I08  THE  SOCIALISM  OF  TO-DAY.
purpose  of  inducing  working  men  formally  to  renounce  the
Church  {Massenaustritl  aus  der  Kirche).  “  It  is  long,”  he  said,
“  since  you  have  placed  foot  inside  a  temple,  and  since  you
have  had  anything  to  do  with  these  gentlemen  of  the  black
frock.  But  that  is  not  enough.  They  still  number  you  amongst
their  flocks,  and  on  this  ground  they  claim  to  shear  you.  An
end  must  be  put  to  this.  Declare  openly  that  you  leave  the
Church.  Array  yourselves  under  the  banner  of  Science,  which
absolutely  rejects  all  superstitions.”  At  the  close  of  these
meetings,  manifestoes  declaring  that  they  abandoned  the  Established ­
  Church  were  presented  for  the  signature  of  those  present.
As  a  type  of  these  reunions,  we  may  take  the  meeting  of
women,  which  was  held  on  the  6th  February,  1878,  in  the
salon  of  Madame  Renz.  Men  were  relentlessly  excluded  from
the  audience.  The  room  was  crowded.  Madame  Hahn,  who
had  previously  founded  an  association  of  working  men’s  wives,
which  was  dissolved  by  the  police  in  1875,  acted  as  president.
Near  her  sat  Dr.  Wangemann,  who  had  come  to  defend  the
ideas  of  the  Social  Christians,  and  Deputy  Most.  Huge  red
placards  affixed  to  the  wall  bore  the  words,  Massenaustritt
aus  der  Landskirche  (“  Secession  in  a  body  from  the  State
Church”).  An  address  from  Deputy  Most  opened  the  proceedings. ­
  He  was  glad  to  see  the  women  taking  up  the  social
cause.  Their  support  made  the  future  sure.  “  Women,  far
more  than  men,  are  the  slaves  and  victims  of  capital.  Now,
when  it  is  clear  that  nothing  can  resist  the  progress  of  democracy, ­
  Court  preachers  and  other  ecclesiastics  are  insinuating
themselves  into  our  ranks  in  order  to  found  a  new  party  and
divide  our  forces.  The  best  way  of  putting  a  stop  to  these
manoeuvres  is  to  leave  the  Church  in  a  body.”  The  next
speaker,  Madame  Hahn,  enumerated  all  the  infamies  of  the
priesthood.  “  My  religion,”  she  exclaimed,  “  is  Socialism,  and
it  alone  is  truth,  morality,  justice,  and  brotherhood.  Down
with  the  priests  of  every  robe  and  every  hue  !  The  first  reform
to  be  accomplished  is  to  change  all  churches  into  good  habitations ­
  for  working  men.”  Dr.  Wangemann  replied  that
Christianity  had  elevated  woman.  In  the  course  of  his  missions, ­
  he  had  found  abundant  proof  that  religion  alone  ensured