Lederer’s brief review values Overbergh’s documentary reconstruction of the Belgian general strike of 1913, which draws comparisons with the strike of 1902. Its sequence moves from historical evidence and political purpose to the limits of strike power and the prospect of reform.
Dieser (politische) Generalstreik hatte, wie im Jahre 1902, die Eroberung des allgemeinen Stimmrechts zum Ziel.
English translation: This (political) general strike had, as in the year 1902, the winning of universal suffrage as its aim.
Universal suffrage, rather than an immediate workplace demand, defines the struggle. Lederer then reports Overbergh’s conclusion that the growing military power of modern states would increasingly make general strikes impossible, particularly where technically trained troops could replace striking workers. This shifts the question from workers’ capacity to stop production to the state’s capacity to sustain it.
Von einer energischen sozialen Gesetzgebung und einem modernen Wahlrecht erwartet der Verf. die Ausgleichung der sozialen Spannungen.
English translation: From a vigorous social legislation and a modern franchise the author expects the equalization of social tensions.
The review thus presents social legislation and electoral modernization as Overbergh’s alternative means of resolving social tensions. Its significance lies in this compact juxtaposition of political mass action, state coercive and technical capacity, and institutional reform. Lederer explicitly praises the book’s documentary value; he reports its broader prognosis without developing an independent assessment of it.
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