V. I. Lenin

(LETTER TO THE EDITOR)

Asa regular reader of
Pravda , {1} I feel bound to express my deep indignation over
the behaviour of the elector P. Sudakov.

Theelections take place on October 5. Sudakov is not on
Pravda’s list. None the less, Sudakov is returned by the votes of
its supporters—as the results of the elections show. It is also evident
that apart from the votes of Pravda’s supporters (27–31 out of
50) Sudakov also receives a dozen or so votes from someone else, possibly
vacillating voters.

Andso Sudakov himself starts vacillating. The day after the election,
October 6, Pravda carries his report which says, in black and
white, the following: “All those elected, with the exception of Comrade Petrov, belong to the supporters of
Pravda and Zvezda .”

That’sclear, isn’t it?

Butwithin 24 hours, Sudakov puts in an appearance in Luch !
Sudakov admits that he has been to Pravda’s editorial office but,
he says, “only as the editorial office of a Social-Democratic
newspaper”!! I wonder if this Sudakov isn’t a babe-in-arms. Who is going
to believe him that he knew nothing about the two Social-Democratic papers?
That he did not know about the liquidators, when he himself under stands
the liquidators?

“IfI did say,” Sudakov writes in the liquidationist
Luch , “that I read Pravda and side with it” (please note Sudakov declaring that he sides with Pravda !), “it was only
in the sense” (sic) “that I do in general” (sic) “side” (is that all?)
“with the Social-Democrats.”

Whatis one to make of all this! Here is a man who is aware of the
existence of the two papers, admitting that he did say that he “sided with
Pravda ”, and who the next day takes a “senatorial explanation”
to the liquidationist news paper, merely in the sense that he allegedly
sides with the Social-Democrats in general!!

Weare not aware of a more crying instance of spinelessness and
vacillation.

Therehave always been “Tushino turncoats” {2} —deserters from one trend to another—but turncoats
have never had the respect of the workers.