The Clio messenger. (Clio, Mich.) 1907-current, 1920-07-01


Y was their moral obligation TO
keep this promise made TO the people.
II was necessary to keep II, If there
was 10 be genuinely free Russia.
Who could anticipate and who would
dare write out and put into operation
the plan of government without giving
all of the people Of RUSSIA a chance
to pass upon the plan and help formu-
late ii through their own chosen rep
reSentatives2
This was the first promise the boil
shcvik leaders made TO the Russians.
They broke il. Ii has never been full.
filed. In the constitution and DEGREES
of the soviet government they have
tried to explain, excuse and condone
this breach of promise. Fairly In
terpreted. all they have said in de-
Tense Of this abuse Of power. this vlo-
lation of trust. Is in substance: ut
was necessary TO dissolve the Consti-
tuent Assembly; It might have Inter
fered with our plans; II might have
jeopardized soviet government" What
right did they have TO think. act. and
decide for the people any more than
the ear had?
In speeches and writings LenIne and
TrOtZky have since i'm a yelled way
suggested that the peasants elected
members OF the middle class TO
represent them instead OF peas
ants. What Of It? If the peas
ants make mistakes they will learn
and profit by their mistakes. They
cannot become independent until they
get a chance 10 exercise independence.
No man can get muscle by letting an
other fellow use the dumbhells. The
Russians-peasants. workers and
bourgeOise-are all human beings. and
a government. To he democratic must
he. as Lincoln put it. "of the people.
for the people and by the people" A
government that is afraid of the influ-
ence and power of three or four per
cent of the people isn't able to live,
and ii doesn't deserve 70.
Gladly Obeyed Lenine.
Lenine issued his famous order,
peasants. seize the land" This COM
mand was obeyed with great enthusi-
assn. They forgot all about freedom
and the constitutional convention.
They understood what land meant,
they had been targht that by being de-
MED IT, They knew little about
political phrases and framework. The
order to seize the land tore from the
serfs their heaviest chains. Lenine
became their liberator-his was the
voice that said "seiZe the land"
Probably the peasants would have
done II anyway. Disorder and unrest
had destroyed all respect for property
rights. Property rights had q differ
ent meaning in Russia than elsewhere;
property rights meant the right to
beat human beings, TO buy and sell
serfs. Yet the fact that Lenine had
uttered the words made them reverence
and respect him, even as man will
be thankful to one who has told him
TO be careful of a hole in the side
walk, Notwithstanding the fact he has
already seen It, Bolshevlsm started
with great popularity. This was the
secret Of It.
or course the order to seize the
land, all land, was based on the Idea
that the owners Of land held title by
and through their own wrongful con-
duct God had made the ground and
sunshine, and those who had taken IT,
tie to II had only moved on and forced
others off. This is the way the boil
sheviks reasoned, and from this point
Of view they were consistent. From
the worlds point of view 1t was con-
fiscatlon. 1t was dishonest. Many
people believe that acquiring property
is frequently the result OF Industry
and thrift; In some cases the title to
property Is based upon cunning. schem-
ing and force. All of us know that
there are some who are without any
private property because they pre-
fer to squander their time. dissIpate
their energy and live shiftless lives.
After all, 1t Is a matter Of opinion. and
from the point Of view of the bolshe-
viks the order peasants. seize the
land" may have been justified.
But when the order was given, the
peasants seized II not for the COM
munity but TO own IL privately. On
this point there can be no difference
Of opinion among honest. impartial.
men, and when the peas
ants seized the land to hold. use and
own II as their private property they
were guilty Of taking title by the very
means others had taken the land. and
against whom they had complained
and cried Thief"
The Russian people have the power
10 think They realize that they have
acquired property by the very methods
they have always condemned In 9th
ers. Their natural selfshness may
constraln them to keep this property. |
The sufferIngs they have gone through
may mitigate the offense, but one ef- |
feet was inevitable, and that effect |
the most serious that could happen to |
a people on the threshold of free fu-
ture. refer TO the weakening OF |