V. I.

Lenin

To Secondary School Students [1]

Welcomingwhole-heartedly the energetic initiative of the students, we on
our part give them the following comradely advice. Try to concentrate your
efforts on self-education as the main purpose of your organisation, in
order to develop into convinced, steadfast, and consistent
Social-Democrats. Draw the strictest possible line of demarcation between
this extremely important and essential preparatory work and direct
practical activity. On joining (and before joining) the ranks of
the army in the field try to establish closest (and most secret) contacts
with the local or all-Russian Social-Democratic organisations, so as not
to be alone when you begin your work, so as to be able to continue what
has already been done before, rather than begin all over again, to take
your place at once in the ranks, to advance the movement and raise it to a
higher stage.

---
Notes:
[1]
This article was written by Lenin as an afterword of the Iskra
Editorial Board to the leaflet, “To Secondary School Students,”
issued by the South-Russian Secondary School Students’ Group. The leaflet
and the afterword were published in Iskra , No. 29, December 1,
1902.

Themanuscript has no heading. The present heading has been provided by
the Institute of Marxism-Leninism of the Central Committee of the
C.P.S.U.