Collected Works of V. I. Lenin - Vol. 13 - From Marx to Mao

72V. I. LENINintellectual, who helps the landlord to satisfy the muzhikwith a beggarly reform—the whole infinite wisdom of theGorn and Nevedomsky gentry, who advise the proletariatto harmonise their activity with that of the Cadets, willstand revealed to you! The picture of the Octobrist “reforms”,which we are promised, is quite clear. The landlord“sets up” the muzhik, sets him up in such a mannerthat the population cannot be induced to accept the reformswithout punitive expeditions, without floggings of the peasantsand shootings of the workers. The Cadet professorregisters opposition: he proves, from the standpoint of themodern science of law, the necessity of constitutionally enforcingthe regulations governing punitive expeditions,while blaming the police for being over-zealous. The Cadetlawyer registers opposition: he argues that, according tothe law, sixty strokes per man should be given and not200, and that money should be assigned to the governmentfor birch rods, while stipulating that the law should be observed.The Cadet physician is prepared to count the pulseof the victim of flogging and write a research about thenecessity of reducing the upper limit of strokes by half.Was not the Cadet opposition in the Second Duma ofjust this kind? And is it not clear that for the sake of suchan opposition the Octobrist landlord will not only elect aCadet to the Duma, but will agree to pay him a professorialor some other kind of salary?A democratic coalition of socialists and Cadets in theSecond Duma, after the Second Duma, or during the ThirdDuma would in fact, by virtue of the objective state ofaffairs, only mean turning the workers’ party into a blindand wretched adjunct of the liberals, complete betrayalby the socialists of the interests of the proletariat andthe interests of the revolution. Very likely, the Nevedomskysand Gorns do not realise what they are doing. With suchpeople convictions are very often not more deeply seatedthan the tip of their tongues. In effect, their endeavoursamount to putting an end to the independent partyof the working class, putting an end to Social-Democracy.The Social-Democrats, who understand the tasks confrontingthem, should put an end to these gentlemen. Unfortunately,among us the concept of bourgeois revolution