The Daily Worker Newspaper, November 8, 1924, Page 5

“The idea becomes power when it pene- trates the masses.” —Karl Marx. : The Party Be By WILLIAM F. DUNNE. ' Seven years ago the red cock of “the social revolution hailed the dawn of a new era and vindicated forever the theories of Marx—the master. The Peters of the Second International, long engaged in distorting the Marx- ian method and thereby betraying the working class, denied the faith they had prostituted when they heard its lusty challenge signalling the mighty blow the Russian workers and pea- sants dealt world capitalism. The so- cialists of the Second International be- came the bitterest enemies of the Russian revolution, but the: Russian revolution, the Union of Socialist Sov- iet Republics.and the world revolu- tion still live. They become stronger each day and under the leadership of the Communist International—born of the imperialist war and the Russian revolution — organize the working class for the capture of power in every country. xX What forces "tf ade the revolution in Russia—not only the complete over- throw of capitalism and aristocracy, but the bourgeois revolution that pre- ceded the final surrender of the state power to the workers and peasants? The social democrats hailed the pro- visional government that arose after the abdication of the czar as the final triumph of democracy. The mass movement of the workers and pea- |, sants was supposed to stop there and wait for the social democratic saviors to make further improvements. Howls of rage from every strong- hold of social democracy greeted the rise of the Soviets and when the dic- tatorship of the workers and pea- sants*was established and the Ker- ensky government was thrown on the scrap pile with other garbage of his- tory, the anger of the erstwhile sav- iors of the working class was uncon- trollable. They renewed their allegi- ance to the capitalist class and fur- nished the democratic smoke screen behind which operated the murderous forces of world imperialism. It was not the middle class and capitalist class of Russia that over- threw czarism nor was it the liberal and social-democratic intelligentsia that composed the provisional govern- ment. Nothing was further from the minds of these elements than the abolition of the Romanoff dynasty. They wanted, just as the imperialist allied governments wanted, a change in personnel, a palace revolution that would, by giving a democratic dolor to the Russian regime, pacify the masses and enable Russia to prosecute the war more efficiently. The Russian bourgeoisie had learn- ed a lesson in 1905. They had no intention of releasing social forces that would set in motion the great mass of the oppressed in Russia but they miscalculated the extent of the discontent, they underestimated the revolutionary elan of the Russian workers and after the overthrow of the czar by the Russian masses, in eight months, marched straight thru the defenses of Russian capitalism to the dictatorship of the proletariat. It is just as well to settle here the part played in the overthrow of the ezar by the cadets and the social de- mocrats. As late as March 4, 1917, Milyukov had declared in the Duma SPECI +. SUPP E THE DAILY WORKER. NOVEMBER 8, 1924. and Class That Made It Possible munition plants in Petrograd. Food riots occurred involving thousands of workers. On March 9, the workers of Petrograd were out on the streets and fights took place with the Cos- sacks. Assemblage was forbidden by General Chavaloff, commander of the Cossacks, in a proclamation announc- ing that the troops had been ordered to fire on the crowds. The Petrograd correspondent of the New York Times wired. his paper: “A number of causes working to- gether, brought the crisis moment- arily to a head, altho I do not be- lieve there Can Be Any Serious Trouble While The Duma Is in Ses- BOR ao A yesterday the , “All together, with united forces, we shall fight for the complete re- moval of the old government and the convocation of a constituent as- sembly, chosen on the basis of uni- versal, equal, direct and secret suf- frage.” What of the Duma during this stir- ring period? Nothing is plainer than that it feared the popular movement and tried by both persuasion and force to stop it. On March 11, Rodzianko, president of the Duma, sent the fol- lowing telegram to. the czar: “The situation is serious. The capi- tal is in a state of anarchy. There is government is paralyzed. There is universal discontent. The streets ; - RUTH FISHER Leader of the German Commuset Party. streets were full of people altho Petrograd is heavily patrolled by Cossacks and mounted police. The general atmosphere is like a bank holiday with thunder in the air.” (Emphasis mine.) Women of the working class were active in the food riots that became more wide spread. They marched up to the soldiers and asked them would they shoot hungry workers, their own people. The morale of the troops went