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TROTSKY LEAVES NEW YORK TO COMPLETE THE REVOLUTION
You will have a revolution, a terrible revolution.
What course it takes will depend much on what Mr. Rockefeller tells Mr. Hague to do.
Mr. Rockefeller is a symbol of the American ruling class and Mr. Hague is a symbol of its political tools.
Leon Trotsky, in New York Times, December 13, 1938.
(Hague was a New Jersey politician)
In 1916, the year preceding the Russian Revolution, internationalist Leon Trotsky was expelled from France, officially because of his participation in the Zimmerwald conference but also no doubt because of inflammatory articles written for Nashe Slovo, a Russian language newspaper printed in Paris.
In September 1916 Trotsky was politely escorted across the Spanish border by French police.
A few days later Madrid police arrested the internationalist and lodged him in a "first-class cell" at a charge of one-and-one-haft pesetas per day.
Subsequently Trotsky was taken to Cadiz, then to Barcelona finally to be placed on board the Spanish Transatlantic Company steamer Monserrat.
Trotsky and family crossed the Atlantic Ocean and landed in New York on January 13, 1917.
Other Trotskyites also made their way westward across the Atlantic.
Indeed, one Trotskyite group acquired sufficient immediate influence in Mexico to write the Constitution of Queretaro for the revolutionary 1917 Carranza government, giving Mexico the dubious distinction of being the first government in the world to adopt a Soviet-type constitution.
How did Trotsky, who knew only German and Russian, survive in capitalist America?
According to his autobiography, My Life, "My only profession in New York was that of a revolutionary socialist."
In other words, Trotsky wrote occasional articles for Novy Mir, the New York Russian socialist journal.
Yet we know that the Trotsky family apartment in New York had a refrigerator and a telephone, and, according to Trotsky, that the family occasionally traveled in a chauffeured limousine.
This mode of living puzzled the two young Trotsky boys.
When they went into a tearoom, the boys would anxiously demand of their mother, "Why doesn't the chauffeur come in?"-
The stylish living standard is also at odds with Trotsky's reported income.
The only funds that Trotsky admits receiving in 1916 and 1917 are $310, and, said Trotsky, "I distributed the $310 among five emigrants who
were returning to Russia."
Yet Trotsky had paid for a first-class cell in Spain, the Trotsky family had traveled across Europe to the United States, they had acquired an excellent apartment in New York — paying rent three months in advance — and they had use of a chauffeured limousine.
All this on the earnings of an impoverished revolutionary for a few articles for the low-circulation Russian-language newspaper Nashe Slovo in Paris and Novy Mir in New York!
Joseph Nedava estimates Trotsky's 1917 income at $12.00 per week, "supplemented by some lecture fees."
Trotsky was in New York in 1917 for three months, from January to March, so that makes $144.00 in income from Novy Mir and, say, another $100.00 in lecture fees, for a total of $244.00.
Of this $244.00 Trotsky was able to give away $310.00 to his friends, pay for the New York apartment, provide for his family — and find the $10,000 that was taken from him in April 1917 by Canadian authorities in Halifax.
Trotsky claims that those who said he had other sources of income are "slanderers" spreading "stupid calumnies" and "lies," but unless Trotsky was playing the horses at the Jamaica racetrack, it can't be done.
Obviously Trotsky had an unreported source of income.
What was that source?
In The Road to Safety, author Arthur Willert says Trotsky earned a living by working as an electrician for Fox Film Studios.
Other writers have cited other occupations, but there is no evidence that Trotsky occupied himself for remuneration otherwise than by writing and speaking.
Most investigation has centered on the verifiable fact that when Trotsky left New York in 1917 for Petrograd, to organize the Bolshevik phase of the revolution, he left with $10,000.
In 1919 the U.S. Senate Overman Committee investigated Bolshevik propaganda and German money in the United States and incidentally touched on the source of Trotsky's $10,000.
