The Moscow Anarchist Conference was critical not only toward the existing régime, but toward its own comrades as well. It spoke8 frankly9 of the negative sides of the movement, and of its lack of unity10 and co?peration during the revolutionary period. Later I was to learn more of the internal dissensions in the Anarchist movement. Before closing, the Conference decided11 to call on the Soviet12 Government to release the imprisoned13 Anarchists and to legalize Anarchist educational work. The Conference asked Alexander Berkman and myself to sign the resolution to that effect. It was a shock to me that Anarchists should ask any government to legalize their efforts, but I still believed the Soviet Government to be at least to some extent expressive14 of the Revolution. I signed the resolution, and as I was to see Lenin in a few days I promised to take the matter up with him.
The interview with Lenin was arranged by Balabanova. "You must see Ilitch, talk to[Pg 48] him about the things that are disturbing you and the work you would like to do," she had said. But some time passed before the opportunity came. At last one day Balabanova called up to ask whether I could go at once. Lenin had sent his car and we were quickly driven over to the Kremlin, passed without question by the guards, and at last ushered15 into the workroom of the all-powerful president of the People's Commissars.
When we entered Lenin held a copy of the brochure Trial and Speeches[2] in his hands. I had given my only copy to Balabanova, who had evidently sent the booklet on ahead of us to Lenin. One of his first questions was, "When could the Social Revolution be expected in America?" I had been asked the question repeatedly before, but I was astounded16 to hear it from Lenin. It seemed incredible that a man of his information should know so little about conditions in America.
My Russian at this time was halting, but Lenin declared that though he had lived in Europe for many years he had not learned to speak foreign languages: the conversation would therefore have to be carried on in Russian. At[Pg 49] once he launched into a eulogy17 of our speeches in court. "What a splendid opportunity for propaganda," he said; "it is worth going to prison, if the courts can so successfully be turned into a forum18." I felt his steady cold gaze upon me, penetrating19 my very being, as if he were reflecting upon the use I might be put to. Presently he asked what I would want to do. I told him I would like to repay America what it had done for Russia. I spoke of the Society of the Friends of Russian Freedom, organized thirty years ago by George Kennan and later reorganized by Alice Stone Blackwell and other liberal Americans. I briefly20 sketched21 the splendid work they had done to arouse interest in the struggle for Russian freedom, and the great moral and financial aid the Society had given through all those years. To organize a Russian society for American freedom was my plan. Lenin appeared enthusiastic. "That is a great idea, and you shall have all the help you want. But, of course, it will be under the auspices22 of the Third International. Prepare your plan in writing and send it to me."
I broached23 the subject of the Anarchists in Russia. I showed him a letter I had received from Martens, the Soviet representative in[Pg 50] America, shortly before my deportation24. Martens asserted that the Anarchists in Russia enjoyed full freedom of speech and press. Since my arrival I found scores of Anarchists in prison and their press suppressed. I explained that I could not think of working with the Soviet Government so long as my comrades were in prison for opinion's sake. I also told him of the resolutions of the Moscow Anarchist Conference. He listened patiently and promised to bring the matter to the attention of his party. "But as to free speech," he remarked, "that is, of course, a bourgeois25 notion. There can be no free speech in a revolutionary period. We have the peasantry against us because we can give them nothing in return for their bread. We will have them on our side when we have something to exchange. Then you can have all the free speech you want—but not now. Recently we needed peasants to cart some wood into the city. They demanded salt. We thought we had no salt, but then we discovered seventy poods in Moscow in one of our warehouses26. At once the peasants were willing to cart the wood. Your comrades must wait until we can meet the needs of the peasants. Meanwhile, they should work with us. Look at William Shatov, for instance, who has helped[Pg 51] save Petrograd from Yudenitch. He works with us and we appreciate his services. Shatov was among the first to receive the order of the Red Banner."
Free speech, free press, the spiritual achievements of centuries, what were they to this man? A Puritan, he was sure his scheme alone could redeem27 Russia. Those who served his plans were right, the others could not be tolerated.
