The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1926-03-20
Lenin: Impressions of First Meeting
BY S. HOpner (Natasha).

tempts to remain despite these fail
ures in an illegal position and to con-
tinue party work, 1 managed to obtain
a foreign passport by diddling the
police-and found myself in Paris.
Those were hard times in Russia,
and hard times also in exile. In Paris
every day arrived new groups of emil
gres who had escaped from penal SER
vitude or had completed their impris-
Onment, OF who had escaped the
threat of penal sentences hanging
over them.
Brilliant, rich and interesting Paris
was a torture for those who did not
know the French language, for those
who knew no trade or who in general
could not adapt themselves.
The feeling of elation of the first
hours, when still full Of joy at escap-
ing the police clutches in the "dear
fatherland," is succeeded by feeling
of perplexity and painful terror at
this gigantic town, full of temptations,
living day and night without a break,
and at the noisy streets along which
everyone and everything are hurrying
and whirling somewhere or other.
Who wants emigrants here? Who
asked them to come? Who will give
them any work, even of the most diff
ficult kind, if only to keep them from
dying of hunger?
T HAD a number of comrades in
L Paris with whom 1 had Scorre-
sponded.
Having rested after the journey, ]
went out for the first time to wander
along unknown streets, and very soon
I ran into Comrade Valerian (Y. Bran
denburgsky). Valerian took me along
with him to show me the main parts
of the Quarter Latin. Lively and
impressive, he showered upon me
questions about Russia, interlarding
between the questions news about
Paris.
"Of course-you will go to see Ilyitch
tomorrow" suddenly heard him say.
'Why of course" l asked. II did
not intend doing So"
Indeed l had not so intended. In
Russia had heard a great deal about
emigre life and about its negative
features. What was particularly in
grained in my mind was the con-
seriousness that the bad side of emf
gre life was the frequent visiting of
one another (thru having nothing to
do), the endless, fruitless discussion
and conversations and the impossi-
bility for even the most organized"
natures to avoid dislocation thru the
idle visits, and talk of comrades who
did not know how to pass away the
day. And l, who had come among the
emigres for the first time, wanted
somehow or other to avoid this as
much as possible; 1 did not want to
go to anyone except for definite pur-
pose.
Particularly not to Lenin.
had not met Lenin personally;
only once in 1907 l had heard a re-
port on the London congress by Vlad-
imir Ilyitch Tin small Finnish town.
and there also seen Nadezhda Con-
stantinovna (Krupskaya, Lenin's
wife, in the street.
1t already seemed to me to be quite
improper to go to Lenin and to pre-
sent myself, ETC., without some def
mite aim, as l had heard It said that
he was always very busy. 1t did not
enter my head that it would be inter-
esting for him to talk to newcomer
from Russia, rank-and-file worker,
and what is more, with one not from
the capital, but from Ekaterinoslav
and Odessa.
valerian. however, viewed the mat
ter in a different light. He was abb
solutely indignant at my replying that
did not wish to go to Lenin, and
refused to understand 1t. why can
you not understand, Natasha (my lille
gal pseudonym) that Ilyitch and
Nadezhda Constantinovna pounce on