Letter to a Few Exiled Friends, February 27, 1928

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To a Few Exiled Friends

This is to report to you briefly about everything that has happened since we left Moscow. Probably you already know about the departure itself. We left from the Kazan Station in a special train (one locomotive, plus the car we were in). It quickly caught up with an express, which had been held up for about an hour and a half. Our car was attached to the express about forty-seven versts [thirty-one miles] from Moscow. Here we took leave of Franya Viktorovna Beloborodova and our younger son, Seryozha, who had accompanied us. We had nothing with us in the railroad car. As a result of endless telegrams all our things were finally sent along. Our things caught up with us only on the seventh or eighth day, when we were already in Pishpek (Frunze). It took so long to make the trip because of the snowdrifts. We went on from Pishpek by truck – and fairly froze along the way. We crossed the Kurdai pass in wagons, for about thirty versts [twenty miles]. Then onward in a car, sent from Alma-Ata to meet us. Our things came along behind, in a truck, our escorts contriving along the way to lose two suitcases containing the most necessary things. My books about China, India, etc., are gone.

We arrived in Alma-Ata late on the night of January 25, and were put in a hotel. In all good conscience I must admit that no bedbugs turned up. In general it was quite vile, living in the hotel. (I say this because "self-criticism" is now officially recognized as necessary.) In view of the forthcoming transfer of the Kazakhstan government to this place, all the houses here are "on the register" [i.e., reserved]. What is politely called "red tape" began to delay things. Only as a result of the telegrams that I sent to the most exalted personages in Moscow were we at last given our own quarters, after a three weeks' stay in the hotel. We had to buy some furniture, restore the ruined stove, and in general build up a home – though not on the state planning system. The effort is not finished to this day, for our worthy Soviet stove will not get hot. During the trip there came a renewed bout of fever, which has flared up now and again here too. In general, though, I feel quite satisfactory.

When the letter of the ill-fated two musketeers [Zinoviev and Kamenev] appeared in the papers, I recalled for the umpteenth time Sergei [Mrachkovsky]'s prophetic words, "We shouldn't bloc with either Joseph [Stalin] or Grigory [Zinoviev]. Joseph will deceive, and Grigory will sneak away." Sure enough, Grigory did sneak away. Nevertheless the bloc was justified insofar as it was a bloc between the advanced workers of Petersburg and Moscow. The pitiful musketeers apparently expected that after their pathetic and stupid letter, they would be pardoned. Not so. Pravda graciously published Maslow's rebuttal, which hit the nail right on the head. Despite the many other big minuses, there is at least one plus, that these imaginary numbers are retiring from the scene – presumably for good.

I am studing Asia a great deal now, its geography, economy, history, and so forth. Thus far I receive only two papers, Pravda and Ekonomicheskaya Zhizn. These I read with great diligence. I miss foreign papers terribly. I have already written to the necessary places asking to have such papers sent to me, even if they are not recent. In general the mails reach here after great delay and with extreme irregularity. First there was the snowdrift phase. Then it turned out that the horsedrawn mails between Pishpek and Alma-Ata were not properly organized. The local paper, the Dzhetysu Iskra (which comes out three times a week) promises that the postal irregularities will be overcome ("outlived") because negotiations with a new contractor have begun. In a word, "things will be set right."

The events in India call for exceptionally close attention. The economic basis for them seems to be the deep crisis in Indian industry, which expanded rapidly during the imperialist war but which now is forced to retreat under the pressure of foreign goods, Japanese in particular. This apparently has given broad sweep to the national-revolutionary movement. The role of the Indian Communist Party is extremely unclear. The newspapers have printed reports of the activities in various provinces of "workers' and peasants' parties." There is reason to be alarmed by the very name. The Kuomintang too was at one time declared to be a workers' and peasants' party. How can this turn out to be anything but a repeat performance?

The Anglo-American antagonism has finally come to the fore in all seriousness. This is now the fundamental factor in world politics and the world situation. Our newspapers, however, oversimplify when they represent the situation as if the Anglo-American antagonism, which is growing in intensity, must lead directly to war. One cannot doubt that there will be several more abrupt twists and turns in this process. For war would be too dangerous a thing for both sides. They will still make more than one effort to achieve agreement and peace. But taken in general, the process is developing by giant strides toward a bloody finale.

I am now translating Marx's Herr Vogt for the Institute of Marx and Engels. To refute some dozen slanders by Karl Vogt, Marx wrote a 200-page book, in small type, marshaling documents and the evidence of witnesses and analyzing direct proofs and circumstantial evidence … If we were to set about refuting the Stalinist slanders on the same scale, we would have to publish an encyclopedia of a thousand volumes.

It was only recently that they announced: "We have thoroughly smashed and destroyed the Opposition. Now, enough of polemics. Let's get down to practical constructive work." Instead, a new chapter of polemics has opened, and this time, in order not to repeat the stale old repertoire, they find it necessary to polemicize against the number of suitcases and boxes we traveled with (tripling their number for better effect) and against our hunting dog. My dear dog Maya doesn't even suspect that she has been drawn into high politics.

Incidentally, about the hunting. I came here with some inflated notions of the wealth and variety of the local game. In recent years, game has been slaughtered mercilessly. Of course there is still quite a bit of game, but one must travel dozens of versts to reach it. I haven't gone hunting even once so far. On one occasion Lyova went out on a trip of about twenty-five versts [seventeen miles], but without results (possibly because they slept past dawn that morning). In eight or ten days the spring flights will begin here. I will then take a trip to the River Ili (which flows into Lake Balkhash). Don't forget that I am living virtually in China. They say that many flocks of wild birds fly past there. Near Balkhash itself snow leopards and even tigers are found. With the latter I intend to sign a mutual nonaggression pact.

I already mentioned the slowness of mail deliveries. Muralov wrote me a letter on January 24. (He telegraphed me about it.) Today is February 27 and I still haven't received his letter. I have managed to exchange telegrams with nearly all our friends. Serebryakov is the only one from whom I haven't received an answer. No letters have come from anyone, except for one postcard, sent by Sibiryakov while en route to his place of exile.

Our quarters are in the middle part of the city, which is quite a bad area. In April or May we plan to move to the so-called orchards, that is, higher up in the mountains, where the climate is incomparably healthier. The weather here is already springlike. Almost all the snow has melted (there was an unusually large amount this year).