The Daily Worker Newspaper, January 29, 1927, Page 10

Flashlights on Lenin, The Man M UCH has already been written about the greatest revolution- ary leader, thinker ape fighter of our times—Vladimir Ilyitck Lenin. But we have mainly seen Lenin from the angle of hts theoretical conceptions and his practical policy, expressed in thé Russian Revolution. We are now also beginning to study his. political and economic doctrines and put them into force. But how many people know the human side of Lenin, how he worked and how he rested? Little is known as yet of the inner side of Lenin’s life in his schooldays, in exile and in emigration. It is true we get some “close-ups’ of Lenin from the works of John Reed, Ransome and other writers. But only from those,-Russian com- rades who lived and worked with Lenin on intimate terms can we get a real insight into Lenin’s person- ality. With the exception of writings by Trotsky and Gorky, practically no Russian biographical material on Lenin has appeared in English, Meanwhile, the literature on Lenin in Russia is increasing year by year. Besides the valuable reminiscences of Lenin’s wife and sisters, there is a multitude of books, pamphlets and ar- ticles by intimate comrades of Lenin. These biographers include the com- positor who for years set up the type of “Iskra” and other Bolshevik papers in Geneva and elsewhere; the worker who*hid Lenin in Finland ia 1917, Lenin’s chauffeur, telephone op- erator, secretary and many others who have lived or worked with him. This is all material for the all-em- bracing biography of Lenin which is bound to see light some day. Meanwhile, I will endeavor to pre- sent English readers with a few side- lights on Lenin’s life, revealing traits in his many-sided character hitherto ‘unknown to most! people. Everyone knows what colossal brain power, in- domitable will, superhuman energy, tourage and audacity Lenin had. He is also known as a ruthless and bitter enemy of all and everything standing in his path—the path of the workers’ revolution. But Lenin. was also ex- tremely gentle and a loving comrade, a lover of children and of nature, a man of extreme simplicity and rare modesty. Some people picture Lenin as a kind of ascetic. This is quite in- correct. Lenin knew how to enjoy life. Nothing that was human was alien to him. He liked to observe human life and absorb everything surrounding him. He was cheerful and optimistic even at the time of the most difficult trials. Lenin’s Schooldays. Those who remember Lenin from his schooldays say he was a bright youngster with fair curly hair and - mischievous eyes. He was the live- liest child in the family. He was in- ventive, fond of playing pranks and the ringleader in many escapades. One of Lenin’s favorite games in his early childhood was to play at soldiers with his brothers and sisters. He would line them up in the garden and bawl out commands at them. He also liked to play at hunting and was fond of gymnastics, especially paral- lel bars. Though he disclosed great talent in school, young Volodya (as he was called in his childhood) was just as playful as the other boys. He loved te throw snowballs as passers-by from behind the garden wall. He liked swimming in the neighboring river, shooting with a catapult, catch- ing birds and fishing. On_ holidays he would often get a rouble from his father to buy birds, and let them out of the cage next morning. Like most children, he was very fond of sweets. As he grew older, though becoming more serious, Volodya lost none of his vivacity. His school reports re- vealed him as a gifted, studious and industrious pupil. He used to cope with his lessons with the greatest ease, and was never encumbered with unfinished homework. His school- mates used to come to him for aid which he gave readily. He helped one student with languages for eigh- teen months without any compen- sation. Lenin showed great ability tor French, German, Latin and Greek. By the time Lenin was 18, he was zn ardent chess player and _ book- worm. Tolstoy’s “Anna Karanina” was one of his favorite books at this period. His father having liberal views, benin had a fair amount of freedom. Although there was a rea- sonable ‘amount of discipline, he could develop his inclinations as he wished, As a youth, Lenin was extremely in- terested in everything surrounding him and very impressionable. It is not known exactly when he first be- came infected with revolutionary ideas, but he was undoubtedly greatly influenced by his elder brother, Alex- ander Ulianov. He loved to sit listening to the various political exiles or revelution- aries who came to see his brother. Once ‘a visitor when speaking on secret matters pointed to the young Viadimir sitting nearby. “Don’t wor- ry,” said his brother Alexander, “he is a born conspirator.” The execution of his brother Alex-. ander Ulianev, in connection with a plot to assassinate Tsar Alexander being the youngest out of thirty-two participants. He was expelled for this exploit. It was in Kazan that Lenin first studied the works of Marx. After getting his degree in law at St. Petersburg, as an external, graduate, Lenin settled in Samara. At the age of 22 he worked as. as- sistant juror in the Samara district court. dn this capacity he had to de- fend many peasants tried on various charges, such as stealing. He nearly always pleaded for reduced sentences, In one case, when a merchant was charged with whipping his wife with a knout, the young juror, Lenin, was asked to plead for a reduction of sen- tence. This Lenin refused. During this period Lenin took part in Samara Marxist circles. When he came to St. Petersburg in 1893, this was ostensibly also to prac-, tice at the bar. He actually defended a few criminal cases, wearing his father’s black frock coat. But he soon established contact with workers’ cir- eles and started revolutionary activ- ity. The police were immediately on his track. But even by this time he was skilled. at conspirative work. He not only knew how to dodge de- White Terror In Poland. . Horrors of Prison Life. Ill, made a tremendous on Lenin. He