Examination of Colonel Hurban, Washington attache to the Czech legation, by the Overman Committee yielded the following:
COL. HURBAN: Trotsky, perhaps, took money from Germany, but Trotsky will deny it.
Lenin would not deny it.
Miliukov proved that he got $10,000 from some Germans while he was in America.
Miliukov had the proof, but he denied it.
Trotsky did, although Miliukov had the proof.
SENATOR OVERMAN: It was charged that Trotsky got $10,000 here.
COL. HURBAN: I do not remember how much it was, but I know it was a
question between him and Miliukov.
SENATOR OVERMAN: Miliukov proved it, did he?
COL. HURBAN: Yes, sir.
SENATOR OVERMAN: Do you know where he got it from?
COL. HURBAN: I remember it was $10,000; but it is no matter.
I will speak about their propaganda.
The German Government knew Russia better than anybody, and they knew that with the help of those people they could destroy the Russian army.
(At 5:45 o'clock p.m. the subcommittee adjourned until tomorrow, Wednesday, February 19, at 10:30 o'clock a.m.)-
It is quite remarkable that the committee adjourned abruptly before the source of Trotsky's funds could be placed into the Senate record.
When questioning resumed the next day, Trotsky and his $10,000 were no longer of interest to the Overman Committee.
We shall later develop evidence concerning the financing of German and revolutionary activities in the United States by New York financial houses; the origins of Trotsky's $10,000 will then come into focus.
An amount of $10,000 of German origin is also mentioned in the official British telegram to Canadian naval authorities in Halifax, who requested that Trotsky and party en route to the revolution be taken off the S.S. Kristianiafjord (see page 28).
We also learn from a British
Directorate of Intelligence report- that Gregory Weinstein, who in 1919 was to become a prominent member of the Soviet Bureau in New York, collected funds for Trotsky in New York.
These funds originated in Germany and were channeled through the Volks-zeitung, a German daily newspaper in New York and subsidized by the German government.
While Trotsky's funds are officially reported as German, Trotsky was actively engaged in American politics immediately prior to leaving New York for Russia and the revolution.
On March 5, 1917, American newspapers headlined the increasing possibility of war with Germany; the same evening Trotsky proposed a resolution at the meeting of the New York County Socialist Party "pledging Socialists to encourage strikes and resist recruiting in the event of war with Germany."-
Leon Trotsky was called by the New York Times "an exiled Russian revolutionist."
Louis C. Fraina, who cosponsored the Trotsky resolution, later — under an alias — wrote an uncritical book on the Morgan financial empire entitled House of Morgan.-
The Trotsky-Fraina proposal was opposed by the Morris Hillquit faction, and the Socialist Party subsequently voted opposition to the resolution.-
More than a week later, on March 16, at the time of the deposition of the tsar, Leon Trotsky was interviewed in the offices of Novy Mir..
The interview contained a prophetic statement on the Russian revolution:
"... the committee which has taken the place of the deposed Ministry in Russia did not represent the interests or the aims of the revolutionists, that it would probably be shortlived and step down in favor of men who would be more sure to carry forward the democratization of Russia. "-
The "men who would be more sure to carry forward the democratization of Russia," that is, the Mensheviks and the Bolsheviks, were then in exile abroad and needed first to return to Russia.
The temporary "committee" was therefore dubbed the Provisional Government, a title, it should be noted, that was used from the start of the revolution in March and not applied ex post facto by historians.
WOODROW WILSON AND A PASSPORT FOR TROTSKY
President Woodrow Wilson was the fairy godmother who provided Trotsky with a passport to return to Russia to "carry forward" the revolution.
This American passport was accompanied by a Russian entry permit and a British transit visa.
Jennings C. Wise, in Woodrow Wilson: Disciple of Revolution, makes the pertinent comment, "Historians must never forget that Woodrow Wilson, despite the efforts of the British police, made it possible for Leon Trotsky to enter Russia with an American passport."
