ЗАПИСКА ЧЛЕНАМ ЦК И НАРКОМАМ
Date: 1921 (December 22, 1920)
Source: ru:PSS vol 42
Translated by: AI (Claude)

For the information of Central Committee members and People's Commissars

The following notes on discussions and statements at a non-party conference of peasants were compiled by Lenin, who requests that they be read.

At the non-party meeting:

From Belorussia (Minsk province).

Salt, iron and everything to sow all the land. Must give. I will say no more.

From Ukraine.

Norms are small (both for feeding livestock and people). But we will not leave anything unsown.

From Tver.

This year does not suit. There are no clover seeds. The peasant sees nothing from collective farms.

From Ivanovo-Voznesensk province.

? With requisition, both the lazy person and the diligent are equally taxed, which is extremely unjust.

Blacksmiths must repair at fixed prices (and carpenters). Otherwise blacksmiths and carpenters charge 4000 rubles and 5 pounds, they skin you mercilessly.

From Yekaterinoslav province.

Closer to life and to the heart of poor peasants...

Bread, iron, coal — that's what we need. Inventory is needed.

From Kursk province.

The poorest must learn from the industrious...

...Osinsky can only speak beautifully, that we will run 120,000 through courses...

The industrious must be supported...

Donbass.

We ask for 35,000 seeds. But people only carry a briefcase and did nothing. If you cannot — give permission to obtain...

? From Cherepovets province.

It happens that they call you a lazybones. But in fact there is neither plow nor harrow. One cannot dump on the poor man and demand much.

Note in the law that the poor man must be supported.

Compulsion is absolutely necessary.

[Shouts: enough. NB]

From Tula province.

There are no kulaks now (shouts: there still are). So as not to be a shameful kulak, it's better not to work at all. The toiler could earn, the lazy person could not.

Today you haul manure, but tomorrow for whom?

From Ishim district.

Sowing will be sown, but you won't sow on 18 puds of oats. Must increase the livestock norm. Osinsky is not familiar with Siberia: I've been plowing for 38 years, but Osinsky doesn't know.

From Novgorod.

Raise the inventory. Repair. They take livestock excessively. They take milling fees. They take for deserters. Reduce unbearable fees.

From Penza province.

Propaganda is needed. Only propaganda can carry it through. We won't count as lazy the one whose economy was ruined by war.

The commission will protect brother-in-law. A higher commission is needed.

From Kostroma province.

The peasant must be interested. Otherwise it won't work. I saw firewood under the stick. But agriculture cannot be conducted under the stick.

Give preference to the worker, not to who goes for mushrooms.

From Novgorod province.

In spring they waste time on land redistribution. Eliminate frequent redistributions.

Take obligatory account of seed material. Give to the poor man.

We have been equalizing for three years.

How to interest? Simply: percentage requisition of grain, as for livestock...

Spur the lazybones... 10 puds for seeds — sow and give what is due.

From former Kazan province, Tsarevokokshaysk district.

Forests. Little land. Not enough rye for seeds. Strong requisition. Please arrange a norm for us, otherwise we will eat the last spring seeds.

From Ryazan province (from VII Army).

The war is ending, they await equal redistribution.

There will be abuses with seeds from the common barn too. It angers me when they speak of peasants as scoundrels. My father has 35 desyatinas. I have not seen lazybones. Poverty suffers. Kulachestvo (like desertion) exists (thunder of applause).

From Vyatka province.

Land redistributions are harmful. After 6 years is necessary, not more often. — About livestock... protect...

From Petrograd province.

Don't break land use at the root. Requisition: we had such pressure that they put revolvers to our temples. The people are outraged...

Labor duty... If you understand the situation, they will be compliant.

No shoes, no tools, but they drive out by force. They don't help the burned-out.

Children did not receive what was designated for October holidays.

Demyansk district of Novgorod province.

There are kulaks. Bread was buried. I myself dug pits, took bread. I support protection of the poor man... [40] turned out. We brought out the kulak. We won't let the rich hide.

From Perm province.

Must free from under the stick to raise agriculture. Stick = food requisitions.

Practical people must enter the assistance committees. Let there be a stick, but for our assistance.

So that the diligent pressed on the not diligent.

From Samara province.

Give old iron for repairs. Otherwise we won't manage. Premiums for good processing.

Arrange exhibitions. Rolling points.

From Chernigov province.

There are no lazybones, the poor work. Sow everything.

From Don region.

The bands over-managed all transport. Ruin. Must build state life.

From Kyrgyz Republic.

They swept up grain. Nothing remained. Livestock breeders need help. Economy destroyed by war. Propaganda is needed.

From Tula province.

The draft law must be adopted. Benefit. No fertilizer. Little livestock. In 10 provinces there are no seeds (central provinces). Give seeds. Concessions for fertilizers.

From Kursk province.

Add 100 horses and wheels. There is salt. No harrows. Don't need kerosene.

From Tsaritsyn province.

Was a producing province. Now consuming. If only to seed ourselves. Suffered from counter-revolution.

From Yenisei province.

New settlers. Cold. Freezes out. We suffer. Resettle to convenient places.

Written December 22, 1920

First published in 1945 in Leninsky Sbornik XXXV

Published from manuscript