V. I.

Lenin

235

To:   G. M. KRZHIZHANOVSKY

Gleb Maximilianovich, I have received and read the article. [1]

Magnificent.

We need several such articles. Then we shall publish them as a
pamphlet. [2] What we lack is specialists with a wide horizon and “an eye for the future”.

It is necessary (1) for the time being to cut out the footnotes or reduce them. There are too many of them for a
newspaper (I will have a talk with the editor tomorrow).

(2) Would it not be possible to add a plan , not a technical
one (this, of course, is a job for many people, and not to
be done in a hurry), but a political or state plan, i.e., a
task for the proletariat?

Approximately as follows: in 10 (5?) years let us build
20–30 (30–50?) power stations, in order to cover the whole
country with a network of centres of 400 (or 200, if we can’t
manage more) versts radius; using peat, water, combustible slate, coal, oil ( for example , make a survey of the whole
of Russia, giving rough approximations). Let’s begin at
once buying the necessary machines and models, you say.
In 10 (20?) years we’ll make Russia “electrical”.

I think you could produce such a “plan”—I repeat, not a technical one but a state one—a draft plan.

It must be provided right away, in a visual, popular form, for the masses, so as to carry them forward with a
clear and vivid perspective (entirely scientific at its
foundations); let’s set to work, and in 10–20 years we shall make
all Russia, both industrial and agricultural, electrical . We shall set ourselves the target of having so many (thousands
or millions of horse-power or kilowatts?? devil knows what) mechanical slaves and so on.

Could there also be a tentative map of Russia with centres
and their areas? Or is that not yet possible?

I repeat, we must carry away the mass of workers and politically-conscious peasants with a great programme for
the next 10–20 years.

Let’s have a talk on the telephone.

Yours, Lenin

January 23

P.S. Krasin says that electrification of the railways is
impossible for us. Is that true? And if it is, perhaps it
will be possible in 5–10 years? Maybe it is possible in the
Urals?

Could not a special article be written about a “state plan” for a network of power stations, with a map, or with
the approximate list (number) of them, with the prospects
of centralising the power of the whole country?

Ring me up on the telephone, please, when you get this letter, and we shall have a talk.