The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1926-01-26
Znoviev States Views to Russian Party Congress

should not sweeten the N. e. P. New
Economic Policy.
We should not, as Comrade Bubnov
proposed, strike out the word but
not for ever" from the formulation
"the New Economic Policy seriously
and for long period but not for ever"
The proletariat has become stronger,
its influence amongst the peasantry
has very much increased, but in order
to make our further strengthening
still quicker and without friction, we
must reject all those tendencies which
are in contradiction to Leninism.
MYTH regard to the third category
w of the differences of opinion, this
concerns the composition and the col
lective leadership Of the party. In this
connection we should simply zorro
borate the decisions of the thirteenth
party congress which instructed the
central committee to carry on its
work in such a way that in the inn
mediate future the majority Of the
party membership should consist of
workers engaged in production.
1t is not Understandable why the con-
crete proposals of the Leningrad com
rades in this connection are attacked
so sharply. The pre-war level of in
dustry will soon be reached, the dis
solution of the proletariat has ceased,
the cultural level and the activity Of
the working class have increased
enormously. Why does one fear a
dil,,tion ~ +J,a ,,orfy ~ a largo nt,ro
Der of workers are taken into it and
why do people believe that the en-
largement of the party would take
place at the cost of those new work
ers coming from the village? One must
understand that the old and trusted
proletarians will influence and guide
the new corners and not the other
way about. Zinoviev quotes statistics
according to which since the thir-
teenth party congress despite the fact
that the absolute number of workers
in the party had increased, percent
ually they had fallen from 40 to 81
per cent.
With regard to the party leader
ship, in various basic questions there
were vascillations, its policy was not
always firm, otherwise it would never
have tolerated a slogan such as the
one Bucharin put forward Enrich
yourselves" for one moment. Natural
ly, our central committee consists of
the best people that the party has, but
into Standardization, and mistake
firm gestures for firm policy.
Even if no internal difference OF
opinion existed and even if Leriin was
still at the head of the party leader
ship this would not do away with the.
existing objective difficulties which
are of quite another nature than those
of few years ago.
THESE are difficulties of growth, OF
4 the sterilization period, difficult
les which come from the peasant
question, particularly in the present
international situation. The differen-
ces of opinion have been brought be-
fore the whole party rather too late
than too soon. There are digressions.
but they are not those which have
been mentioned here. We did not I'M
derestimate the significance of the
middle peasantry, there was no single
difference of opinion upon any prac-
teal measure in relation to the mid
die peasantry since the fourteenth
party conference, with regard to the
underestimation of the Kulaks, how
ever, we could point. to dozens OF
degressions. 1t is not we who suffer
from lIquidatorial pessimism, but
those who attempt to represent the
~ f. p. as socialism. These are our
opinions which we shall not give up.
applause of the Leningrad delega-
tom.