The Clio messenger. (Clio, Mich.) 1907-current, 1920-07-15
Shall Chaos or Reconstruction in
Europe Follow the Great
World War?
RUSSIANS MlSLED BY LEVINE
Claim That Bolshevik Government Es-
tablishes Equality Palpably False
Despotic Power Put in Office
holders Hands.
Article XXI.
ey FRANK coMERFoRp.

The first great hypocrisy of the boil
shevik government was its pretense at
establishing equality. Caste and class
reminded the Russians of suffering.
The soviet government through the
peoples commissars. issued the follow
ing decree:
"All designations, such as merchant,
nObleman, burgher, peasant; tlties'
such as prince, count, etc., and dlstinc-
tons of civil ranks, privy, state and
other councillors, are abolished, and
one designation is established for all
the population of Russia-Citlzen OF
the Russian Republic.
| Article Of the constitution makes
bare the inslncerity of the decree. II
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 10 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 men,
bcrs of the former reigning dynasty.
Sixth. The demented or mentally de.
ficient.
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, ii
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
VETS 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 ofiiceholder the master
IL is government upside down.
In note TO Section GA of Article 4
of the constitution. we learn the local
soviets may, with the consent of the
peoples commissars, Flower the age
qualification for voters"
What splendid opportunity this
joker in the constitution offers for
political jockeying. If the central pow
er discovers Ii is about to lose con-
troll OF village or rural soviet, ii has
the power To nip the uprising in the
bud. The peoples commissars can ar
\ range with the minority in the soviet
In question 10 reduce the age limit and
\ give the vote 90 young boys and girls.
When IL Is remembered that the con-
| sutuuon dfrectS the peoples commits
sar OF education 10 Introduce in all
schOols.and educational institutions of
Russia the study and explanation and
Justification of the bolshevik constitu-
ton, IL Is not hard 10 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 Disfranchised.
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
little money. earned In the sweat OF