1943 began with the glorious victory at Stalingrad that turned the tide of the war, and ended with another decisive victory-the concord of Teheran, t… - Ella Reeve Bloor

My earliest memory was of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, and the day of his funeral, when all the shutters of the neighborhood were closed and tied with black streamers.

I am by no means closing my life story. I expect to live that for years to come. As I read over the chapters of this book, I feel that it is after all not adequate in expressing to the reader the real "me." How can I describe the deep emotions I have experienced during all these years, in the crises that come in every mother's life-and especially a mother who goes into the battles of the workers. How can I make others feel and understand the home-sickness of such a mother, even when the children are grown, the conflict in one's soul between the love of home and peace, and the responsibility of going out among the masses with the message that I have felt I must take to them. But the choice I made wasnot a sacrifice. It has been a privilege and joy. My greatest longing and desire is to retain my health and strength so that I may continue to work. I have not mentioned all my dear friends and co-workers. It would take a larger book than this to bring before the readers of my story the wonderful characters who have gone along the road with me, and others I have met in passing; great names, long friendships, loves and comradeships of men and women. Men and women like Barbusse of France, Clara Zetkin of Germany, Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, Ruthenberg, Debs, Browder, Foster, Ford and thousands of others, thousands of farmers, miners, workers everywhere and their children who have been close to me always along the march-all these have been the comrades of my rich and joyous life. (p 308)

I felt that our new Party, firmly rooted in American soil, would be capable of leading the workers to final victory because of its faith in the workers themselves. I have never changed my mind about this and never will. My years in the Communist Party have been years of closest association with the workers and farmers of our country, years of great privilege, because I have learned far more from the workers than I have ever taught them. The fullness and richness of my life I owe to them and to my work in the Party. Our new Party was subjected to immediate persecution everywhere. Before long an injunction was issued against the Workers' World, the paper was raided and one of the editors arrested. The raiders literally smashed everything to bits.