ite right. But in spite of all these just
demands, which arrive in thousands from all sides, it is impossible to
forget the most important of all, that the foundation is shattered and
that the building is threatened with a collapse which will bury all
the inhabitants of the house together, and that, therefore, the only
immediate task is the strengthening of the foundation and the walls.
Extraordinary firmness, extraordinary courage is necessary, not only not
to listen to the cries and groans of old men, women, children and
sick, coming from every floor, but also to decide on taking from the
inhabitants of all floors the instruments and materials necessary for
the strengthening of the foundations and walls, and to force them to
leave their corners and hearths, which they are doing the best they can
to make habitable, in order to drive them to work on the strengthening
of the walls and foundations."

Gusev's main idea was that the Communists were asking new sacrifices
from a weary and exhausted people, that without such sacrifices these
people would presently find themselves in even worse conditions, and
that, to persuade them to make the effort necessary to save themselves,
it was necessary to have a perfectly clear and easily understandable
plan which could be dinned into the whole nation and silence the
criticism of all possible opponents. Copies of his little book came to
Moscow. Lenin read it and caused excruciating jealousy in the minds
of several other Communists, who had also been trying to find the
philosopher's stone that should turn discouragement into hope, by
singling out Gusev for his special praise and insisting that his plans
should be fully discussed at the Supreme Council in the Kremlin. Trotsky
followed Lenin's lead, and in the end a general programme for Russian
reconstruction was drawn up, differing only slightly from that which
Gusev had proposed. I give this scheme in Trotsky's words, because they
are a little fuller than those of others, and knowledge of this plan
will explain not only what the Communists are trying to do in Russia,
but what they would like to get from us today and what they will want to
get tomorrow. Trotsky says:--

"The fundamental task at this moment is improvement in the condition of
our transport, prevention of its further deterioration and preparation
of the most elementary stores of food, raw material and fuel. The whole
of the first period of our reconstruction will be