The Stalin school of falsification - Marxists Internet Archive

Stalin School of Falsification - Chapter 5
through where it was impossible to go through. But in all this questing we had before us a man
profoundly dedicated to revolution, a man born to the role of tribune, with a tongue sharply whetted and
flexible as steel, slaying his enemies, and a pen scattering in handfuls like artistic pearls the riches of his
mind."
And further:
"The articles at our disposal embrace a period of more than two years — from Oct.15, 1900 to Sept.12,
1902. The Siberian comrades read with delight these brilliant articles and awaited their appearance with
impatience. Only a few knew who was the author, and those knowing Trotsky never guessed in those
days that he would be one of the recognized leaders of the most revolutionary army and of the greatest
revolution in the world."
And finally the conclusion:
"His protest against the pessimism of the demagnetized Russian intelligentsia [Ahem!] comrade Trotsky
established later. Not in words, but in deeds he established it, shoulder to shoulder with the revolutionary
proletariat of the great proletarian revolution. For this, great powers were needed. The Siberian village
did not destroy in him these powers; it only further convinced him of the necessity of radically breaking,
to the foundation, that whole social order which made possible the facts described by him." (Sibirskye
Ogni, Nos. 1-2, Jan.-April 1923.)
Although in some of his recent articles comrade Yaroslavsky has made a turn of 180 degrees, we must
grant that in one respect he remains faithfully the same: He is equally unbearable in slander and in praise.
CONCERNING OLMINSEY
26. Among the exposers of "Trotskyism,"Olminsky, as is known, has occupied a fairly prominent place.
He has been especially zealous, I remember, on the subject of my book, 1905, which appeared originally
in the German language. But Olminsky also has had two opinions upon this subject: one in the days of
Lenin; another in the days of Stalin.
In October 1921, somebody raised the question of the publication of my book, 1905, by the Istpart.
Olminsky wrote me on that subject the following letter:
"Dear Leon Davidovitch:
"The Istpart will be delighted, of course, to publish your book in Russian but the question is: To whom
shall the translation be entrusted? You can't let the first man you meet translate a book by Trotsky! All
the beauty and individuality of the style would be lost. Maybe you could squeeze an hour a day from
your duties of state importance for this work — also, by the way, of state importance and dictate the text
in Russian to a typist.
"Another question: Why not begin to prepare a complete collection of your writings? We could easily
commission some one to take charge of that. It is high time it was done. The new generation, not
knowing, as it should, the history of the party, unacquainted with old and recent writings of the leaders,
will always be getting off the track. I am returning the book in the hope that it soon comes back to the
Istpart in a Russian text.
"With best wishes,
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