A. Kollontai.

It turns out that 5-IX will be not a Vorkonferenz,1) but the conference itself. So time is of the essence.

You must strain every effort to try to send here either Höglund or the most leftist and most reliable Norwegian, so that no later than 3/IX they are certainly here (I need to telephone from Bern to Lörenberg, Hotel Mariental—(Kanton Luzern, telephone I. II — (I. II).

If it is absolutely impossible for any of them to come, then let them immediately (so that by 2-3/IX I have it for certain) send by registered mail either a transfer of mandate to our C.C. (Formal mandate in German or French), — or (if they do not agree to give the mandate) their declaration of solidarity with the C.C. + their Prinzipienerklärung2) + (necessarily) a letter to the conference with instructions to our C.C. to read it out (resp. to vote, if possible).

The crux of the struggle will be: whether to declare in the Prinzipienerklärung a merciless (extending to schism) struggle against opportunism = social-chauvinism. Achieve precisely on this point the g r e a t e s t  p o s s i b l e  c l a r i t y  and firmness of formulation.

Scribble back at once a postcard saying whether you received this letter, whether you hope (are you sure?) that they will carry out such and such.

(Greetings to Alexander1). Salut!3)

Your Lenin.

*) See note 1 to letter 21.
2) A declaration of principle, manifesto.
3) Greetings.

[End of August 1915]

Dear A. M.!

23.

Dear Alexander!

Regarding the plan of your trip I find it very difficult to give decisive advice from afar. You know our financial situation: Nadezhda Konstantinovna wrote in detail (besides what was sent, 600 francs are promised by 10/X + 400 francs another month later. Total 1000 francs. For more there is n o  h o p e  a t  t h e  m o m e n t).

On the one hand, the utmost caution is needed. Do you have completely good papers? and so forth?

On the other hand, precisely now it would be absolutely useful for the cause if a person completely informed and independent were to visit 2-3 centres, establish connections, set up relations, and immediately return to Sweden to transfer all connections to us and discuss the further situation. This would be extremely important.

No. 1 of the Communist will come out in 8-10 days; then No. 2 (or No. 1-2 together) in the same amount of time1). No. 44 of the Central Organ will come out in 1-2 days. A brochure on the war2) with all documents will come out in about two weeks. It is already in typesetting.

Events in Russia have fully confirmed our position, which the fool social-patriots (from Aleksinsky to Chkheidze) dubbed defeatism. The facts have shown our correctness!! Military defeats help undermine tsarism and facilitate the union of revolutionary workers of Russia and other countries. They say: what will "you" do if "you," the revolutionaries, defeat tsarism? I answer: (1) our victory will kindle the movement of the "left" in Germany a hundredfold; (2) if we had completely defeated tsarism, we would offer peace to all belligerents on democratic conditions, and upon refusal would wage a r e v o l u t i o n a r y  war.

To A. Shlyapnikov.

23/VIII 1915.