Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-01-22
GOSPEL OF VIOLENCE
PROCLAIMED BY LEN|NE
futurist In Revolution, He Will
Stop at Nothing in Way
OF Destruction.
HIS CARRIER METEoRIC
Most. Ardent Friends of Democracy
TN Europe Regard His Course
with Dismay-Cares Nothing for
What World May Think OF Him.

''oS WIN VI
tLeninc, His Career and His Meth
odS' Is written by "Rurik," an anony-
nous writer, who writes frequently au
th9ritatirc articles In The New Europe.
which .i3 wcll-informcd biweckly
publication devoted to the discussion
or International affairs. Since the fall
OF kercnsky. Lcninc has been tho most
prominent Russian In the eyes ot tho
world. The following article tells the
PRINCIPAL events OF his life. how he
became Social Democrat" and. az
10 went on, an advocate OF violence.
In short, the author tells us that L.
hIne might be a fanatic Or crazy, II
you please, but he Is not dishonesty
! BY "tURIK.'
International News Bureau1
Vladimir lljic uljanov Ha3 born OF
noble family in tho Government Of
strobirsk forty-scvcn years ago. Tic
meaning Of revolutionary terrorism.
was brought homo to him early. In
the year 1887. ono of tho blacklist pc-
ricds OF reaction in the recent history
Of Russia. Vladimir's elder brother was
arrested at Ilarkov for completely in
a plot TO murder Alexander III. Vladi-
mir vas still but a youth of seventeen
when his brother died on the Eallows.
AS soon as he entered the uniYcr-
sit%, Vladimir Iijic threw himself heart
and soul into the study OF social de-
nocricy. II war not long before his
activities reused the suspicious of the
ohrana. ana in the carly Dos. while
stu student, nc was cxiled to ST.
hcrt3. His scrtcncc. however, vas not
long one, and 4 few years later he
tn 4,
/, two work and his studies. His frs:
hook on tho land question was pub.
iished under the name Of "Iljin" hi,
hrst nom dc Euerre) soon after his
return from exile. In this work he set
forth the views of tho Social Demo-
crat party on the land question in
Nussia, dcna ndn. that ALI the land
should become the property OF tho
state. which would lease &. out to
Inc peasants in proportion to their
needs.
FIRST DIFFERENCES
REVEAL THEMSELVES
II was more. however, az tac,ician
than as 4 thcorist that Lcninc MAJ.
MS mark. In 1900 he left Russia and
Joined Plcchanov In Switzerland For
some gears these two mcn-now poles
spart-workcd together and edited the
paper lskra tSpark) in common. Pic
rhanov's carly work in Lausanne was
mainly educational. Having lief, Rus
sia in tho carly eighties, he gathered
round him in Lausanne A small croup
OF devoted followers whose object
was TO apply western Social Democracy
10 Russian conditions. Fer some years
Plechano" and I.cninc (by this time he
had adopted his present nom dc Eucrre)
h, "a ~, In,
the Socialist conference at Stockholm
In 1903 that the first differences re.
vealcd themselves. It was from this
conference that tho cleavage between
Bolsheviks and Menscviks dates. the
former being those who held ma
jority at tho conference, tho latter a
minority" Tho tactics advocated by
the majority" under Lcninc were those
which he has pursucd consistently
ever since. The essence OF his tactics
may be summed UP in tho words: Pure
revolutionary action without any COM
promise with the bourgeois parties"
Neither in 1905 nor in 1917 has he ever
Uavcrcd. under any conditions. in the
application OF his rules Of conduct.
In 1905 Lcninc returned TO Russia
to take part in tho revolution. Though
not tho president OF the ill.starrcd
Soviet OF 1905. he was the driving
power behind it. In October Of the
same year he started tho first Social
Democrat ally with the help OF Maxim
Gcrki. The collapse OF the Soviet and
tho failure OF the revolution led TO a
compromise between the autocracy and
tho middle classes In the shape OF the
first Duna. True 10 his theories, Lc-
rinc persuaded his followers ~
colt the elections. anla /,
Social Democrats in the frs; DA..l4 If
May. 1905. Leninc's extreme tactics,
however. forfeited him the support Of
many OF his followers who regarded
tho boycott Of the Duma as "A mistake,
and in 1897 Lcninc himself realized
that his work in Russia was. for the
: time being, over In the spring OF that
year he left Russia and took up his
residence abroad. partly in Paris. partly
. in Switzerland and partly in Austrian
, Poland, from which country he kept in
+ touch with the revolutionary movement
OF Russia.
The outbreak OF the war in 1914
found Leninc in the Carpathian Noun
tains. At first arrested as Russian
subject. he was afterwards released,
owing to the mediation of the Aus
tTlHu EoSidiiSt iStOi lie
withdrew to Geneva. where he started
y new Socialist paper. Social Demo
KRAFT, that preached the necessity Of
Russia's defeat in the war,
Previous to tho revolution, Lenine
was a comparatively unknown figure
to tho outside world. Western Europe
. has since learned Of his existence owing
to the notoricty tic gained by his jour
ncy through Germany to Russia. What
moro natural than that this unknown
Zimmcrwaldian. who had worked
against tho victory OF his country in
the war, should be branded by the West
rs mere German agent! Even IL it
be true that he has himself taken Ger
man money. 1t Is not for German ends
Men of his stamp are not overscrupu-
lous; they will stop at nothing that
seems to lead them nearer the goal
they have set before them.
TRUTH ABOUT LIGNINE
MAY NEVER he KNOWN
The whole truth about I.enno will
perhaps, never be known to this gen.
Grafton. a man OF iron will fanat.caI