Jump to content

Page:Grigory Zinoviev - Twelve Days in Germany (1921).pdf/37

From Wikisource
This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.

35

meanness." Part of the Right section was struck by such a reactionary speech. Longuet considered it. his duty to protest openly against the attack on Soviet Russia contained in Martov's speech. But the Dissmann group of the Right and all the Right leaders were simply delighted with the counter-revolutionary outburst of Martov. The faces of these "Right" leaders shone like new pennies, when Martov, excelling himself, passed from one meanness to another. The union between the Right leaders of the Independents and Martov, the counter-revolutionary, was sealed in the presence of the whole congress. This once more convinced the Left majority of the congress of the necessity for a complete break with the Right Independents. Martov, however, discredited the Rights in another way. My chief accusation against the leaders of the Right Independents was: "You gentlemen refuse to believe in an International Labour Revolution; therefore all your schemes are built on the supposition that you are facing, not a revolution, but a long era of peaceful development." I quoted in my speech Crispien's report to the party conference, which took place some three weeks before the congress, soon after Crispien's return from Moscow. He stated definitely in his speech that the present situation in all the countries of Europe is similar to that after the revolution of 1848. He compared the present struggle between the Communists and the Right Independents with the struggle between the Marxians and the "Left" squabblers in the Communist League at the end of the forties of last century. By this declaration he has entirely betrayed himself. Generally speaking we can say of Crispien: what Hilferding has in his mind Crispien is sure to blurt out. Hilferding, Crispien and Co. have absolutely no faith in the future revolutionary development of Europe. They are convinced that the bourgeoisie has got over its main difficulties and that we have now entered on an era of gradual peaceful reform. One could find almost anything in the lengthy speeches made by Crispien and Dittmann at the congress. But there was no mention of the coming world revolution. When I drew the attention of the meeting to that fact, I scored a regular bull's-eye. Our opponents, however, tried to present some lame excuses. Crispien asserted that his comparison, which I had