President Wilson facilitated Trotsky's passage to Russia at the same time careful State Department bureaucrats, concerned about such revolutionaries entering Russia, were unilaterally attempting to tighten up passport procedures.
The Stockholm legation cabled the State Department on June 13, 1917, just after Trotsky crossed the Finnish-Russian border, "Legation confidentially informed Russian, English and French passport offices at Russian frontier, Tornea, considerably worried by passage of suspicious persons bearing American passports. "-
To this cable the State Department replied, on the same day, "Department is exercising special care in issuance of passports for Russia"; the department also authorized expenditures by the legation to establish a passport-control office in Stockholm and to hire an "absolutely dependable American citizen" for employment on control work.—
But the bird had flown the coop.
Menshevik Trotsky with Lenin's Bolsheviks were already in Russia preparing to "carry forward" the revolution.
The passport net erected caught only more legitimate birds.
For example, on June 26, 1917, Herman Bernstein, a reputable New York newspaperman on his way to Petrograd to represent the New York Herald, was held at the border and refused entry to Russia.
Somewhat tardily, in mid-August 1917 the Russian embassy in Washington requested the State Department (and State agreed) to "prevent the
entry into Russia of criminals and anarchists... numbers of whom have already gone to Russia."
Consequently, by virtue of preferential treatment for Trotsky, when the S.S. Kristianiafjord left New York on March 26, 1917, Trotsky was aboard and holding a U.S. passport — and in company with other Trotskyire revolutionaries, Wall Street financiers, American Communists, and other interesting persons, few of whom had embarked for legitimate business.
This mixed bag of passengers has been described by Lincoln Steffens, the American Communist:
The passenger list was long and mysterious.
Trotsky was in the steerage with a group of revolutionaries; there was a Japanese revolutionist in my cabin.
There were a lot of Dutch hurrying home from Java, the only innocent people aboard.
The rest were war messengers, two from Wall Street to Germany. ...—
Notably, Lincoln Steffens was on board en route to Russia at the specific invitation of Charles Richard Crane, a backer and a former chairman of the Democratic Party's finance committee.
Charles Crane, vice president of the Crane Company, had organized the
Westinghouse Company in Russia, was a member of the Root mission to Russia, and had made no fewer than twenty-three visits to Russia between 1890 and 1930.
Richard Crane, his son, was confidential assistant to then Secretary of State Robert Lansing.
According to the former ambassador to Germany William Dodd, Crane "did much to bring on the Kerensky revolution which gave way to Communism."—
And so Steffens' comments in his diary about conversations aboard the S.S. Kristianiafjord are highly pertinent:" ... all agree that the revolution is in its first phase only, that it must grow.
Crane and Russian radicals on the ship think we shall be in Petrograd for the re-revolution.—
Crane returned to the United States when the Bolshevik Revolution (that is, "the re- revolution") had been completed and, although a private citizen, was given firsthand reports of the progress of the Bolshevik Revolution as cables were received at the State Department.
For example, one memorandum, dated December 11, 1917, is entitled "Copy
of report on Maximalist uprising for Mr Crane."
It originated with Maddin Summers, U.S. consul general in Moscow, and the covering letter from Summers reads in part:
I have the honor to enclose herewith a copy of same [above report] with the request that it be sent for the confidential information of Mr. Charles R. Crane.
It is assumed that the Department will have no objection to Mr. Crane seeing the report ....—
In brief, the unlikely and puzzling picture that emerges is that Charles Crane, a friend and backer of Woodrow Wilson and a prominent financier and politician, had a known role in the "first" revolution and traveled to Russia in mid-1917 in company with the American Communist Lincoln Steffens, who was in touch with both Woodrow Wilson and Trotsky.
The latter in turn was carrying a passport issued at the orders of Wilson and $10,000 from supposed German sources.
On his return to the U.S. after the "re-revolution," Crane was granted access to official documents concerning consolidation of the Bolshevik regime:
This is a pattern of interlocking — if puzzling — events that warrants further investigation and suggests, though without at this point providing evidence, some link between the financier Crane and the revolutionary Trotsky.
