The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1926-01-27

| moscow, U. S. S. r., Dec. FL
A'1 (By Mail - Comrade Nikolai
BuchArin was the first speaker in the
discussion upon the political report of
the central committee of the Russian
Communist Party at the Fourteenth
Congress here. He was received with
storms of applause.
Bucharin pointed out the extraor-
/ binary significance Of the fact that a
member of the politbureau came for
ward with a second speech to the re-
port of the central committee The
opposition had stressed at all the pro-
vincial conferences that they opposed
the line of the central committee with
no other policy This is contradicted
by the fact of the second speech
which is unexampled in the history
Of the party. In the past struggles
with various oppositional groups, a
second speech has never bene made.
The speaker inquired what prac-
! tical measures the opposition pro-
posed. What new proposals has the
opposition for the assistance of the
! village poor? None. The Fourteenth
party conference pointed to the ne
cessity for the creation of funds and
the formation Of groups among the
village poor. The opposition is not
! able to propose any new measures
and this proves their political impo-
tence.
The opposition made two proposals:
! % In connection with the Young
Communist League to organize dele
gate meetings from the non-pafty
peasant youth. This was rejected by
the central committee as with the
great activity Of the peasants these
meetings would become parallel or
CARNATIONS and threaten the loss of
the proletarian leadership of the peas
ants. This would be a capitulation of
the proletariat before the petty bour-
geoisie.
THE second proposal came from the
= Leningrad comrade Sarkis who
proposed that up to the Fourteenth
party congress the composition of the
membership should be formed so that
80 per cent represented workers from
the shops. This would only be pos
sible if the party had 100000 men,
bers This proposal would mean a re-
cruitment of 100000 new members
inside Of a year. This has not an
arithmetical but a political signifc-
ance.
To follow this advice would be to
draw in tremendous masses of peas
ant elements into proletarian party.
The opposition accuses us of giving
up our position under the pressure of
the petty bourgeoisie. Both of the
propositions of the opposition men
toned prove on the contrary capitu-
lation of the opposition before petty
bourgeois peasant tendencies.
The proposals of the opposition will
not bear criticism. The speaker de-
clared that the present discussion
must be regarded in the light of the
two previous discussions against
Trotsky. At present there are new
economic relations, a new interna-
tional situation. The party is fever
ishly searching for the correct position
to be adopted in the peasant policy
under the new circumstances. The
first discussion flung up the question
Of internal party democracy, etc. and
finally it was seen that it was the
question of the peasants.
IN the second discussion the party
already understood the essence of
the struggle better. 1t is no accident
that the questions of state capitalism,
the possibility of the building up of
socialism in country, etc, now stand
in the foreground. In the first two
discussions the essence of the discus
sion was the relation between the
working class and the peasants. The
present discussion is a continuation
of the first two. At present the party
is taking part in the discussion more
consciously, because the question has
been put directly and not under some
label or the other.
The previous discussions concerned
the peasant question as a whole, the
present discussion concerns the ques.
ton of the various strata of the peas
antry. The speaker is convinced that
the party will come thru the present
discussion ideologically strengthened
and purified. The present discussion
is proceeding on a sociological basis
which is characterized by three facts
! % BY the growth of bourgeois
strata in the village and in the town
~ BY the raising of the activity OF
all classes, particularly in the village
CD Thru the appearance Of new
strata in the proletariat.
| THE half-peasants and half-workers
= are coming from the village into
the towns with the question: viii
they be exploited or not, asking what
Is the difference between the new fac,
tory and the old. On the other hand
our policy has not yet had time emf