The Washington times., 1922-03-28

ed to the Bolsheviki had they at
tempted to stem the onrushing tide
Of this movement.
SOviets Called Shadows.
But Lenin ID a shrewd and subtle
Jesuit; he joired in the popular cry.
"All power u the Soviets" When he
and his fellow Jesuits were fairly in
the saddle the breaking up Of the
Soviets began. Today they are like
everything else in RUSSIA shadow
with the substance utterly crushed.
The Soviets now voice only the de-
cision Of the Communist Party. No
other political opinion has any
chance to get a proper hearing. The
election methods practiced by the
Communists would fill Tammany
Hall with envy. On my arrival in
Russia l was told by a leading Com
munist that BOSS Murphy and Tam
many Hall have nothing on u.s."
was joking. Soon l convinced my
self that he had told the truth.
Every known device is employed
by the Bolsheviki to swell the Com
munist vote. II ordinary pleading
fails, threats of losing the payok and
Of arrest do the work. The voters
know what to expect. 1t is therefore
obvious why the Communists in
variabiy poll a majority. Still. the
Mensheviki, Left Social Revolution
lists, and even Anarchists have their
representatives elected now and then
which is no small feat In Bolshe-
vik Russia.
Free Speech Throttled.
without a press, deprived Of free
speech. and without the legal permis-
sion of propaganda in the shops. 1t
is nothing short Of miracle that
the opposing parties succeeding In
having some representation in the
Soviets. But as far as opportunity
Of making themselves heard Is con-
cerned, they might as well not be
there. The Communist claqueurs see
to 1t that none but Communists are
given a hearing.
In case Of the Anarchists elected
to the Soviets, the Government gen.
orally refuses to recognize their
mandates to find some pretext to
send them to the Cheka. In 1920
/ attended an election meeting held
in one of the factory clubs in
Moscow. II was the second time
the government had refused to seat
the candidate of the workers-an
Anarchist. Though the opposing
candidate of that district was Sem
ashko. the commissary of health,
the workers for the third time
elected the Anarchist. In vain did
Semashko stoop to abuse and mis-
representation; in vain did he shake
his fist in the faces of the workers.
calling anathema upon their heads.
Anarchist Reelected.
The workers only laughed and
jeered him and reelected the An
archist. A few months later the
man was arrested on some pretext.
He was released only after a pro-
longed hunger strike, and that only
because the British Labor Mission
was in Moscow at the time and the
Bolsheviki were anxious to avoid a
scandal. Before l left Moscow, De-
cember 1. 1921, three Anarchist
members of the Moscow Soviet had
been arrested. One was exiled from
the capital; the other two, as
have learned since, have had
charge of "banditry and under
ground activitieso placed against
ally followed by shooting without
hearing or trial. Those men had
bean too outspoken in the Soviet.
They had to be removed"
One can easily see that neither the
Moscow Soviet nor any other Soviet
has any independent voice or func-
ton. Not even the ordinary Com
munist member has much freedom
of speech there. In the Soviets, as
well as in the entire Bolshevik gov.
ernment, the dictatorship of the
proletariat" is vested in the hands
'of a very small group-the inner cir
Gle which alone rules Russia and her
people.
What was once an ideal, the free
expression Of the workers, peasants
and soldiers. has been turned into a
farce, which the people no longer be.
lieve in or want
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