An anarchist, trade unionist, and a newspaper editor, Wess was active in the Socialist League (UK, 1885) and is notable for his involvement with the International Working Men's Educational Club, and Freedom Press.

He became the manager of the Freedom Press in 1891 and went on speaking tours alongside Pyotr Kropotkin, Errico Malatesta, Louise Michel, and Saul Yanovsky.

When Yanovsky left for the United States, he was briefly replaced by Jacob Kaplan as the editor of Arbeyter Fraynd (Worker's Friend), a weekly Yiddish anarchist newspaper.

In February 1906, Wess and Lilian Wolfe (Keell's partner and another member of the Freedom publishing group), were setting up the Arbeyter Fraynd Club on Jubilee Street, Whitechapel.

By the late 30s, Wess had revived it again and had become involved in solidarity work for the Spanish Revolution with Emma Goldman.