Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1920-06-24
Shall Chaos or Reconstruction in
Europe Follow the Great
World War?
RUSSIANS MISLED BY LEVINE
Claim That Bolshevik Government Es-
tabIishes Equality PaIpably False
Despotic Power Put in Office
holders Hands.
Article XXI.
BY FRANK coMERFoRD.

BY FRANK CoMERFORD.
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, hurgher, peasant; titles,
such as prince, count, ETC., and distinc-
tons 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 of the constitution makes
bare the insincerity of the decree. 1t
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 men,
bers of the former regning dynasty.
Sixth. The demented or mentally de.
fcient.
Seventh. Persons who have been de-
prived by a soviet of their rights of
citizenship, because of seIfishness, or
dishonorable offenses, for the period
fixed by the sentence.
Makes Officeholders Despots.
Section affords great opportunity
for construction; the sOviets are given
power to disfranchise citizens because
of "sefishness or dishonorabe Of
fenses." 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, it
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
a 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;
it 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, slower the age
qualification for voters"
What splendid opportunity this
Joker in the constitution offers for
political jockeyng. 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
schools and educational institutions of
Russia the study and explanation and
justification of the bolshevik constitu-
ton, 1t 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 DISTINGUISHED.
Three groups Of people classified by
their occupations are permitted citl-
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
autcnct Tho man who bac eoyad N