Russian Nihilism – 5

But theories, once adopted, do not disappear so easily. The passions spoke first ; and men began to act in the right direction before they had reasoned out their action.

Continuing Russian Nihilism,
our selection from Sergius Stepniak. The selection is presented in six easy 5 minute installments.

Previously in Russian Nihilism.

Time: 1881
Place: Russia

But theories, once adopted, do not disappear so easily. The passions spoke first ; and men began to act in the right direction before they had reasoned out their action. The wanton cruelty with which political prisoners were treated, the horrors of preliminary detention, the barbarous punishment inflicted for trifling offences — all this proved unendurable even to the mild, patient Russians. The spirit of revenge was kindled, giving birth to the first attacks upon the Government, known by the name of terrorism. They began with an act of individual retaliation which, in the circumstances, had all the dignity of a solemn act of public justice. A girl, Vera Zassulitch, shot General Trepoff, who had ordered the flogging of a political prisoner. On March 31, 1878, she was acquitted by the jury, though she never denied her act. In 1878 terrorism was accepted as a system of warfare by the most influential and energetic section of Russian revolutionists grouped around the paper Zemlia i Volia (“Land and Liberty”). But at first this practical struggle with political despotism was carried on under the banner of political non-interference. “The question of constitution does not interest us, ” said the terrorists of this epoch in their pamphlet and in their paper, Zemlia i Volia; “the essential part of our activity is propaganda among the people. In striking the worst of the officials we intend merely to protect our companions from the worst treatment by the Government and its agents. The terrorists must be looked upon as a small detachment protecting the bulk of an army at some dangerous passage.”

This attempt to find a way out of the contradiction between theory and practice could not last long, because it was illogical on the face of it. Since it was recognized that the socialist propaganda, to be effective, needed protection against willful interruption, the natural course to follow was to obtain such changes in the political constitution as would give it the real and permanent protection of the laws. As to terrorism, whatever its ulti mate effect upon the Government, its immediate consequences could not be other than the aggravation of severities and the increase of the obstacles to peaceful socialist propaganda. In fact, the attempt to reconcile the irreconcilable was soon abandoned and a months later, in 1879, a split came in the revolutionary party. A small fraction stuck to the old banner and declared against both political action and terrorism and for the continuation of simple propaganda, notwithstanding the overwhelming odds against it. It grouped itself around a paper called Tcherny Perediel. This party had only a small following and did nothing of importance. The paper also had a short life, being detected in January, 1880, a fortnight after the publication of its only number. In the same year it was resuscitated abroad, in the form of a magazine bearing the title of The Social-Democrat, with the most orthodox socialist-democratic program.

Now we will follow the fortunes of the majority, which made a step forward, having written plainly upon their banner the political emancipation of their country as the immediate object of the revolutionary party. They founded the paper Narodnaia Volia and constituted the party of the same name, which may be considered the embodiment of nihilism as understood abroad. It was that body, with the famous executive committee at its head, which was at the bottom of all the nihilists’ attempts and conspiracies.

In proclaiming political revolution its immediate aim, the Narodnaia Volia party did not renounce socialism. But it certainly had to renounce the last traces of anarchism it may have retained. When once the necessity of fighting for political free dom was recognized, it was natural to consider how best to take advantage of representative institutions in the future. This means to utilize them as an instrument of reforms, as well as a protection of the propaganda preliminary to those reforms. Thus the Russian anarchists, by the very logic of their doctrine, were converted into social-democrats. The program of the Narodnaia Volia, issued in 1880, the year after the split, shows the rapidity and thoroughness of this change. It is above all a program of political reform, its requisites being:

• A permanent representative assembly, having the supreme control and direction in all general state affairs;
• Provincial self-government secured by the election of all public functionaries;
• Independence of the village commune (mir) as an economical and administrative unit;
• Complete liberty of conscience, speech, printing, meeting, association and electoral agitation;
• Manhood suffrage.

This was their political program. The economical program is summed up in two paragraphs:

• Nationalization of land;
• A series of measures tending to transfer the possession of factories to workmen.

These paragraphs make the program socialistic but it is strictly socialist-democratic. The element of physical force plays a part only in the political revolution. The remolding of the country’s economical organization is understood to be carried on exclusively by legislation.

This program differs from that of the socialist-democrats of other countries in the greater stress laid upon agrarian reform. Its authors do not think Russia sufficiently developed industrially to advocate the immediate introduction of collective ownership by the workmen of factories and industrial concerns — and we think they are right in this. They undoubtedly are right, on the other hand, in considering the Russian peasantry fully competent to carry out any land nationalization scheme. Thus it may be said that so far as economics is concerned, nihilism is social- democracy proposing to begin its work from the other end. This party is called in Russia National Socialists, in distinction from the socialist-democrats, who have recently appeared in Russia.

The true distinction of the Russian nihilists as a body lies, however, not in their methods of carrying out social reforms but in the fact that for the time being they had to put off the idea of social reforms and devote their energies to a political struggle. The Russian nihilists may be described as a branch of international social-democracy, which took the lead in the struggle for political freedom in Russia.

Continued.

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