Date: 1905-09
Source: ru:LS/v5

3.
18302
* APPEAL TO THE COMMITTEES.
To the Central Committee and to the local committees.
[September 1905]
Comrades! We wish to draw your attention to one of the most effective forms of collaborative agitation between the Central Committee and the local organizations. Very often, the Central Committee is accused of being out of touch with the movement, of lacking popular appeal, and so on—and there is indeed some truth to these criticisms. We are well aware, in fact, that our work from afar falls woefully short in such a fervent period. Yet to a certain extent, our perceived detachment stems from the infrequent and irregular communications between the Central Committee and the ranks of local Social Democrats, as well as from the dearth of genuine cooperation among them. No doubt we have not done enough to assist you—but equally, you have not done enough to assist us. It is precisely to address one of these shortcomings that we now wish to appeal to you in a spirit of comradeship.
Local activists do not make sufficient use of the Central Organ for agitation. The Central Committee’s publications arrive late and in far too small quantities. Therefore, it is essential—first—to reprint articles and notes in local leaflets more frequently; second, to adapt or restate the Central Committee’s slogans (and articles) in a more accessible, popular form within local leaflets, while allowing you to supplement, modify, condense, and otherwise tailor the material to local conditions—after all, you are best positioned to understand the specific context, and every party publication ultimately constitutes the collective property of the entire Party; third, to cite the Central Committee more often in local leaflets, thereby familiarizing the broader masses with the name of the Central Committee as the Party’s permanent newspaper, reinforcing the idea of a central ideological hub, of the constant possibility of turning to that center for guidance, and so forth. On every possible occasion, we should strive to point out in the leaflets: “This very same idea is developed in such-and-such an article in Proletary,” or “Similar insights can be found in such-and-such a correspondence,” and so on.

APPEAL TO THE COMMITTEES
5 I
This is of paramount importance for keeping the masses informed about our Central Committee and for expanding the scope of our overall influence.
Local committees have, on numerous occasions, reprinted articles, selecting those that best suited their own preferences. But now, above all, it is crucial to achieve unity in our slogans—on questions such as our attitude toward the liberals, toward emancipation, toward their “theory of compromise,” toward their draft constitution, and so on; on the question of a revolutionary army, on the program of a revolutionary government; on the boycott of the State Duma, and much more besides. We must endeavor, by every means at our disposal, to harness the Central Committee in local agitation—not only through mere reprinting, but also by restating its ideas and slogans in the leaflets, developing or adapting them in light of local conditions, and so forth. This is of utmost importance for fostering real, practical cooperation between us and you; for facilitating the exchange of views; for refining and revising our slogans; and for ensuring that the working masses come to recognize that we possess a permanent Central Committee—a central organ of the Party.

We earnestly urge that this letter be read and discussed with the utmost seriousness in every single organization and circle within the Party, right down to the grassroots level.
Editorial Board of Proletary 1). *)
*) The letter was published as an appeal entitled “On the Editorial Board of the Central Committee of the R.S.D.L.P.” in the Central Committee’s widely circulated organ, Rabochiy, on September 1905.