A shrewd Asiatic, this Lenin. He knows how to play on the weak sides of men by flattery, rewards, medals. I left convinced that his approach to people was purely28 utilitarian29, for the use he could get out of them for his scheme. And his scheme—was it the Revolution?
I prepared the plan for the Society of the Russian Friends of American Freedom and elaborated the details of the work I had in mind, but refused to place myself under the protecting wing of the Third International. I explained to Lenin that the American people had little faith in politics, and would certainly consider it an imposition to be directed and guided by a political machine from Moscow. I could not consistently align30 myself with the Third International.
Some time later I saw Tchicherin. I believe it was 4 A. M. when our interview took place.[Pg 52] He also asked about the possibilities of a revolution in America, and seemed to doubt my judgment31 when I informed him that there was no hope of it in the near future. We spoke of the I. W. W., which had evidently been misrepresented to him. I assured Tchicherin that while I am not an I. W. W. I must state that they represented the only conscious and effective revolutionary proletarian organization in the United States, and were sure to play an important r?le in the future labour history of the country.
Next to Balabanova, Tchicherin impressed me as the most simple and unassuming of the leading Communists in Moscow. But all were equally na?ve in their estimate of the world outside of Russia. Was their judgment so faulty because they had been cut off from Europe and America so long? Or was their great need of European help father to their wish? At any rate, they all clung to the idea of approaching revolutions in the western countries, forgetful that revolutions are not made to order, and apparently32 unconscious that their own revolution had been twisted out of shape and semblance33 and was gradually being done to death.
[Pg 53]
The editor of the London Daily Herald34, accompanied by one of his reporters, had preceded me to Moscow. They wanted to visit Kropotkin, and they had been given a special car. Together with Alexander Berkman and A. Shapiro, I was able to join Mr. Lansbury.
The Kropotkin cottage stood back in the garden away from the street. Only a faint ray from a kerosene35 lamp lit up the path to the house. Kropotkin received us with his characteristic graciousness, evidently glad at our visit. But I was shocked at his altered appearance. The last time I had seen him was in 1907, in Paris, which I visited after the Anarchist Congress in Amsterdam. Kropotkin, barred from France for many years, had just been given the right to return. He was then sixty-five years of age, but still so full of life and energy that he seemed much younger. Now he looked old and worn.
I was eager to get some light from Kropotkin on the problems that were troubling me, particularly on the relation of the Bolsheviki to the Revolution. What was his opinion? Why had he been silent so long?
I took no notes and therefore I can give only the gist36 of what Kropotkin said. He stated that[Pg 54] the Revolution had carried the people to great spiritual heights and had paved the way for profound social changes. If the people had been permitted to apply their released energies, Russia would not be in her present condition of ruin. The Bolsheviki, who had been carried to the top by the revolutionary wave, first caught the popular ear by extreme revolutionary slogans, thereby37 gaining the confidence of the masses and the support of militant38 revolutionists.
He continued to narrate39 that early in the October period the Bolsheviki began to subordinate the interests of the Revolution to the establishment of their dictatorship, which coerced40 and paralysed every social activity. He stated that the co?peratives were the main medium that could have bridged the interests of the peasants and the workers. The co?peratives were among the first to be crushed. He spoke with much feeling of the oppression, the persecution, the hounding of every shade of opinion, and cited numerous instances of the misery41 and distress42 of the people. He emphasized that the Bolsheviki had discredited43 Socialism and Communism in the eyes of the Russian people.
"Why haven't you raised your voice against these evils, against this machine that is sapping[Pg 55] the life blood of the Revolution?" I asked. He gave two reasons. As long as Russia was being attacked by the combined Imperialists, and Russian women and children were dying from the effects of the blockade, he could not join the shrieking44 chorus of the ex-revolutionists in the cry of "Crucify!" He preferred silence. Secondly45, there was no medium of expression in Russia itself. To protest to the Government was useless. Its concern was to maintain itself in power. It could not stop at such "trifles" as human rights or human lives. Then he added: "We have always pointed46 out the effects of Marxism in action. Why be surprised now?"
