**Source:** Lenin Collection X, p. 127
**Date:** 1904-01-08

The letter below from the foreign representative of the C.C. is a reply to Yu. O. Martov's letter of January 4 (above, document 152, pp. 125–126). This document is of particular interest because Lenin is not merely its editor but also its co-author together with F. V. Lengnik.

The history of the document, judging by the appearance of the manuscript, is as follows: F. V. Lengnik, having drafted a preliminary version of the letter, showed it to Lenin; the latter deemed it necessary to elaborate more fully on the question raised by Martov concerning the "legitimacy" of the central institutions and on the question of openness and freedom of criticism of the centers by party members, made a substantial insertion on these themes in the draft letter, and introduced several editorial corrections into the remaining text; F. V. Lengnik accepted all of Lenin's additions and corrections (appended his signature) and, having personally made a copy, sent the letter to its destination.

In V. I. Lenin's archive this document has been preserved in three forms: 1) a draft written in ink in F. V. Lengnik's hand, with later pencil corrections and Lenin's aforementioned insertion; 2) a copy in Lengnik's own hand; 3) a copy entered into one of the notebooks in the hand of P. N. Lepeshinskii. Here we reproduce the document from the draft in its final version, entirely identical with both extant handwritten copies, and consequently with the original sent to the editorial board of Iskra. In doing so, we omit those passages from F. V. Lengnik's original version which he later deleted in the course of jointly editing the letter with V. I. Lenin.

## 154. F. V. LENGNIK AND V. I. LENIN ON BEHALF OF THE FOREIGN REPRESENTATIVE OF THE C.C.—TO THE EDITORIAL BOARD OF ISKRA.

[January 8, 1904. Geneva.]

Most esteemed comrades!

I do not understand at all certain passages in the latest letter written by comrade Martov.*¹

*This paragraph is written in pencil in the hand of F. V. Lengnik. The following paragraph, beginning with the words: "As representative of the C.C." and ending with the words: "seeing in free exchange" is written in the manuscript as an insertion in ink in Lenin's hand, except for one word, specially noted below. Ed.

As representative of the C.C., I consider it necessary to point out to the editorial board that there are no grounds whatsoever for raising the question of legitimacy, etc., on the basis of heated speeches at foreign* seminars or on the basis of literary polemics. The C.C., as such, has not the slightest doubt and has never doubted the legitimacy of the editorial board, co-opted, as was quite properly stated in no. 53 of Iskra, in complete accordance with § 12 of the Party's statutes. The C.C. would be prepared to declare this publicly, if necessary. If in the course of polemics the editorial board perceives attacks directed against it, surely it has complete and utter opportunity to respond. Is it reasonable to grow heated over this or that harshness (from the editorial board's point of view) in polemics, when nowhere is there any talk whatsoever of boycott or of any other disloyal (from the C.C.'s point of view) course of action? We remind the editorial board that the C.C. has repeatedly expressed complete willingness and directly proposed to publish immediately both Dana's letter and "Once More in the Minority" by Martov, not at all troubled by the most severe attacks contained in these works. In the C.C.'s opinion, it is necessary to afford all party members the broadest possible freedom to criticize the centers and to attack the centers: the C.C. sees nothing frightening in such attacks, provided they are not accompanied by boycott, withdrawal from positive work, and cutting off of financial resources. The C.C. declares now, as well, that it would publish criticism directed against itself, seeing in free exchange of opinions a guarantee against possible errors of the centers.**

*The word "foreign" has been inserted into Lenin's text in pencil in F. V. Lengnik's hand. Ed.

**The end of the last sentence, beginning with the word "opinions," is appended in pencil in F. V. Lengnik's hand in the manuscript; judging by the appearance of the manuscript, there are grounds to suppose that this addition and the subsequent pencil corrections by Lengnik were made by him at Lenin's suggestion during their joint editing of the text. Ed.

Moreover,*** I consider it necessary to draw the editorial board's attention to the circumstance that, after all, money is needed in the Central Treasury first and foremost for the maintenance of the printing plant and reimbursement of the editorial board's expenses. As I have already written to the editorial board,² the foreign party cash box* suffers from lack of funds, and meanwhile new large payments are impending. In turning to the editorial board with a request to open the party's available financial sources to it, I had in view first and foremost that the party** is interested in the fact that the party printing plant be able to continue its work entirely independently of the question of what the editorial board thinks of the C.C. chosen by the congress or what the C.C. thinks of the unanimously co-opted portion of the editorial board. You write that the duty of decency requires that you inform the owners of money about the "state of affairs in the Party," but, quite apart from the fact that that same duty would require giving the opposite side the opportunity to influence the financial sources, it seems to me that party duty requires that we not lay bare everything that might come into a mind heated by struggle, with only the interests of the given moment in view, before everyone and anyone (were it even "financial sources"). It is terribly easy to discredit revolutionaries (especially in the eyes of "financial sources"), whereas credit is built up over years.

***"Moreover"—an addition in pencil. Ed.

I therefore request that the editorial board see to it that the money, on which the C.C. was counting when distributing the funds at its disposal between Russia and abroad, enters the Central Treasury as soon as possible. Otherwise, I cannot vouch that it will not be necessary to close the printing plant until new funds arrive in the party's foreign cash box.

With comradely greetings, F. Vasiliev.

¹ The date given here is the one entered in both extant copies.

² Martov's letter of January 4 is found above in document 152 (pp. 125–126).

³ See above, document 151 (p. 124).

*"Party"—a correction in pencil in place of the deleted: "C.C." Ed.

**"Party"—a correction in pencil in place of the deleted: "editorial board." Ed.

***The words "entirely independently of"—a correction in pencil in place of the deleted: "and eliminating entirely." Ed.