CANADIAN GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS ON TROTSKY'S RELEASE
Documents on Trotsky's brief stay in Canadian custody are now de-classified and available from the Canadian government archives.
According to these archives, Trotsky was removed by Canadian and British naval personnel from the S.S. Kristianiafjord at Halifax, Nova Scotia, on April 3, 1917, listed as a German prisoner of war, and interned at the Amherst, Nova Scotia, internment station for German prisoners.
Mrs. Trotsky, the two Trotsky boys, and five other men described as "Russian Socialists" were also taken off and interned.
Their names are recorded by the Canadian files as: Nickita Muchin, Leiba Fisheleff, Konstantin Romanchanco, Gregor Teheodnovski, Gerchon Melintchansky and Leon Bronstein Trotsky (all spellings from original Canadian documents).
Canadian Army form LB-1, under serial number 1098 (including thumb prints), was completed for Trotsky, with a description as follows: "37 years old, a political exile, occupation journalist, born in Gromskty, Chuson, Russia, Russian citizen."
The form was signed by Leon Trotsky and his full name given as Leon Bromstein (sic) Trotsky.
The Trotsky party was removed from the S.S. Kristianiafjord under official instructions received by cablegram of March 29, 1917, London, presumably originating in the Admiralty with the naval control officer, Halifax.
The cablegram reported that the Trotsky party was on the "Christianiafjord" (sic) and should be "taken off and retained pending instructions."
The reason given to the naval control officer at Halifax was that "these are Russian Socialists leaving for purposes of starting revolution against present Russian government for which Trotsky is reported to have 10,000 dollars subscribed by Socialists and Germans."
On April 1, 1917, the naval control officer, Captain O. M. Makins, sent a confidential memorandum to the general officer commanding at Halifax, to the effect that he had "examined all Russian passengers" aboard the S.S. Kristianiafjord and found six men in the second-class section: "They are all avowed Socialists, and though professing a desire to help the new Russian Govt., might well be in league with German Socialists in America, and quite likely to be a great hindrance to the Govt, in Russia just at present."
Captain Makins added that he was going to remove the group, as well as Trotsky's wife and two sons, in order to intern them at Halifax.
A copy of this report was forwarded from Halifax to the chief of the General Staff in Ottawa on April 2, 1917.
The next document in the Canadian files is dated April 7, from the chief of the General Staff, Ottawa, to the director of internment operations, and acknowledges a previous letter (not in the files) about the internment of Russian socialists at Amherst, Nova Scotia: ". . . in this connection, have to inform you of the receipt of a long telegram yesterday from the Russian Consul General, MONTREAL, protesting against the arrest of these men as they were in possession of passports issued by the Russian Consul General, NEW YORK, U.S.A."
The reply to this Montreal telegram was to the effect that the men were interned "on suspicion of being German," and would be released only upon definite proof of their nationality and loyalty to the Allies.
No telegrams from the Russian consul general in New York are in the Canadian files, and it is known that this office was reluctant to issue Russian passports to Russian political exiles.
However, there is a telegram in the files from a New York attorney, N. Aleinikoff, to R. M. Coulter, then deputy postmaster general of Canada.
The postmaster general's office in Canada had no connection with either internment of prisoners of war or military activities.
Accordingly, this telegram was in the nature of a personal, nonofficial intervention.
It reads:
DR. R. M. COULTER, Postmaster Genl. OTTAWA Russian political exiles returning to Russia detained Halifax interned Amherst camp.
Kindly investigate and advise cause of the detention and names of all detained.
Trust as champion of freedom you will intercede on their behalf.
Please wire collect.
NICHOLAS ALEINIKOFF
On April 11, Coulter wired Aleinikoff, "Telegram received.
Writing you this afternoon.
You should receive it tomorrow evening.
R. M. Coulter."
This telegram was sent by the Canadian Pacific Railway Telegraph but charged to the Canadian Post Office Department.
