Later, July 17, 1914. Poronino

The Polish Social Democratic opposition’s shift at the Brussels conference toward the liquidators seemed unexpected to many and struck all party members with great severity. It was thought that the Polish Social Democrats were no less close to the Pravdists than the Latvians. And then—while the Latvians stood firm against the liquidators, the Polish Social Democrats changed their stance!! What is the reason?
The fact is that within the Polish Social Democrats there are two tendencies: one seeks to accommodate Tyszka and Rosa Luxemburg in order to continue Tyszka’s own policy. This is a policy of unprincipled diplomacy and “games” between the Bolsheviks and the Mensheviks, between the party and its liquidators—voting for one today, for another tomorrow. Under the guise of “impartiality,” they alternately pander to everyone, bargaining for “benefits and privileges.” The federalist provisions in the Stockholm (1906) agreement between the Polish Social Democrats and the Russian Social Democrats served as a convenient tool for this sordid policy, which Tyszka and Rosa Luxemburg pursued with virtuoso skill.
The other tendency advocates a complete break with the liquidators, with federalism, with the “game” of acting as a “pendulum” between two contending sides; it calls for a sincere and close alliance with the Pravdists, with the party itself.
At Brussels, the first tendency among the Polish Social Democrats emerged victorious. Naturally, from our side this inevitably engenders the fullest distrust toward the Polish Social Democrats. Time will tell whether the second tendency can unite, raise a clear, precise, and definite banner of consistent, principled politics—one that opposes not only Tyszka’s clique but also the very essence of his methods. Needless to say, the unification of the Polish Social Democratic proletariat is possible only on the basis of such a policy.
The forthcoming steps toward establishing such unity will finally reveal the true state of affairs within the Polish Social Democratic movement and thereby determine our attitude toward it.
1 The note “The Polish Social Democratic Opposition at a Crossroads” was never published. For materials related to the Brussels conference convened by the International Socialist Bureau of the Second International on July 16–17, 1914, see Lenin, Collected Works, vol. XVII, pp. 541–571.