10b!
V. I. LENIN – TO THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE
From Lenin personally to the members of the Central Committee.
11/VII 05.
Dear Friends! A series of letters from Russia from all corners, news from Aleksandrov [D. S. Postolovsky], a conversation with Kleshch [I. I. Bibikov] and a few other visitors – all strengthens my conviction that there is some internal defect in the work of the Central Committee, a defect of organization, of the structure of work. The Central] Committee doesn't exist, no one feels it, notices it – such is the general voice. And the facts confirm this. The political leadership of the Central Committee over the party is not visible. Meanwhile, all members of the Central Committee are working to exhaustion! What is the matter?

In my opinion, one of the main reasons for this is the absence of regular leaflets from the Central Committee. During a revolution, to lead with oral conversations, personal communication – is an archi-utopia. It is necessary to lead publicly. All other types of work must be subordinated to this type, wholly and unconditionally. The responsible literary figure of the Central Committee must first of all take care to write (or receive from collaborators – but the editor himself must always be ready to write himself) twice a week a leaflet on party and political topics (liberals, Socialist-Revolutionaries, the minority, the split, the zemstvo delegation, professional unions etc. etc.) and to reprint it in every way, hectograph it immediately (if there is no printing house) in 50 copies and send it to the committees for reprinting. Articles in *Proletary* could sometimes serve, perhaps, for such leaflets – with a certain reworking. I cannot understand why this is not being done?? Have Schmidt [P. P. Rumyantsev] and Werner [A. A. Bogdanov] forgotten our conversations about this? Is it really impossible to write and send out at least one leaflet a week?? The "Notice" about the III Congress has still

V. I. LENIN – TO THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE
not been reprinted in full anywhere in Russia: this is such an outrage, such a fiasco of all these notorious "techniques" of the Central Committee, that I resolutely do not understand what Winter [L. B. Krasin] was looking at? What are Zommer [A. I. Lyubimov] and others looking at? Finally, there are committee printing houses after all?!?

Apparently, the members of the Central Committee completely do not understand the tasks of "public ostentation." And without this, there is no center, no party! They work until they drop, but they work like moles, at meeting places, at gatherings, with agents, etc. and so on. This is a direct theft of energy! If there are no people – put third-rate forces on this, tenth-rate forces on this, but you yourself must certainly carry out political leadership, release leaflets first of all. Then already – personal appearances at district congresses (at the congress in Polesia there was no one. A scandal. They almost broke away!)*), at conferences, etc. It is necessary to directly publish something like a diary of the Central Committee, bulletins of it, responding to every serious issue with a leaflet twice a week. And publishing it is not difficult: hectograph it in 50 copies and send it out, print it at some committee, send it here. It is important to speak out and speak out openly, to cease to be mute. Otherwise, we too are completely cut off here.

May be, it would be necessary to replenish the composition of the Central Committee? To take on another half dozen agents? I am sure that people could be found for this. Practically, I have one thing to propose right now: in view of the almost complete absence of correspondence between the members of the Central Committee (from Werner [A. A. Bogdanov] and Winter [L. B. Krasin] we have had only 2 letters, from Aleksandrov [D. S. Postolovsky] – only news from the road, "travel impressions," no more) it is absolutely necessary to put into effect our general decision of 11 V 05 about the congress by 1 IX 05 2). For God's sake, do not postpone this, do not skimp on 200 – 300 rubles of expenses. Without this – a great danger that we will not succeed in getting things right, as it should be. And now it is not right at all. This is evident from all reports.

There are still a month and a half until 1 IX. You can manage to get together with affairs and arrange a trip in time, having corresponded about who should go and with Aleksandrov [D. S. Postolovsky]. I await an answer.

*1) At the beginning of July, a district congress of Polesian organizations took place: of Gomel, Klintsy, Orsha, Novozybkov, Mogilev and others. On the issue of the 3rd Congress and the 1st Conference of the Mensheviks, a resolution was adopted, which stated that the 3rd Congress could not be recognized as a general party one, since not all the main currents of the party were represented at it, that the question of the legal legitimacy of the Congress remains open, that the district congress of the Polesian Committee is not in solidarity with certain points of the charter of the 3rd Congress, etc.

The Polesian district congress nevertheless decided to submit to the central institutions elected at the 3rd Congress, but at the same time, proposed to its Polesian Committee, in order to unite the entire party as quickly as possible, to enter into relations with the Organizational Commission, elected at the conference of the Mensheviks.

2) See p. 282 of the present collection.