The Daily Worker Newspaper, March 27, 1926, Page 10

| Letter to the Editorial Staff of falera - By Lenin, 1903 sro G6 After th@second party convention in the sum- mer of 1903, a tenseness prevailed in the Russian arty. The Mensheviks boycotted the central com- mittee and Iskra, whose editors were Lenin and Plechanov (who was still with Lenin) and Martov (of the Mensheviks), This letter of Lenin, pub- lished in Iskra, November 25, 1903, was an answer to an article of Plechanov and an attempt to unite the party and reduce the differences, and establish a proper method of discussion of the points of dis- pute. He did not succeed, and in December, when the majority of the editors refused to print his next article. he resigned from the staff. The fact that Lenin recommends publicity and party discussions in this particular situation, does not mean that he regarded-party discussion as pos: sible in every situation. And under no circum: stances can it depend on the caprice of one com- rade or another to start a party discussion with ‘gut’ a concrete ‘Basis for’ it’in everyday questions i the responsible party workers. * * € ‘ [THE article ““What Not to Do” (by Pischancv, translator) raises such every-day, im- mediate questions of our party life that it is difficult to resist the desire to answer imme- diately to the announcement’that the columns of the paper would be opened—it is especially difficult for a regular co-editor of Iskra, espe- cially difficult in a moment when a delay in giving my opinion would perhaps mean a with- drawal of the opportunity. And I wanted to give my opinion in order to remove some possible and perhaps avoid- able misunderstandings. I want to say first of all, that the author of the article is a thousand times correct, in my opinion, when he emphasizes the urgency of preserving the unity of the party, and of avoil- ing new splits, especially for differences which cannot be considered of importance. A call for peace-loving, mild conciliation is com- mendable on the part of a leader in general and especially at this moment. To pronounce anathema on or exclude from the party, not only the former economists, but also groups’ of social-demio¢rats, who still suf- fer from “certain inconsistencies,” would with- out question be unreasonable—unreasonabie to such a degree, that I can wholly understant the excited tone of the author toward the fig- ure of the straight-lined, stubborn, dull Suba~ chevich (a literary figure—translator) which he has _ imagined, and which will certainly stand as an exception. We think even further, when we get the party program and the party organization we must not only hospitably open the pages of the party organs for exchange of opinions, but also grant to the groups the pos- | | sibility of a systematic explanation of their fn- ignificant differences—to the little groups, as he author says, which in: their inconsisten- ies defend some of the dogmas of revisionism, nd which for one reason or another insist on aving their group peculiarities and indiyjdual- ity. Just in order not to be too narrow-mind- ed and stiff, a la Subachevich, toward “anar- chistic individualism,” it is necessary, in our opinion, to do: everything possible—even to some deviations from the beautiful schemes of * “Boss; with all dem men erawlin’ ‘und daet ‘there, someone*is: sure to get hurt: Now, I can go'’aloné; “and” not ‘make much fuss, and be through by daylight.” “~~ ° The foreman threw up’ his hands in Qtigent. “ «well, what the hell difference does it make me, just. so the wires are clipped? Get a short want over here carryin’ cement!” iE then, and’ start in! The rest of you fellows, He turned away, but the men remained with “No? repeated Heinrich again. “You shall not go alone! I go do half, myself!” “Me, too” shouted half a dozen others. “Ted ‘held up hig hand, and shook his head. “I, gotta couple of pictures—and—and you keep your jobs. I'll be all right.” \ Phe foreman turned and started back, cursing. “Damn it, I said, ‘Come on! Get to ‘work, be- fore you're fired!” “Quick!” ‘Ted urged him. as he pushed him away. “Go on! Don’t get fired! I'll be all right!” ‘And he turned away toward the pit. The young German hesitated. Then he thought.of his mother and sister in Germany who were on can, measure ‘the pending in the: party, We recommend thigé arti¢ié =: the attive meribers of the party and eopestatly wt self to, the floor... centralism and unconditional submission to discipline—in order to give liberty of expres- sion to those groups, to give the whole party the possibility of weighing the importance or unimportance of the difference, to define just where, in what and on which side the incon- sistency is to be found. It is undeniably time decisively to throw away the traditions of the sectarian “Krus- kovshina” (the period of small circles) and— in a party which has its roots in the masses— raise the decisive slogan: more light, let the party know everythj g, let it have every and all material, in order‘to estimate every and all differences, reyersjons towards revisionism, deviations from discipline, etc.’ More confi- dence in the independent judgement of the mass,of the party workers: they and only they extent of ‘the ardor of the* groups with split tendencies, they can ‘with, | their slow, imperceptible, but nevertheless per- sistent: pressure, inspire “good will” to live up to party discipline, they can cool the fervor of anarchistic individualism, they can by the very fact of their level-headedness put on the record, show and prove the pettiness of the differences, exaggerated by elements inclined to split. About the question: “What not to do?” (what not to do in general and what not to do in order to avoid a split) I would answer first of all: Do not hide from the party the tend- encies toward split which appear and grow, do not hide anything of the circumstances and events, which indicate such tendencies. More. Do not hide this, not only from the party, but when possible from the outside public. I say “when possible,” having in mind what is ne- cessary to hide, for the sake of secrecy, but in these splits such circumstances play the most unimportant role. Broad publicity—that is the surest and the only reliable means of avoiding those splits which it is possible to avoid, in order to reduce to a minimum the harm by those splits which have already be- come unavoidable. Indeed, think of the obligations which are laid‘wpom-the>party by-the-fact that it.alteady has dealings’ with the masses, and no longer with small circles. In order to be a mass party not only in words, we must draw into participation in