[October 12, 1921]

October 12, 1921
Comrade Molotov!
I am enclosing materials concerning Rutgers' case.
The Council of Labour and Defence should decide.
I propose to decide it first in the Central Committee: the question is political.
And the Politburo is obligated to intervene, as it involves the expenditure of **gold**.
I ask you to instruct the secretary to contact all members of the Politburo, so that each designates one hour during
which he can review these materials before Friday.
Each must review them in order to decide on Friday.
Let the secretary arrange the hours and send them to each member
of the Politburo for reading.
The question is difficult:
For:
i f the Americans fulfill their promise, the benefit will be gigantic. Then 600,000 rubles in gold are not a pity.
Against: will they fulfill it? Haywood is a semi-anarchist. More
sentimental than businesslike. Rutgers — lest he fall into
leftism. Kalliaert — excessively talkative. We have no business
guarantees whatsoever. Enthusiastic people, in an atmosphere of unemployment,
will gather a group of "adventure seekers" who will end up quarreling.
And then we lose part of the 600,000 rubles in gold we gave (because,
of course, they will spoil and squander part) and risk losing
up to another 1 million rubles in **gold**, because according to § 8 (its end) we undertake to
"return the equivalent for expenses on machines and implements of
labor, which were exported by the given emigrant".
The **risk is not small**.
For: Smirnov I. N. and Maksimov (from the Urals) — are local
people and they are for it.
Against: Martens should know the Americans well, and he is
against it.

Lenin

Please arrange for all members of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of National Economy to be reachable by phone by the Central Committee secretary between 12 and 4 p.m. on Friday, in case they are summoned to the Central Committee.
P.S. I also ask that this letter be sent to all members of the Politburo.