Normally a private business telegram would be charged to the recipient and this was not official business.
The follow-up Coulter letter to Aleinikoff is interesting because, after confirming that the Trotsky party was held at Amherst, it states that they were suspected of propaganda against the present Russian government and "are supposed to be agents of Germany."
Coulter then adds," . . . they are not what they represent themselves to be"; the Trotsky group is "...not detained by Canada, but by the Imperial authorities."
After assuring Aleinikoff that the detainees would be made comfortable, Coulter adds that any information "in their favour" would be transmitted to the military authorities.
The general impression of the letter is that while Coulter is sympathetic and fully aware of Trotsky's pro-German links, he is unwilling to get involved.
On April 1 1 Arthur Wolf of 134 East Broadway, New York, sent a telegram to Coulter.
Though sent from New York, this telegram, after being acknowledged, was also charged to the Canadian Post Office Department.
Coulter's reactions, however, reflect more than the detached sympathy evident in his letter to Aleinikoff.
They must be considered in the light of the fact that these letters in behalf of Trotsky came from two American residents of New York City and involved a Canadian or Imperial military matter of international importance.
Further, Coulter, as deputy postmaster general, was a Canadian government official of some standing.
Ponder, for a moment, what would happen to someone who similarly intervened in United States affairs!
In the Trotsky affair we have two American residents corresponding with a Canadian deputy postmaster general in order to intervene in behalf of an interned Russian revolutionary.
Coulter's subsequent action also suggests something more than casual intervention.
After Coulter acknowledged the Aleinikoff and Wolf telegrams, he wrote to Major General Willoughby Gwatkin of the Department of Militia and Defense in Ottawa — a man of significant influence in the Canadian military — and attached copies of the Aleinikoff and Wolf telegrams:
These men have been hostile to Russia because of the way the Jews have been treated, and are now strongly in favor of the present Administration, so far as I know.
Both are responsible men.
Both are reputable men, and I am sending their telegrams to you for what they may be worth, and so that you may represent them to the English authorities if you deem it wise.
Obviously Coulter knows — or intimates that he knows — a great deal about Aleinikoff and Wolf.
His letter was in effect a character reference, and aimed at the root of the internment problem — London.
Gwatkin was well known in London, and in fact was on loan to Canada from the War Office in London.—
Aleinikoff then sent a letter to Coulter to thank him most heartily for the interest you have taken in the fate of the Russian Political Exiles ....
You know me, esteemed Dr. Coulter, and you also know my devotion to the cause of Russian freedom ....
Happily I know Mr. Trotsky, Mr. Melnichahnsky, and Mr. Chudnowsky . . . intimately.
It might be noted as an aside that if Aleinikoff knew Trotsky "intimately," then he would also probably be aware that Trotsky had declared his intention to return to Russia to overthrow the Provisional Government and institute the "re-revolution."
On receipt of Aleinikoff s letter, Coulter immediately (April 16) forwarded it to Major General Gwatkin, adding that he became acquainted with Aleinikoff "in connection with Departmental action on United States papers in the Russian language" and that Aleinikoff was working "on the same lines as Mr. Wolf . . . who was an escaped prisoner from Siberia."
Previously, on April 14, Gwatkin sent a memorandum to his naval counterpart on the Canadian Military Interdepartmental Committee repeating that the internees were Russian socialists with "10,000 dollars subscribed by socialists and Germans."
The concluding paragraph stated: "On the other hand there are those who declare that an act of high-handed injustice has been done."
Then on April 16, Vice Admiral C. E. Kingsmill, director of the Naval Service, took Gwatkin's intervention at face value.
In a letter to Captain Makins, the naval control officer at Halifax, he stated, "The Militia authorities request that a decision as to their (that is, the six Russians) disposal may be hastened."
A copy of this instruction was relayed to Gwatkin who in turn informed Deputy Postmaster General Coulter.
Three days later Gwatkin applied pressure.
In a memorandum of April 20 to the naval
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