counted as of 1.I.05 75 votes (33.2 = 66 + 9 at the CC, CO and Soviet). The Kazan and Kuban committees were fabricated, which were never confirmed, and then falsely claimed that the Polessky and Northwestern committees were confirmed as of 1.I.05. In fact they were confirmed only as of 1.IV.05. We exposed this in No. 10 of *Vperyod*.*

Keep in mind the following: for the congress to be legal from the perspective of *Iskra*, 19 committees are needed at it. According to our count, this is incorrect. But if there were 28 full-fledged Russian organizations as of 1.I.05 (without the League), then participation of 14-15 at the congress is highly desirable, almost necessary. Meanwhile we have 13—1 (Yekaterinoslav) + 2 (Voronezh and Tula) = 14, and that only counting Tiflis, which is doubtful. Of course, the congress is necessary in any case, even with a dozen committees, and the sooner the better. Any congress at all, so long as there is a congress. But why is there no news of the Bureau visiting a single neutral or Menshevik committee?? After all, it was decided that the Bureau would invite and visit all? Why was Lyadov not in Kuban? Why didn't he, passing by, invite Don, Kharkov, Gorny-Zavodsk, Kiev to the congress?? and separate groups in these cities? an excellent means of stirring up the workers: calling them themselves to the congress. Why is this not being done?? it would have enormous significance!! Why not a single piece of news from Kursk, the Polessky committee and others? We will do what we can from here, but from here one can do little. There are small threads leading to Kazan, Siberia, Kursk, Polessia, Saratov, but all this is conjectural. And meanwhile, if all these five plus the Urals were at the congress, then the complete legality of the congress, even by *Iskra*'s calculation, is beyond doubt. Do write.

Your Lenin in the journal

* See V. I. Lenin, "Whom Do They Want to Deceive?" (*Collected Works*, 5th ed., vol. 9, pp. 335-337). Ed.

Sent from Geneva to Petrograd

First published in 1925

*Proletarskaya Revolyutsiya* No. 2

Printed from the manuscript