New-York tribune., 1920-02-27
Bolsheuiki MayEnd
Their Dictatorship

Their Dictatorship
The report of new peace offer
from the Bolsheviki, including an cx-
preston of the Soviet governments
readiness to summon a Constituent
| Assembly, is considered here by OBJ
| servers as the most startling political
development IN Russian affairs since
the seizure OF power by the Bolsheviki
in 1917 and the dissolution of the Con-
stituent Assembly, January 6, 1918.
Coming as it does at the moment Of
the greatest military victories of tho
Bolsheviki and a radical change IN the
attitude of the Allied governments to-
ward their regime, the readiness of the
Bolsheviki to summon a new Assembly
and to restore all political and civil
liberties in Russia may be interpreted
as willingness or their part to abdcate
their dictatorship.
The >Bolsheviki, IN dssolving the
Constituent Assembly maintained that
Russia wanted q soviet government.
and that the masses Of the Rus
sian people did not desire what Boil
shevikii spokesmen at chat time charac-
tcrizcd as "a miserable listle bourgeois
parliament" The first Constituent AS
sembly was overwhel elmingly anti Boil
shevist, the party Of Social Revolution
lists welding absolute control, so far
as votes were concerned. 1t is this
party which has been primarily rcspon-
sihe for the defeat Of Kolcllak in
Siberia and which to-day is in control
of the greater portion of that region.
1t is difficult to reconcile the readi-
ness Of the BolsheviNi to summon
Constituent Assembly with their claims
that the ma jority o. the Russian peo-
pie are supporting them in their soviet
system. Recent reports, however, re-
celvod from certain sources rot mimi
cal to the Doishevil,i asserted that the
soviet system, as such, has ceased to
exist, tina. elections TO the soviets are
seldom held and that Russia is ruled
by q red" Ku klux Khan, without re-
gard to the will and suffrage Of the
people.
Should the Bolsheviki actually call
elections for Constituent Assembly
the result will depend upon the rules
proceed. The principal parties that
would participate in such elections,
provided the Bolsheviki carry out their
promise Of restoring civil liberties,
would be the Bolshcviki, the Social
Revolutionists, the Menshcviki (Mod-
crate Social Dcmocrats) and the Popu-
list Socialists. 1t is doubtful whether
the Constitutional Democrats (Cadets)
will be allowed to participate in view
OF the close connection Of this party's
organization and leaders with the late
government Of Admiral KolchalS and
the government of General Dcnikne.
The present moment in the political
affairs Of Russia, provided the report
of the peace offer Of the Bolsheviki is
true and the moment has actually ar
rived, recalls the October days of 1905,
wien, under pressure of national and
| international sentiment, the late EN-
peror Nicholas was compelled TO aban-
don the political dictatorship of the
Romanoffs and summon national par
liament-the Duma. Nicholas gained
a new lease Of life by promising the
Introduction of democratic liberties. No
sooner was the Duma called, however.
than Nicholas dissolved it, ON the
ground that he did not consider if in
conscnance with what he regarded as
the real interests of Russia. The rea-
son for the dissolution of the Duma
however, was that it was opposed over
whclmingly to the party in power-the
Monarchst party.
The Bolsheviki gained their original
power, among other things, on the
promise that they would summon a
Constituent Assembly, which, thew
charged, the Provisional government
the government of Alexander Kerenskv
was sabotaging. AS late as August
1917, two months before selling power
Nikolai Lenine wrote:
am often accused of being against
the immediate convocation of the Con-
sstituent Assembly. This is base false
hood"
1t was Lenne, however, who more
than any one else was responsible for
the dissolution of the Constituent AS
sembly when it became apparent, upon
IT'S convocation, that it was overwhelm-
lngly anti Bolshevist. The Bolsheviki
maintained that the Constituent Assem-
bly, was dissolved because it was
",bourgeSo,is" The roll, however, showed
the following compositions Social
Revol lutionists, 400; Bolsheviki, 1870:
Mensheviki, 20; Cadets, 49, The rest
were divided among various other reyo-
lutlonary groups of total of not more
than So
Unless the Bolsheviki contemplate
control Of the elections to new Con-
Stltuent Assembly by special exception
laws, such as were introduced by PIE
mler Stolyrin in the elections to the
third Duma, their readiness to summon
Constituent Assembly at this moment
would indicate they have chosen this
method OF making the most graceful
exit possible from their military DOM
ination of Russia.