Overall the mechanics of the book is more than substantial enough to qualify this book as well

great book describing the life of a great man