V. I. Lenin

Source: ru:PSS/v48;es:MT
Translated: machine translation (DeepSeek) from the Russian; AI-translated.

Your letter is the first, it seems, with a proposal for a “report” on Basel!! 150

Rather late... Apparently something was lacking (or something was in excess?) in Basel... I think what was lacking among the delegates was organisation. And that is extremely sad. Kamenev, of course, was up to his ears in work, but what about the other five?? Was it not clear that they should have written to *Pravda* every day? Was it so difficult to distribute the roles? Not a single letter to *Pravda* from the spot, while the Liquidators have several in *Luch*.

Is this not shameful? Of course, as long as we sleep and the Liquidators work, their affairs will be better. Is anything being done for collections for *Pravda*? Nothing is to be seen, while the Liquidators have reports in *Luch* about collections abroad. And *Pravda* is in very, very great need.

None of the delegates wrote here about Basel (except Kamenev). It was essential to divide forces and write twice a day. But all were silent. They are apparently dissatisfied with something.

With what? Allah knows! I am exceedingly satisfied with the results of Basel, for the idiot Liquidators allowed themselves to be caught on the initiative group!! 151 It could not have been better to hook that scum on a pin. But the inactivity of our delegates and some “pursing of lips” on their part, which is unclear to me, grieves me. Did they speak with the German delegates? (after all, 4-5 knew German!). Who? with whom? how? about what? Nothing is heard, except from Kamenev. Agitation among the Germans is very important.

You write that “our affairs are not good in the press and in the faction”. Not good relative to *Prosveshcheniye*. There is no money. The crisis is serious. We must help, we must pull through.

*Pravda* has a circulation of about 23,000. *Luch* 8-9. It is too early to complain about that. But *Pravda* had 60,000 in April-May, fell in the summer to 20,000. It is rising very slowly. Without help it will not pull through. In the faction we are better off than ever. All six of the curial workers are ours 152. That has never happened before. For the first time we have taken the South.

Of 12—6 and 6. Mankov—a Menshevik. Rusanov—unknown. We can fight. Here are the exact data on our progress. Deputies from the workers’ curia:
To the Second Duma—12 Mensheviks, 11 Bolsheviks (= 47%) (“Minutes of the
” Third ” —4 ” 4 ” (= 50%) London Congress”,
” Fourth ” —3 ” 6 ” (= 67%) p. 451) 153.

If you have anyone anywhere who is despondent, let him think over these figures and be ashamed of his despondency. For the first time among our Duma members there is an outstanding worker-leader (Malinovsky). He will read the declaration. He is not to be compared with Alexinsky.

And the results—perhaps not immediately—will be great. In the Third Duma we began with 0!!

In the sphere of illegal work, thanks to the transfer of the Bureau here, more has been done than before. Slowly, but we are moving forward. We publish more illegally than others. There is no money.

If help comes, we shall also publish *Rabochaya Gazeta* and others.

From abroad, illegal work can be helped only by trips. Also very important is help with new connections: 1) letters—2) opportunities—3) passports—4) etc., etc.

All this is insufficient. Here, on the spot abroad, a hundred times less is done than is possible. The most important thing now is to help “pull through” *Pravda*. And it is being helped poorly. One from Vienna (Bukharin) is trying. But in other towns there is nothing! No one writes regular correspondence. No one makes collections. No one collects interesting local books and pamphlets to send here...* for writing interesting articles. We must think more about this, comrades! For example, the Social-Democrats in Switzerland, in Neuenburg**... who took care of it?? What has been done about this??

I shake your hand...

P.S. Please forward this letter to Yuri, so that he may forward it to Antonov in Paris, and from there to Vienna. So far we have not learned whether Plekhanov spoke at the October meeting of the Bureau about a merger with the Socialist-Revolutionaries (cf. Martov in No. 37 of *Luch* 154)? Surely this was not inquired of Rubanovich, nor of Nemets, nor of Huysmans, nor of anyone else??