Page:The Lessons of the German Events (1924).djvu/14

 Stinnes and Westarp and won over to our side, not as members but as allies, even if somewhat hesitating, shall we have made some real progress.

Comrades, what special tasks confront us? Permit me to read you an extract from Comrade Lenin's brochure on "Infantile Sickness of Left Wing Communism":—

"A powerful enemy can be overcome, only by the greatest exertion of effort by the absolutely careful, painstaking, cautious, and able utilisation of the most minute differences in the camp of the enemy, the antagonism of interests between the various sections of the bourgeoisie in each country, as well as even the smallest possibility of recruiting allies even When they are temporary, hesitating, vacillating and unreliable. He who does not understand this, has not grasped a gramme of Marxism and of modern 'civilised' scientific Socialism generally. Those who have not, during a fairly lengthy period, and in various political situations, shown that he knows how to apply this truth in practice has not yet learned how to help the revolutionary class in its light for the emancipation of toiling humanity and the exploited, What has been said applies equally to the period prior to, as well as after the capture of power by the proletariat."

In another part of the pamphlet, he deals with the differences hot only between the petty-bourgeois and the masses, but also the peaceful, transition situation in England.

For me, this implies the following: in Germany, the peasants after the victory of the revolution, will play an important role, because the question will arise: how how shall we obtain bread? The peasants will not play an important part in the actual capture of power, because it will be captured in the towns. There is no concentrated peasant army in Germany, and no great concentrated mass. For that reason, the petty-bourgeois of the towns will play a great part.

What part will the conflicts of groups in the Fascist camp play in this?

In his article on the "German Koltchak," Comrade Zinoviev does not sufficiently emphasise the difference between the petty-bourgeoisie in Germany and that in Russia. He says, that the mensheviks after the defeat of the revolution in 1205, caused the differences between the Cadets and the Octobrists to come out more clearly. We, Bolsheviks, knew that these parties represented various sections of the bourgeoisie, but we said that these antagonisms will not be outstanding, and therefore we would have to light the bourgeoisie.

Comrades, if the difference between the petty-bourgeois doctors, government employees, handicraftsmen, and Stinnes and Westarp were the same us the differences between Guttchkov and Muilukov, Zinoviev would be right. But he forgets the most outstanding. In Western Europe, we have large masses of new middle class, the remnants of the old middle class, and the millions