all party affairs constantly broader masses, constantly raising them from their political indifference to protest and fight, from a general spirit of protest to a conscious acceptance of social-democratic (now read: Communist) views, from the acceptance of these views in principle to the support of the movement, from support to organizational par- ticipation in the party. Is it possible to attain this result without applying the broadest pub- licity in questions, from the decision of which one effect or another upon the masses may de- pend? Workers cease to understand us and leave us, a staff without an army, in cases of splits thru insignificant differences, says the author, and very correctly. And in order to make sure that the workers shall not cease to understand us, in order to get the workers from their experiences in the struggle and their proletarian instinct to give some lessons even to us, the “leaders,”—for this it is necessary that the organized workers learn to follow the growing indications of a split (such indications. have always existed and will always come up in every mass party) that they react conScious- ly to these indications, estimate the events in a Russian or foreign backwoods section from the standpoint of the interests of the whole party, from the interests of the movement as a whole. The author is correct three times over when he emphasizes that much is given to the party center and much will be demand- ed of it. It is just for this reason that it is so necessary that the whole party should edu- cate for itself systematically, quietly and un- -eeasingly, the people in the center of the party, that it should be able to read as clearly.as its ‘own palm the whole activity of:every candida .for this high post, that it should be Se eitel »with their individual peculiarities, with their strong and weak sides, with their victories and “defeats.” The author makes remarkable keen comments which are obviously based on a rich experience—upon certain reasons for such de- feats, and just because these comments are so keen the whole party should have the use of them. The party should always see every “defeat” even the partial “defeat” of one or another of its “leaders.” Not one politically active person has gone thru his ¢areer ‘“Wwith- out defeats of one kind or another, atid’ if we speak seriously of influencing the masses, of gaining the good will of the masses, we should strive with all our powers that this defeat should not be hidden in the stuffy atmosphere of the smalk circles, but that they should be brot forward for the judgment of all. This seems at first glance inconvenient, it must al- ways be felt as “insulting” to one individual leader or another, but this false feeling of in- convenience we must conquer; this is our duty to the party and to the working class. In this way and only in this way do we give to the whole mass of influential party workers (and not only to occasional circles or groups of them) the opportunity of knowing their lead- “ers, and of putting every one of them in = \ proper place. Only wide publicity.can, all narrow, one-sided, capricious - 6 i only this can transform the sometimes silly and ridiculous “pros and cons” into useful and necessary material for party education. Light, more light. We need an immense cor- cert; we must. work up our experiences in .or- der to justly assign the roles, to give to one the sentimental violin, to another the raging counter-bass, to a third the stick of the direc- tor. I hope the kind invitation of the author to a hospitable exchange of opinions in the party organ will be realized in all party pub- lications. May eyeryone.judge our “squabbles and trifles’ about. unharmonious “notes,” which are shrill in the opinion of some, or false in the opinion of others, or (broken) in the opinion of a third group. Only from a series of such open arguments can there be attained a really harmonious group, only on these con- ditions will the workers be put in such @ Sta that they cannot fail to understand tts, ‘on then can our “staff” depend on the really good and conscious will of its army, which will fol- low the staff and at the same time direct it. verge of starvation, and ran quickly toward the cement-house. . Ted found a pinch bar, and shuffled. to the cor- ner of the hole.where a side had cayed, Jeaving | a spent. laTpReneng | to permit him to lower him: The dark,earth extended above. Yo | him fifteen jfeet; and even. here where it had }. already. fallen. in, the wall looked ominous in the.| twilight... To. his right, the wall was still intact. It would be difficult for even his slender body to penetrate that narrow fissure, and probably’ he. would have to. get.on his back and worm his ‘¥ in until he could reach the last wire in that He inserted. the, bar, an Sree ee There sounded the sharp click of a broken The terrific pressure of the cement made the | tense wires snap like icicles. One—two—three— click-—click—click—six wires/snapped on each upright. A few minutes later he was ready to. cut those in the narrow fissure. He got down on his back and worked his way to the first upright, The effort took his breath and he waited * mo- | ment before raising the bar. __ he earth above him came 90 close to. the fort that he could not even catch a glimpse of the sky, It semed as if the mass of dirt at his side pushed against him and crowded’ closer over his chest. He imagined how it would look to him if all that dark wall should slip, should slide, come rushing - down upon him—upon his legs, his breast, his face. Would he still see the picturés, the band- aged hand and the little white hand? If he would not see them again, then wouldn’t this be LE place to dig the wall with his bar?” _ But who could say for sure that he would. never again see the pictures? Even though ‘all’ that weight should smother him—even though the earth itself should swallow him up, wouldn’t the little white fingers and the bandaged hand still pierce through the fog of Oblivion? And, be- sides, if he didn’t cut these wires tonight, some other men would have to—men who did not haye such pictures as he. i Yes, perhaps it would be best ‘to go. ahead an clip the wires. GERHARDT brought some sup I. When lie reached the corner where he last had seen his companion, he stood for a moment in the moon- light, a chill creeping over his body.” fey “Hi! Rusty!” he called quaveringly. ‘The soft, cool breeze, laden with, the odor of sage-brush, brought no answer, ~~ They found him at the corner where he had be- =. to work, buried beneath a dozen tons of earth, The pinch bar was inserted behind a oe (The Rnd) —