V. I.

Lenin

223

To:   D. A. BULATOV

25. XII. 1918

Bulatov, Chairman of the Gubernia Executive Committee
Tver

I authorise you to investigate the enclosed complaint and report the result to me as soon as possible.

Report essentials by telegraph (“re the case of the schoolteacher Ivanova”).

Particularly important: check the statement that in the
Poor Peasants’ Committee there are former and present elements of the Black Hundreds : Teterin, Skvortsov,
Kozlov, Baskakov.

Start the check discreetly to prevent premature publicity and be able to catch them red-handed and expose them
completely.

Should the accusation prove to be true, these Black
Hundreders must be kicked out publicly and a leaflet about
the affair promulgated throughout the volost and uyezd,
for the population must be taught that well-founded complaints are of great significance and lead to important
results.

Telegraph me: “Letter received, directive will be carried
out”, and then about the progress of the investigation.

Send the results by letter, the exact findings of the investigation and the measures taken .

I think that as Chairman of the Gubernia Executive
Committee you need no special mandate from me for such a simple case. If need be, I will send it.

V. Ulyanov (Lenin )
Chairman, C.P.C.

N.B. Enclosed herewith is V. S. Ivanova’s complaint. [1]

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Notes:
[1]

D. A. Bulatov wired Lenin on December 26, 1918: “Letter
received. Directive will be carried out.” In a telegram on December
28, 1918, Bulatov reported that Teterin, a member of the
Pervitino Poor Peasants’ Committee, had been relieved of his post as
being a former gendarme, but the other members of the committee had been left in their posts since the accusations against them
were unproven. On December 31 Bulatov sent Lenin a detailed
letter on this matter.