I asked Kropotkin whether he was noting down his impressions and observations. Surely he must see the importance of such a record to his comrades and to the workers; in fact, to the whole world. "No," he said; "it is impossible to write when one is in the midst of great human suffering, when every hour brings new tragedies. Then there may be a raid at any moment. The Tcheka comes swooping47 down in the night, ransacks48 every corner, turns everything inside out, and marches off with every scrap49 of paper. Under such constant stress it is impossible to keep records. But [Pg 56]besides these considerations there is my book on Ethics50. I can only work a few hours a day, and I must concentrate on that to the exclusion51 of everything else."
After a tender embrace which Peter never failed to give those he loved, we returned to our car. My heart was heavy, my spirit confused and troubled by what I had heard. I was also distressed52 by the poor state of health of our comrade: I feared he could not survive till spring. The thought that Peter Kropotkin might go to his grave and that the world might never know what he thought of the Russian Revolution was appalling53.
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1
anarchist
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| n.无政府主义者 | |
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anarchists
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| 无政府主义者( anarchist的名词复数 ) | |
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constituent
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| n.选民；成分，组分；adj.组成的，构成的 | |
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dispersed
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| adj. 被驱散的, 被分散的, 散布的 | |
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allied
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| adj.协约国的；同盟国的 | |
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consensus
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| n.(意见等的)一致，一致同意，共识 | |
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persecution
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| n. 迫害,烦扰 | |
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spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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frankly
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| adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说 | |
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unity
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| n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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Soviet
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| adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃 | |
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imprisoned
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| 下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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expressive
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| adj.表现的，表达…的，富于表情的 | |
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ushered
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| v.引，领，陪同( usher的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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astounded
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| v.使震惊(astound的过去式和过去分词)；愕然；愕；惊讶 | |
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eulogy
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| n.颂词；颂扬 | |
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forum
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| n.论坛，讨论会 | |
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penetrating
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| adj.（声音）响亮的，尖锐的adj.（气味）刺激的adj.（思想）敏锐的，有洞察力的 | |
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briefly
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| adv.简单地，简短地 | |
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sketched
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| v.草拟（sketch的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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auspices
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| n.资助，赞助 | |
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broached
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| v.谈起( broach的过去式和过去分词 )；打开并开始用；用凿子扩大（或修光）；（在桶上）钻孔取液体 | |
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deportation
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| n.驱逐，放逐 | |
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bourgeois
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| adj./n.追求物质享受的(人)；中产阶级分子 | |
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warehouses
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| 仓库，货栈( warehouse的名词复数 ) | |
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redeem
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| v.买回，赎回，挽回，恢复，履行（诺言等） | |
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purely
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| adv.纯粹地，完全地 | |
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utilitarian
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| adj.实用的，功利的 | |
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align
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| vt.使成一线，结盟，调节；vi.成一线，结盟 | |
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judgment
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| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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semblance
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| n.外貌，外表 | |
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herald
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| vt.预示...的来临，预告，宣布，欢迎 | |
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kerosene
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| n.(kerosine)煤油，火油 | |
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gist
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| n.要旨；梗概 | |
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thereby
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| adv.因此，从而 | |
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militant
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| adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士 | |
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narrate
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| v.讲，叙述 | |
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coerced
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| v.迫使做( coerce的过去式和过去分词 )；强迫；（以武力、惩罚、威胁等手段）控制；支配 | |
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misery
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| n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦 | |
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distress
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| n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛 | |
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43
discredited
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| 不足信的，不名誉的 | |
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44
shrieking
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| v.尖叫( shriek的现在分词 ) | |
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45
secondly
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| adv.第二，其次 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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swooping
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| 俯冲，猛冲( swoop的现在分词 ) | |
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48
ransacks
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| v.彻底搜查( ransack的第三人称单数 )；抢劫，掠夺 | |
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49
scrap
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| n.碎片；废料；v.废弃，报废 | |
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50
ethics
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| n.伦理学；伦理观，道德标准 | |
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51
exclusion
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| n.拒绝，排除，排斥，远足，远途旅行 | |
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52
distressed
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| 痛苦的 | |
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appalling
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| adj.骇人听闻的，令人震惊的，可怕的 | |
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