LENIN ON ORGANIZATION 
that this very illuminating remark was made about 
me by Comrade Martov in No. 58 of the “Iskra,” 
where for greater emphasis he refers to my own 
words in “A Letter to a Comrade.” What is it but 
“noble anarchism” and “khvostism” when examples 
from the period of disorganization, the period of 
the circles, are used in the period of the existence 
of a Party to justify the retention and glorification 
of anarchy and the circle spirit. 
Why did we not need statutes before? Because 
the Party consisted of individual circles ununited 
by any organized bond. Transfer from one circle 
to another was a matter solely for the “sweet will” 
of the individual concerned, and in no way repre- 
sented the expression of the will of the whole. Dis- 
puted questions within the circles were settled not 
in accordance with statutes but “by conflict and 
threats of resignation”: so I expressed it in “A 
Letter to a Comrade,” basing myself on my own 
experience of a number of circles, and, in particular, 
of our own editorial board of six. During the 
epoch of the circles this phenomenon was natural 
and inevitable, but nobody thought of praising it, 
or regarded it as ideal; everybody complained of 
the disintegration, everybody suffered from it and 
longed for the fusion of the circles and the forma- 
tion of a Party organization. And now that this 
fusion has taken place we are being forced back 
and regaled with anarchist phrases masquerading 
as profound thoughts on organization! To those 
accustomed to the dressing-gown and slippers of 
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