keeping with their provisional political position, they contented
themselves with serving in the coalition government in the capacity of
assistants, critics, and benevolent accusers and defenders of the
bourgeoisie. During all elections they conscientiously anathematized the
liberal bourgeoisie, while in the government they just as regularly
combined with it. In the first six months of the revolution they
managed, as a result of this policy, to lose absolutely all the
confidence of the populace and army; and now, the October revolt was
dashing them from the helm of the state. And yet, only yesterday they
considered themselves the masters of the situation. The Bolshevik
leaders whom they persecuted were in hiding, as under Czarism. To-day
the Bolsheviki were in power, while yesterday's coalitionist ministers
and their co-workers found themselves cast aside and suddenly deprived
of every bit of influence upon the further course of events. They would
not and could not believe that this sudden revolt marked the beginning
of a new era. They preferred to consider it as merely accidental, the
result of some misunderstanding, which could be removed by a few
energetic speeches and accusational newspaper articles. But every hour
they encountered more and more insurmountable obstacles. This is what
caused their blind, truly furious hatred.

The bourgeois politicians did not venture, to be sure, to get too close
to danger. They pushed to the front the Social-Revolutionists and
Mensheviki, who, in the attack upon us acquired all that energy which
they had lacked during the period when they were a semi-governing power.
Their organs circulated the most amazing rumors and lies. In their name
it was that the proclamations containing open appeals to crush the new
government were issued. It was they, too, who organized the government
officials for sabotage and the cadets for military resistance.