V. I.

Lenin

Speech at a Conference of Chairmen of Gubernia and Uyezd Executive Committees

February 1, 1920

At a meeting of executive committee chairmen preceding the
opening of the session, [1] Lenin said, in dealing with the current situation:

In so far as the international situation stays as it is, and the whole
course of events points to its stability, the tasks of economic activities
should be advanced by us to the fore. As regards transport, we not only
have to bring this to the fore, but simply drag this transport out by the ears, save it
from imminent disaster. Trains carrying grain are stopping, we have more
grain than we can transport. Military operations are often impeded through
lack of transport. February is the most difficult month for transport, and
we are simply heading for disaster.

We are threatened by a danger of transport dislocation more serious
than in October, when Yudenich and Denikin were winning their biggest
victories. More energy must be applied to save transport. We must carry out
mobilisations here again and again. We shall have to rob a number of
institutions of their workers and keep on robbing them to combat the chaos
in transport.

The whole art of government and policy-making consists in being able to
assess and know in good time where to concentrate your main forces and
attention. We must now extricate transport in the course of two
months. Unless we work the same miracle in two months with transport as we
have done with Kolchak, disaster threatens us.

A number of vigorous and revolutionary measures are needed. This is a
military and combat task and calls for combat action in military
style.

---
Notes:
[1]
This refers to the first session of the All-Russia Central Executive Committee, seventh convocation, held in Moscow on February
2-7, 1920. On February 2 Lenin delivered his report at the session on the
work of the A.C.E.C. and the Council of People’s Commissars (see present
edition, Vol. 30, pp. 315-36).