Vernon Parish Democrat. (Leesville, La.) 1917-193?, 1920-07-29
Shall Chaos or Reconstruction in
Europe Follow the Great
World War?
RUSSIANS MISLED BY LEVINE
Claim That solshevik Government Es-
tablishes Equality PaIpabIy False
Despotie Power Put in office
holders Hands.
Article XXI.
ey FRANk coMERFoRp.

BHeRlk government WAS It's pEcLSuSc a.
establishing equality. Caste and class
reminded the Russians Of suffering.
Fhe soviet government, through the
peoples commissars. issued the follow
ing decree:
"All designations, such as merchant,
nobleman burgher, peasant; titles,
such as prince, count, etc, and distinc-
tions of civil ranks, privy, state and
other councillors, are abolished, and
one designation is established for all
the population Of Russia--cItizen Of
the Russian Republic.
Article 4 of the constitution makes
bare the insincerity of the decree. It
does more. 1t gives evidence Of the
great felony committed against the
freedom of the Russian people by Lee
nine.
These three classes shall have the
right to hold office and to vote They
are made citizens of Russia by the
constitution:
First, All Russians that are eighteen
years Of age and who have acquired
the means Of living, through labor that
is productive and useful to society,
and also persons engaged in house
keeping for the former.
Second. Soldiers Of the army and
navy.
Third. Members of the former two
classes, when incapacitated.
But the constitution goes further;
it tells who shall not hold office and
shall not vote:
First. Persons who employ hired la
Dor in order to obtain profit.
Second Persons who have an In
come, such as interest in capital, rents,
receipts from property, etc.
Third. Private merchants, trade and
commercial brokers.
Fourth. Monks and clergy of all
denominations
Fifth. Employees and agents Of the
former police, the gendarmery, and
the cars secret service; also mem
bers of the former reigning dynasty.
Sixth. The demented or mentally de.
fcient.
Seventh. Persons who have been de-
prived by soviet Of their rights of
citizenship, because Of selfishness, or
dishOnorable offenses, for the period
fixed by the sentence.
Makes officeholders Despots.
Section z affords great opportunity
for construction; the soviets are given
power to disfranchise citizens, because
Of "selfishness or dishonorable Of
lenses" Who is to say what shall con-
stitute these offenses? The courts? No.
The people? No. The political Office
holders? Yes. When we remember that
the first thing that the bolsheviks did
when they came into power was to
drive from the sOviets every one who
disagreed with the bolshevik plan of
communism, at once and by force, 1t
is easy to understand the terrible pow
er given in this phrase and the tyran-
nical use that may be made of it. Every
difference of opinion with their meth
DDS or plans would be a selfish and
dishonorable offense In the eyes of the
bolshevik rulers, and the foolhardy dis
senter could be stripped of his citizen
ship, and, no doubt would be. This
section writes the death warrant Of
freedom Of opinion; it gives to the so
viets bludgeon with which to beat
man out of citizenship who ventures
an opinion at variance with the i'm
posed order. 1t makes the citizen the
servant, the oficeholder the master;
it is government upside down.
In note to Section GA Of Article 4
Of the constitution, we learn the local
soyiets may, with the consent of the
peoples cOmmissars, flower the age
qualification for voters"
What a splendid opportunity this
joker in the constitution offers for
political jockeying If the central pow
er discovers it is about to lose con
troll of a village or rural soviet, it has
the power to nip the uprising in the
bud. The peoples commissars can ar
range with the minority in the soviet
in question to reduce the age limit and
give the vote to young boys and girls.
When it is remembered that the con-
stitution directs the peoples commits.
sar of education to introduce in all
HGAOQAG uAu CQ4NuLAOAGA AAAaNALuLAOAS Va
Russia the study and explanation and
justification of the bolshevik constitu-
ton, it is not hard to understand that
young people into whose minds have
been driven and drilled a reverence
for bolshevism and its methods, could
be expected to vote for and support
the bOlshevik program.
Best Citizens Disfranehised.
Three groups of people classified by
their occupations are permitted citi-
zenship. They are the members Of the
army and navy, the working men and
women. and the peasants who do not
hire labor. Every one else is made an
outcast. The man who has saved a
little money, earned in the sweat of
his fare, and invested it, is not per-
mnted to become a citizen; the man