The Daily Worker Newspaper, May 29, 1926, Page 11

j } ae ems LENIN - = Short Stories the principle of‘Lenin was adopted in practice. THE LONDON CONVENTION. ~The relations with the liberals also caused dis- time for the convention drew nearer. It|cussion. Lenin could estimate every expression ‘ carefully prepared for. But in the group of opposition by the liberals against czarism, but ra there appeared tendencies to split. In|he never consented to degrade the Party to being rrespondence of Pleckhanov and Lenin at|the tail of the liberals. Martov and Potresov— me—recently published by the Lenin Insti-|future Mensheviks—recommended a more concil- we read how particular Lenin was about iatory policy towards them. In the discussion of ogram. ‘He tried to find the most exact|the program Plekhanov astonished the Menshe- lation and criticized the propositions of|Viks, stating that you should not make general ‘nov, who wanted to use more’ general ex-|Suffrage a magic formula; the workers might be ms. At last there was a program they compelled after their victory to disfranchise the agree upon, and the unity was outwardly bourgeois, at least for a time. Also another bril- cen. But Lenin was compelled to consider liant prophecy was made by Plekhanoy. He said itly the future of the paper. He figured that the coming revolution would probable see he split would come between the “old tim-|the Marxian “Mountain” arrayed against the’ nd “youngsters.” He seemed to have had opportunist “Gironde” (the revolutionary party a having as the seventh member of the|4"d the treacherous party in the French revolu- ial [staff Trotzky, who had recently come| tion.) This prophecy was realized in 1917—but Sibfia, and worked with him. But things} Pleckhanov was not with the “Mountain.” In the 1 out otherwise: all the co-editors turned | convention of 1902—and some time afterwards— st Lenin, even Trotzky. Plekhanoy re-|Plekhanov had revolutionary flashes. When d for a time with Lenin, but soon deserted, | Axelrod reproached him for supporting Lenin, convention began in Brussels, but was|¢ said: “Of such clay Robespierres are made.” led by the authorities to move to London.|_ To the editorial staff of Iskra were elected delegates were present, forty-eight of them| Lenin and Plekhanov and Martoy. The twenty- vote. There were some proletarians from| five votes given for the first two against twenty- sburg, and they lined up with Lenin. The three opposing votes created the expressions, (uestion concerned the autonomous national | “Bolshevik” and “Menshevik”—that is the sup- itions. The Jewish “Bund” wanted to be-|Porters of the majority and the minority groups. to the Party as a separate organization.|4fter the convention Lenin wrote an enthusiastic was determinedly against this, and the|#"ticle about the Party, now coming out of the ists left the convention. Remember that in|®@S8ty air of small circles into the light of pub- uestions concerning the state Lenin was licity. (Although the Party remained illegal, in vor of autonomy, even up td the point of| Russia). He said: “The proletariat has its or- ation, but he did not recognize national fed-|#2nization as the only weapon in its fight. The ms in the Party. There has always been workers can become and unavoidably will become nal bureaus and language publications in|? victorious power only when. their ideological Russian party, and all consideration was|"Pity on the basis of Marxism is confirmed by to the national minorities. But there had|the material unity of organization which unites no separate party units for them. the toiling millions into an army of the working 2 main issue was the first paragraph in the class. Against this army the decaying power of - constitution. The difference seemed to be] ®ussian autocracy will not stand, and not even tht one: Lenin proposed that everyone who the power of international capital, which is ap- ged to some party unit should be considered | PPOaching its dissolution.” amber of the Party, and Martov believed it “One Step Forward, Two Stepe Backwards.” dibe enough:if.A man did his Party work [SKRA did not follow the Bolshevik line for of His Life manner, how the tendencies in the conyention have now appeared as pure and simple opportun- ism. He also analyzed every vote taken in the convention. He characterized the differences as follows : "The old iskra taught the truths of the revolu- tionary fight; the new Iskra preaches wordy wis- dom, concessions and compromises. The old Iskra was the organ of orthodox Marxism. The new Iskra serves up the vomit “of opportunism, espec- lally on the question of organization. The old Iskra gained for itself the wrath of the Russian and West-European opportunists. The new Iskra has become wise, and is not ashamed of the praise of the worse oOpportunists. The old Iskra went towards its goal unwaveringly, its words and deeds were one. In the new Iskra the intrinsic falseness of its position creates, unwillingly and unconsci- ously, political hypocrisy. It makes a big noise against the status of the circles only in order to cover up the fact that the circle spirit has won over the party principle.” (The circles represented the loose connections and independent actions of small groups; the party principle meant authoritative leadership, a common theory and tactic, and a firm organiza- tional unity.) Lenin showed how the party crisis could be solved: (1) The paper must be put into the hands of the majority; (2) the relations between the organizations abroad and in Russia must be defined exactly; (3) the limits for the party dis- cussion must be agreed upon.