The Crisis Approaches
I
THERE can be no doubt that the end of the month of September marked the beginning of a new period in the history of the Russian Revolution; and, very probably, of the world revolution.
The world working-class revolution was first begun with engagements by isolated combatants representing with unequalled courage all the honest elements of official "Socialism "—a socialism rotten to the core, which is in reality nothing but social Chauvinism. Leibknecht in Germany, Adler in Austria, MacLean in England: such are the best known of these isolated heroes who assumed the heavy task of precursors of the revolution.
The second stage was an unrest in the masses which showed itself by splits in the official parties, by illegal publications, and by public demonstrations. The protest against the war became stronger and stronger, the number of victims of government persecution grew bigger and bigger; and in countries like Germany, France, Italy and England, which were noted for their respect of legality and the liberty of their regime, the prisons were filled with tens and hundreds of internationalists, opponents of the war, and advocates of the working-class revolution.
Now we have reached the third stage, which may be called the eve of the revolution. The arrests in mass of the Socialist leaders in Free Italy, and more especially the beginning of military insurrections in Germany—such are the unmistakeable signs of the great turning point; the signs which show that we are on the eve of the world revolution.
It is beyond a doubt that there had previously been isolated cases of mutiny amongst the troops in Germany; but they had been so insignificant, so few in number that it was possible to stifle them and to suppress the news of them—the surest means of preventing contagion. But now, finally, an insurrectionary movement has broken out in the navy, a movement that it has not been possible to stifle or suppress, in spite of the strong measures carefully elaborated and rigorously applied by the German military-barrack regime.
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