down to zero and what little shooting took place, served only to further arouse the masses. On March 1, orders to fire upon the crowds were obeyed only in isolated instances. The soldiers themselves were tired of war and on the eve of Almost every worker in the are filled with disorderly “fighting, units of the army are firing on each other. It is necessary to appoint someone immediately whom the country trusts to form another min- istry. Make haste. Procrastination means death. | pray to God that the responsibility will not fall upon him who wears the crown.” The next day Rodzianko sent an- other telegram to the czar: “Affairs are worse. You must act at once. Tomorrow will be too late. This is the last hour in which to de- cide the fate of the country and of the dynasty.” The Duma did not want @ revolu- tion, It feared a revolution and the documents show that it stood by the czar to the last. It was only when on March 12, large bodies of troops appeared before the Duma and cheered the revolution that the Duma acted. It appointed a com- mittee to take charge. Rodzianko was made chairman. The police by this time were de- feated. The jails were opened and thousands of political prisoners, most of them skilled revolutionary agitators, were freed. Two hundred govern. ment officials were arrested. This Duma committee did two SECOND SECTION This magazine supple- ment will appear every Saturday In The Daily Worker. things—both counter-revolutionary. It sent a telegram to the czar urg- ing: “The immediate convocation of the legislative bodies, the retirement of the present council of ministers, and the entrusting to a person deserv- ing of the national confidence, to pre- sent to you, Sire, for confirmation, the list of a new cabinet capable of managing the country in complete ac- cord with the representatives of the people. Every hour is precious. Fur- ther delay and hesitation threaten in- calculable misfortunes.” Its second act was to order the masses to disarm. But the masses did not disarm. On March 15, the czar was arrested. He abdicated and named Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovitch as regent. The Duma committee appointed the pro- visional government with Prince Lvov as premier, Milyukov, minister of for- eign affairs, Guchkov, minister of war and marine, Kerensky, minister of justice. This provisional government did not take the position that czarism has been destroyed. Milyukov expressed the view of the provisional govern- ment when he said in a speech: “The old despot who brought Ris- sia to the edge of disaster will vol- untarily abdicate or be deposed. The government will pass to a regent, the Grand Duke Michael. Alexan- drovitch, and the heir Alexis the ezarevitch (cries of—but that is the old dynasty). Yes, gentieman, that is the old dynasty, which perhaps you do not like and which perhaps ! dislike myself. We propose a par- liamentary constitutional © mon- archy.” The provisional government chang- ed nothing in Russia nor did it alter the attitude of the former government towards the war. On Mach 17, Milyu- kov sent a note to Russian representa- tives in. other. countries in which he said: “in the domain of foreign policy, the cabinet, in which | am charged with the portfolio of minister of foreign affairs, will remain mindful of the international agreements en- tered into by the fallen regime and will honor Russia’s word. . . . The government of which | am part will devote all of its energy to prepara- tion of victory.” : The masses had revolted against the var, but the provisional government proposed to drive them back to the shambles. By adopting this policy it separated itself from the masses and made its fall inevitable. Around this issue of peace or war the revolution organized itself. Class interests became the guiding factors and the fiction‘of a government repre- senting the whole people was no long- or tenable. The provisional govern- ment re-worded its slogans of impe- rialist war and imperialistic peace, but mass unrest continued to grow. Sovy- iets of workers, peasants and soldiers sprung up thruout the nation and chal- lenged the authority of the provisional government. , When on May 1, the provisional gov- ernment sent a note to the allied gov- ernments in which it spoke of “the na- tion’s determination to bring the war to a decisive victory” and said the “the provisional government in safe- guarding the rights acquired for our country will maintain a strict regard for its engagements with the allies of Russia” the fury of the masses could not be restrained. Great strikes and mass demonstrations were staged and an attempt made by soldiers to arrest the provisional government. The council of Soviets was as yet in the hands of the non-revolutionary elements altho the Bolsheviki were active. Lenin had arrived in Petro- grad in April and had taken the lead in the revolutionary agitation. (Continued on Page 8.) —— ee te rn e es aati |