Brest-Litovsk Peace Conference (1917-1918); Soviet Union -- History -- Revolution, 1917-1921
At this period the Smolny building was already completely in the hands
of the Petrograd Soviet and of our party. The Mensheviks and the S. R.'s
transferred their political activity to the Maryiinsky Palace, where the
infant Pre-Parliament was already expiring. In the Pre-Parliament
Kerensky delivered a great speech, in which, stormily applauded by the
bourgeois wing, he endeavored to conceal his impotence behind clamorous
threats. The Staff made its last attempt at opposition. To all units of
the garrison it sent out invitations to appoint two delegates to
conferences concerning the removal of troops from the capital. The first
conference was called for October 22nd, at 11 P. M. From the regiments
we immediately received information about it. By telephone we issued a
call for a garrison conference at 11 A. M. Withal, a part of the
delegates did get to the Staff quarters, only to declare that without
the Petrograd Soviet's decision they would not move anywhere. Almost
unanimously the Garrison Conference confirmed its allegiance to the
Military Revolutionary Committee. Objections came only from official
representatives of the former Soviet parties, but they found no response
whatever among the regimental delegates. The Staff's attempt brought out
only more strikingly that we were standing on firm ground. In the front
rank there was the Volhynian Regiment, the very one which on July 4th,
with its band playing, had invaded the Tauri'da Palace, in order to put
down the Bolsheviks.
As already mentioned earlier, the Central Executive Committee had charge
of the Petrograd Soviet's treasury and its publications. An attempt to
obtain even a single one of these publications brought no results.
Beginning with the end of September, we initiated a series of measures
toward creating an independent newspaper of the Petrograd Soviet. But
all printing establishments were occupied and their owners boycotted us
with the assistance of the Central Executive Committee. It was decided
to arrange for a "Petrograd Soviet Day," for the purpose of developing a
widespread agitation and collecting pecuniary resources for establishing
a newspaper. About a fortnight before, this day was set for October
22nd, and consequently it coincided with the moment of the open outburst
of the insurrection.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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