more and more into the background and took all matters into its own
hands, including even local Petrograd affairs.

A clash was inevitable. The workers and soldiers pressed from below,
vehemently voiced their discontent with the official Soviet policies and
demanded greater resolution from our party. We considered that, in view
of the backwardness of the provinces, the time for such a course had not
yet arrived. At the same time, we feared that the events taking place at
the front might bring extreme chaos into the revolutionary ranks, and
desperation to the hearts of the people. The attitude of our party
toward the movement of July 3rd-5th was quite well defined. On the one
hand, there was the danger that Petrograd might break away from the more
backward parts of the country; while on the other, there was the feeling
that only the active and energetic intervention of Petrograd could save
the day. The party agitators who worked among the people were working in
harmony with the masses, conducting an uncompromising campaign.

There was still some hope that the demonstration of the revolutionary
masses in the streets might destroy the blind doctrinairism of the
coalitionists and make them understand that they could retain their
power only by breaking openly with the bourgeoisie. Despite all that had
recently been said and written in the bourgeois press, our party had no
intention whatever of seizing power by means of an armed revolt. In
point of fact, the revolutionary demonstration started spontaneously,
and was guided by us only in a political way.

The Central Executive Committee was holding its session in the Taurida
Palace, when turbulent crowds of armed soldiers and workmen surrounded
it from all sides. Among them was, of course, an insignificant number of
anarchistic elements, which were ready to use their arms against the