—He made conces- sions and tried to come to an agreement, but did not succeed. In the summer of 1904, the Bol- shevistic central committee, with Krassin at its head made a compromise which actually meant surrender. Lenin did not yield. Let alone, de nounced as a “splitter,” he pursued his way. He apealed to the revolutionary committees of the party, organized the bureau of the majority com- mittees, and started the preparations for a new convention, while. the central committee wasted its time with inner quarrels. He started the pa- per “Vperyod” (Forward). ~ * e e _. THE REVOLUTION OF 1905. r the control of an organization. Martoy|” long. Plechanov’ lined “up’ witli"thé Méiishé-|° “" this is the subject of the forthcoming. \ined that there could be some intellectuals, |viks. Lenin resigned from the editorial staff and comrades, who worked for the Party but|explained in a letter to the members what the *higm Party work in the units would be incon-| differences were and how they were differences of mi} Lenin admitted that the work of stu-| principle, and not of a personal character. Then s ind professors is important, but they|he wrote the pamphlet “One Step Forward, Two ld not be allowed to have exemption from|Steps Backward,” a sentence which character- y duties. The proletariat is the leading class|izes in an excellent way the Menshevik policy. proletarians are needed in the Party. Mar-| Lenin came back to the question of the first para- got a slight majority on this question, but| graph of the constitution, and showed in a thoro short story of Lenin’s life that will appear in the next issue of the New Magazine. This revolution, defeated by the troops of the czar, was the historical prelude to the triumphant victory of the Bolshevist rev- olution of 1917. If you want to know what these revolutions were about and of Lenin’s role in them, read the next issue of this magazfne. nc n author I had issued a pamphlet in Minne-| doing anything in the world. I possess a strong entitled “Its Coming, Socialism.” I sold| will, and would even go through with learning to ) copies in the Norwegian language and 2,000] spell English only for the asthma. It has made inglish. I traveled around and sold some in| me fumble nearly everything I have attempted rado and would have liked to continue with| to do in life, besides suffering untold agonies. For at lacked funds te have another supply| months I have been unable to lay in bed and sleep ted. So I began peddling tooth picks andj sitting in a chair. . strings. While I lived in Minnesota I held} Two of the worst attacks of asthma that I have w small public offices, such as postmaster,| experienced I will mention here, I took up a iship supervisor, assessor, justice of the peace| homestead up in Minnesota, and one time, the school clerk. I was school clerk for 25 years.| first summer I lived there, I sat in my shack for ‘asa new settlement and I was the first one} two days and three nights on a home-made bench 1a) an effort in establishing schools. I en-| and leaned oyer the table so sick of asthma that ‘ord all I could, to secure liberal-minded| TI could not move, hardly, not even so much as to her's and occasionally tried to enlist their in-| get some water, although it was only three or four st in the Scandinavian high school movement.| rods to it. Then a neighbor came along and got as given credit for what I did both in and|some water for me and something to seat so I ide therschool district. There are not many} was able to go home with him. Another attack gs that I have done for which I have receiyed| I had was when I was married—a wife and child it, I became a socialist after my coming to] (Gudrun)—and food began to get rather scarce. srica, and it occurred’nearly similar to my! { got a job which was very welcome and con- ming an evolutionist while atéending the} sisted of surveying and dividing up some land inary. A man who knew what he was talking) into 40 acre sections. I finished up in two days at, talked socialism to me for about a half} except to place permanent corner stakes where r, and it immediately awakened my interest.|{ had put down only temporary ones, stuck in mental soil was prepared. I often hear about] the snow. In the morning I got up suffering alism in Norway but all I gathered was that/ badly with asthma, but went out anyway, be- socialist’s idea was to make an equal division] cause I knew that if the job were not fully com- hat all should own equally. I became a Com-| pleted my pay would be withheld and my work iist as soon as the Third Iinternational was] done for nothing. » anized. The greatest disappointment in my} During the day I grew Worse and worse but erience was when socialists became traitors,| continued at my work.. When it-began to get ke their promises at the three last Socialist} dark I’ got through, and then had to walk a-mile to harness and hitch up my horse, and help me into the sleigh. I was barely able to sit up in the seat and hold the lines, but arriyed home. My wife had to help me into the house and take care of the horse. I was unable to leave the house for three days. Among several people I have met who are afflicted with asthma, I met an old lady up on Capital Hill here in Denver, who has been troubled this way all her life, until she was 70. At that time I met her she was 85, and she told me if I lived to be 70 I would get rid of asthma. I am now 70 and I can say that during this last year I have been getting better and better. . I want to say this, that I do not hark back to the middle or ancient ages for a solution of mod- ern problems. Socrates, Solon, Lykurgus, Mar- cus Aurelius, Jesus Christ, or Luther can not help us, and I do not believe, even in the Grund- vigian public high schools for that matter. Dr. Ward has helped me to dismiss this worship for the ancient time. When I look back on my 70 year old life I see mostly disappointments and shffering with an occasional gleam of light. I have seen the proletarian dictatorship of Rus- sia. If I live to be 80 years old we will see the whole world (except the U. 8.) under proletarian dictatorship, and if I live to be 90 the U. 8. will also be in line with the rest of the world, and if I live to be 100 then dictatorships will no longer be necessary. However, it does not make any dif- ference whether I am cheerful or depressed, no matter about myself, whether I have much or rld Congress before the World war by not do-| through some timber to the house where I stayed |little or nearly nothing to eat, better or wor all in their power to hinder it. I will men-| while on the job. I told the folks who were with prospects for Tease rina Pate come 1 alittle here about my asthma. me not to wait for me as I expected it would| the suffering and slaving masses is what deter- t came on when I was eight years old when I| take me a long time to get home and it did.|mine my state of mind, and what has now tran- i on to the rear end of a cart and ran exces-|I did not get to the house before one o’clock in|spired in Russia, (one-sixth of the world’s area) ‘ly hard for about a mile, so that I nearly| the morning. I sat on a chair the rest of the|does more than anything else to make me to see st. It has been my greatest hinderance in!night. In the morning I had to get the folks | that life is worth living. SS ———————