Brother He Sen: Your letter only reached me late last year, forwarded by Zisheng. Materialist historical outlook is the philosophical foundation of our Party—this is an established fact, unlike idealist views which cannot be substantiated and are easily shaken. Though I have not conducted any specialized research, I currently do not accept anarchist principles as demonstrable ones, and I have very strong grounds for this position. The political organization of a factory (involving production, distribution, and management) differs in scale only from that of a nation or of the entire world; there is no qualitative difference between them. Syndicalism, by asserting that national and factory-level political organizations are fundamentally distinct and should be entrusted to different people, either indulges in sophistry aimed at mere expediency and self-preservation, or betrays sheer ignorance and a failure to understand the nature of things. Moreover, there are compelling practical reasons why revolution cannot be initiated, protected, or brought to completion without seizing state power!

Your letter expresses a most appropriate viewpoint; I agree with every single word. As for the Party, Comrade Chen Duxiu and others are already working to establish its organization. With regard to publications, the journal “The Communist,” published in Shanghai, should be available to you and truly deserves the description “a banner held high and clear” (the manifesto was written by Comrade Chen). I will provide further details later.

Your younger brother, Ze Dong  January 21st, Year Ten  At No. 14 Geng Tea House, South of the City  Collection of Letters from He Sen  People’s Publishing House  A Major Work  Three Volumes  Correspondence of Members of the New People’s Study Society, Volume III  1921.1