Conscious workers in Russia have had to contend with collective representation of the working class in the State Duma more than once. And each time such representation was formed in the II, III, IV Duma (we do not speak of the first, which the majority of Social-Democrats boycotted), each time there was observed a discrepancy between the views, outlooks, and orientation of the majority of Social-Democracy and its Duma representation.

Precise data on this discrepancy exist regarding the second State Duma. In the spring of 1907, it was established officially and incontrovertibly which views, orientations, trends, or factions predominated in Social-Democracy and which in the Duma Social-Democratic faction.

It turned out that, sending one delegate from every 500 Social-Democratic workers, the Bolsheviks had at that time 105 delegates, the Mensheviks 97, and non-factional members numbered 4.{117}

A clear preponderance on the side of Bolshevism.

Among the "national" Social-Democrats, the Poles had 44 delegates, the Bundists – 57, and the Latvians – 29. Since among the Latvians at that time the opponents of opportunism, the Mensheviks, and the Bund had strong predominance, the relation of "trends" among the "nationalists" in general was homogeneous with their relation in the "Russian" part of Social-Democracy.

Meanwhile, in the Duma Social-Democratic faction at that time there were 36 Mensheviks and 18 Bolsheviks, – and among deputies from the workers' curia – 12 Mensheviks and 11 Bolsheviks. It is clear that the Mensheviks predominated.

Thus, in Social-Democracy and in the Duma faction, the forces of the "trends" were distributed not identically, but in a directly opposite manner.

Is this a matter of chance?

No. In all countries of the world, one observes, as a general rule, a more opportunistic composition of parliamentary representatives of workers' parties compared with the composition of the workers' parties themselves. The cause of this phenomenon is not difficult to see: first, all electoral systems of bourgeois countries, even the most democratic, in practice restrict the electoral rights of workers either by age (in Russia 25 years is required), or by length of residence and permanence of place of employment (six months in Russia), etc. Such restrictions ordinarily fall most heavily precisely upon the younger, more conscious and resolute strata of the proletariat.

Second, non-proletarian elements of workers' parties – officials of workers' unions, petty proprietors, employees, and, especially, "intellectuals" – with any electoral right in bourgeois society more easily (by virtue of their occupations, position in "society," preparation, etc.) specialize in the "parliamentary" profession.

What conclusions follow from this fact and how matters stood in comparison with the II Duma in the third and fourth – to these questions we shall devote the following article.

*Pravda* No. 191, December 12, 1912. Signed: V. I.

Printed according to the text of the newspaper *Pravda*