Collected Works of V. I. Lenin - Vol. 26 - From Marx to Mao

296V. I. LENINdestruction. Some were scared and wanted to escape power,but we were not destroyed. This was because our enemiescould find support only from the officer cadets, whereaswe had the people on our side. But for the massive driveby the soldiers and workers, power would never have droppedfrom the hands that held it. Power passed to the Soviets,which are organisations giving the people full freedom. We,the Soviet Government, have received our powers from theCongress of Soviets and, confident of your support, we shallcontinue to act as we have acted. We have not excludedanyone. The Mensheviks and the Socialist-Revolutionarieshave gone, but that is a crime on their part. We invitedthe Left Socialist-Revolutionaries to take part in the government,but they refused. We do not want any bargainingover power, we don’t want any bids or counterbids. Weshall keep the City Council away from power because it isa Kornilovite centre. Some say we are isolated. The bourgeoisiehas surrounded us with an atmosphere of lies andslander, but I have yet to see the soldier who is not enthusiasticover the Soviets having taken power. I have yet to see thepeasant who opposes the Soviets. There must be an allianceof the poor peasants and the workers, and socialism willtriumph the world over. (Members of the Soviet rise, andgive Lenin a stormy ovation as he leaves.)Pravda No. 181,November 18 (5), 1917Published accordingto the Pravda text