Page:Grigory Zinoviev - Twelve Days in Germany (1921).pdf/14

 We were greatly surprised, and asked our Left comrades how, being in the majority at the congress, they could allow such a rascal as Dittman to act as chairman. The Lefts explained: "The Right leaders are continually trying to find fault with us over petty formalities; they are seeking a pretext to leave the congress in order to prevent a discussion on points of principle and thus make the congress a failure. We decided to yield to them in all matters of secondary, importance, in order to elucidate matters, and make them appear in such a light that every workman would see who possesses the majority and who was causing the split in the party."

In order to achieve that object the Lefts agreed that the mandatory commission and the presidium should consist of equal numbers of representatives of the two sides. For the same reason the Lefts agreed even to the hateful candidature of Dittman. The Left comrades said he represents not the whole congress, not us, but the Right Wing in the presidium. If the Right Wing was unable to find a more worthy representative than Dittmann, so much the worse for the Right Wing…

We take our seats next to comrade Adolf Hoffman and the other leaders of the Left section of the congress. We look around and gradually acquaint ourselves with the composition of the two sections of the congress. What a familiar sight! We saw exactly the same picture some 10 years ago and earlier at our congresses at which the Mensheviks participated. On one side workers only, on the other, an overwhelming majority of intellectuals.

We closely inspect the Left Wing. In the front row there are two small tables at which the leaders are seated. Among the latter we can discern one or two intellectuals, but the rest, some 99 per cent, of the Left Wing, consists exclusively of born-and-bred working men, many of whom even now are working at the factories and works. Now of he composition of the Right Wing! A few dozen workers will be found there. These belong mainly to the class of "officials," but the bulk of the section, all the leaders, are exclusively legislators, editors, journalists, lawyers, doctors, etc. There are also three or four big bank officials and wire pullers. Quite a different social make-up, a different type, a different tone and temper. The so-called "flower" of the