V. I. Lenin

July 7, 1 a. m.

Tsaritsyn to People’s Commissar Stalin

Today at about three p. m. a Left
Socialist-Revolutionary killed Mirbach with a bomb. This murder is
obviously in the interests of the monarchists or Anglo-French
capitalists. The Left S.R.s, not wanting to surrender the
assassin, arrested Dzerzhinsky and Latsis and began an uprising
against us. We are liquidating it mercilessly this very night and
we shall tell the people the whole truth: we are a hair’s
breadth from ’war. We have hundreds of Left S.R.s as hostages. Everywhere it is essential to crush mercilessly these
pitiful and hysterical adventurers who have become tools in the
hands of the counter-revolutionaries. All who are against war will
be for us.

As regards Baku, the most important thing is that you should be
continuously in contact with Shahumyan, and that Shahumyan
should know of the Germans’ proposal, made to Ambassador
Joffe in Berlin, to the effect that the Germans would agree to
halt the Turks’ offensive against Baku if we guaranteed
the Germans part of the oil. Of course, we shall agree. And so,
be merciless against the Left S.R.s and report more frequently.

Lenin