The Bolshevik Revolution

The Bolshevik Revolution was inseparably connected with the convocation of the second Congress of Soviets. The first, which took place in June, elected a Central Executive Committee, which was empowered to convene a second congress not later than the end of September. But, since the majority in most of the Soviets had become Bolshevik, this committee, which consisted entirely of Menshevik and social Revolutionaries, supporters of Kerensky, was reluctant to convene a second congress and postponed doing so from day to day. But when finally the Petrograd Soviet threatened to convene the congress itself the committee fixed Nov. 7 as the date of convocation. It was obvious to everybody that the congress would have a Bolshevik majority and would promptly declare against a Coalition Government and would form one composed exclusively of Soviet representatives. This ex pectation that the final trial of strength between the parties of the coalition and the adherents of the Soviets would take place at and in connection with the congres3 made it very easy for Trotsky to pretend that all his preparations were being made with the view of supporting a Soviet Government, which would be established in a constitutional way by the congress. Why, how ever, the Government should have been so naive as to accept this explanation remains a mystery. The convocation of the All Russian Congress of Soviets was preceded by the holding of a number of regional congresses, all of which declared for a termi nation of the Coalition and for the establishment of a Soviet Government, the aim of which would be immediately to propose terms of peace, to give the land to the peasants, to establish a complete workers' control of the factories and to deal with the famine by expropriating the hoards of foodstuffs supposed to have been accumulated by the capitalists and landlords. These resolutions were broadcast all over Russia and Government wire less stations thus being used for the purpose of disseminating Bolshevik propaganda.

Nov. 3-6.—Meantime ministers waited patiently on events, believing that nothing could happen till Nov. 7. But Trotsky, with the instinct of a born strategist, gave battle two or three days before the appointed date. On Nov. 3 he confronted the general staff with a demand that all its orders should be counter signed by the Military Revolutionary Committee. When the general staff refused this demand he ordered the Petrograd garri son to stand at arms in defence of the committee. On Nov. 4 a meeting attended by delegates from all the troops passed a resolu tion refusing obedience to commands of the general staff and recognizing the committee as the sole organ of power. This resolution was immediately circulated over the Government tele phones to all the regiments in the capital.

To these proceedings Kerensky replied on the following day by issuing an ultimatum to the committee requiring them to with draw the resolution. The ultimatum was ignored by the com mittee, which promptly called out parts of the garrison and organized worker detachments ("Red Guards") for the defence of the Smolny Palace, the headquarters of the Soviet and of the committee. Kerensky tried to counteract these measures by adopt ing that traditional method of defence, the raising of the bridges, to prevent communication between the left and right banks of Neva. He then proceeded to the Marian Palace where the Pre Parliament was holding its sessions, and demanded that it should invest him with dictatorial powers to cope with the Bolshevik revolt. But while he was awaiting their decision, which, after deliberating all night, they gave against him, preferring to set up a Committee of Public Defence, the Bolsheviks quietly and sys tematically took over, without firing a shot, the telegraph, the telephone and all other Government offices, with the exception of the Winter Palace and the offices of the general staff. The

same night Lenin, who had been in hiding since July, appeared at the meeting of the Petrograd Soviet and in glowing language congratulated the delegates on inaugurating a new era. The new regime, which established the Soviet as the embodiment of su preme power in the State, was thus established one day in advance of the meeting of that Soviet Congress which had been pro claimed by the Bolsheviks as the sole authority competent to make such a decision. This was obviously an irregularity. But nobody present at the meeting of the Soviet seemed to care ; for Lenin announced that the first step taken by the new Government would be the offer to all belligerents of a just peace.

Defeat of Krasnov and Flight of Kerensky.

Early in the morning of Nov. 7, Kerensky left for the front, in order to bring back troops to crush the revolt. The other members of the Government decided to await his return at the Winter Palace. But when they were informed that the guns, both of the cruiser "Aurora" and of the Peter and Paul fortress were trained on the Palace, they decided to surrender and told their defenders, a detachment of Cadets and a Woman's battalion, that they might disperse. When next day the Congress of Soviets formally opened, the non-Bolshevik members and the old executive committee registered a vigorous protest against the unconstitutional methods of the Bolsheviks and withdrew from the congress to join the Committee of Public Defence which had its headquarters at the municipal buildings. Kerensky meantime made frantic efforts to move the troops from the front to the capital ; but the response he met with both from officers and men was thoroughly dis couraging. He succeeded only in persuading the Cossack general Krasnov to move against Petrograd. On Nov. i i Krasnov's troops were reported outside Gatchina, about io m from the capital.

Encouraged by this news and definitely expecting a crushing defeat of Trotsky's "Red Guards" the Committee of Public De fence gave orders to the cadets of the military schools to arrest the Revolutionary Military Committee and to make a general attack on all the Soviet strongholds. The attack was made in the morning; but by three o'clock in the afternoon the Bolsheviks, supported by some of the cruisers of the Kronstadt fleet, de cisively repelled it and occupied the military schools. In the report of the events of the day which he sent to the Petrograd Soviet Trotsky made the following declaration . "We hoped to establish a compromise without bloodshed. But now when blood has been shed there is only one way left, a ruthless fight It would be childish to expect that victory can be achieved by other means. Now is the actual moment. We have shown that we can take the power. We must show that we are able to keep it. I summon you to a ruthless fight." With these words Trotsky pro claimed the approaching Civil War. The same night he proceeded to the Gatchina front. Next day he reported the repulse of Krasnov's advanced detachments ; and a day later he announced that the Cossack forces had been completely defeated. Krasnov subsequently surrendered on parole, Kerensky fled, and the Bol shevik regime was now for a time immune from military menace.

(M. FA )