Humble Pie

Joseph Stalin dictates at Moscow, having overthrown Leon Trotzky and many another. Recently M. Trotzky and other anti-Stalinites, notably MM. Zinoviev and Kamenev, have been rumored to be gathering strength for a war of propaganda against the man of steel.* Last week M. Stalin, no office holder but the despotic "boss" of the Communist party, rapped out three orders. Leon Trotzky and his malcontents were commanded to cease their opposition to the dictator's will. For an hour they temporized, then found courage for battle ebbing. Next day the supremacy of Joseph Stalin stood once more unquestioned as the press of Russia blazoned a humble testiment of submission signed by Trotzky, Zinoviev, Kamenev: "We consider it our duty to openly recognize before the party that in the fight for our views we and our followers on a number of occasions permitted ourselves to take steps which are in violation of party discipline and which tend to split the party.

"Considering these steps unconditionally wrong, we declare that we definitely give up fractional/- methods of defense of our views because of the danger of such methods for the unity of the party.

"We call for the same act from all comrades who hold our views.

We call for the immediate dissolution of all the fractional groups formed around the views of the opposition. We categorically repudiate the theory and practice of the freedom of forming groups and fractions."

Leniniana? As if to render the humbling of Leon Trotzky more abject, there came to light last week what purports to be an authentic "deathbed memorandum" by the great Lenin, warning Russian Communists against Joseph Stalin. This document, allegedly suppressed by M. Stalin since the death of Lenin (TIME, Jan. 28, 1924), was given front page position last week by the New York Times and many another respected U. S. newsorgan.

Lenin's Warning: "Comrade Stalin, having become general secretary [of the Communist Party] has concentrated an enormous power in his hands; and I am not sure that he always knows how to use that power with sufficient caution . . .

"On the other hand, Comrade Trotzky, is distinguished not only by his exceptional abilities--personally he is, to be sure, the most able man in the present central committee; but also by his too far-reaching self-confidence and a disposition to be too much attracted by the purely administrative side of affairs.

"These two qualities of the two most able leaders of the present central committee might, quite innocently, lead to a split; if our party does not take measures to prevent it, a split might arise unexpectedly.

"Stalin is too rough, and this fault, entirely supportable in relations among us communists, becomes insupportable in the office of general secretary. Therefore, I propose to the comrades to find a way to remove Stalin from that position and appoint to it another man, who in all regards differs from Stalin, namely, more patient, more loyal, more polite, and more attentive to comrades, less capricious. . . .

(Signed) LENIN.

*"Stalin" means "steel," a name bestowed by Lenin as an honorable nickname upon Joseph Dzhngashvili, now Joseph Stalin.

/-"Fraction" is the Soviet term for "minority (opposition) group."