was only 17 years old at the time and was greatly attached to his brother, but he took the terri- ble blow calmly. “Tears are of no avail,” he said, “I must avenge him.” And from this time on he became more serious and began to pro- foundly. At this time the coun- try was seething with unrest; peas- ants were burning estates, Tsarist op- pression was at its fiercest. Lenin also felt the oppression of the nar- row, religious, conservative atmos- phere of the petty bourgeois provin- cial town he lived in.” Meanwhile, there was already a stigma on the Ulianov family in con- nection with the eldest.son. On leav- ing the high school, Ilyitch was only granted his gold medal with reluc- tance. All the former friends of the family deserted them. Life became unbearable and the family left for Kazan. All these factors and the ex- ecution of his brother made Lenin think about the necessity of the re- volutionary struggle. Refused admittance to* the St. Petersbarg University, Lenin entered the University of Kazan. Here he took n leading part in a students’ riot, tectives. He taught the comrades how to inscribe various secret signs, how to write with “invisible” chem- ical inks, how to make codes, etc. In Prison and Exile. : In 1895, Lenin went abroad to es- tablish contact with Plekhanov. He returned to Russia with illegal So- cial-Democratic literature. He was shortly afterwards arrested im- prisoned for over a year. @ soon learnt the technique of getting things out of prison, and maintained contact with the outside world by correspond- ing in books, and passing out notes in his soiled linen. He even wrote whole pamphiets which he got sent outside while still in prison, These included “On Strikes” “Draft Programme of Russian Social-Democracy.” This term of im- prisonment was spent in writing his first important work, “The Develop- ment of Capitalism in Russia.” In 1897, exiled for three years to the little village of Shushensk in Si- beria, he lived in a small clean room in a peasant’s house with whitewashed walls. There were only two other political exiles here—a Polish worker and a Finn, Lenin soon began to teach them Marxism and explain By ERIC VERNEY Marx’s “Capitah” He tried to make acquaintance with the local “intel- ligentsia.” However, ‘the teachers whom he approached preferred ~to drink and to play cards with the priests, merchants and other members of the local aristocracy. After a while, Lenin was joined by Krupskaya, who was also exiled to Siberia and was accompanied by her mother.” As it was.difficult to employ a girl in the winter months, they did their own cooking. The food was very simple. Bread, milk and sometimes mutton. It could not be otherwise, for political exiles only got a “grant” of 8 ‘roubles per month to cover all expenses, However, there was 4 kitchen garden by the house, so they grew their own cucumbers, carrots and beetroots. Work in Exile. Lenin accomplished a tremendous amount of work during these years of exile. In the mornings, tegether with Krupskaya, he would translate Sydney Webb’s book on trade unionism. After dinner, they would write out “The Development of Capitalism in Rus- sia,” which he had commenced in pris on. At this time a wide correspond- ence was maintained not only with the Social-Democrats in Russia, but also with the exiles in Siberia. This was difficult as the police were vigilant* and correspondence had to go by way of indirect addresses. Lenin always looked forward eagerly to the post which came twice a week. His sister, Anna, used to write all the St. Petersburg news. The cor respondence covered Russian news, plans for the future, new books and philosophical tendencies. Lenin did eonsiderable translation work from English, German and French into Russian, assisted by Krupskaya. They translated, at this time, Kautsky’s “Anti-Bernstein” in two weeks. Another of Lenin’s oecupations in exile was chess playing. Lepeshinsky recounts how he used to play chess with Lenin for hours at a stretch, when the latter used to come to visit him at his place of exile in Minnus- insk. Lepeshinsky could never win a game. Once he organized an “alli- ance” of three comrades against Lenin. Lenin began to lose piece aft- er piece. But stubbornly, persistently he fought them, concentrating the whole strength of his mind on the board. So great was his effort that the perspiration was dripping from his brow. At that moment nothing would have moved him from the board, not even the cry of “Fire.” Lepeshin- sky compares this game of chess to Lenin’s own life work. In the evenings, after work was fin- ished, the chief recreations were walk- ing, fishing and shooting. He was specially fond of hunting wild duck and hare. Krupskaya tells how Lenin was absolutely bubbling over with high spirits on those Siberian eve- nings. Leve for Nature, Music, Poetry. Lenin was passionately fond of na- ture. He loved to walk miles along the river on autumn nights, and hear the thin ice cracking beneath his feet. In the summer he would sit by the running river, which reminded him of his native Volga. He was very fond of music, but what music there was, was very primitive in these parts. The harmoniums of the village youth pleased him none the less. When he returned from the evening walk his reading generally comprised the phi- losophicai books of Hegel, Kant or the French materialists. When he became tired he would tu@® to the poems of Pushkin, Lermontov or Nekrasov. It has been said that Lenin only liked “serious” books and never read noy- els, This is a legend. He read Tur- geniev, Tolstoy, and was very fond of the classics. It is interesting here to note that he kept a photograph album containing portraits not only of fa- mous contemporary. revolutionaries, but also of Emile Zola, Herzen and Tchernyshevsky. On returning to Russia from exile, Lenin gave up chess playing. “It gets too much of a grip on you, and hinders work,” he said, And as he did not do anything by halves, but always put his whole heart into all he accom- plished, he was unwilling to devote himself to chess even when resting Cont, On Page 7