V. I.   Lenin

To the Congress of Textile Workers^[1]

Published: Published in 1922 in the book Report of the Fifth All-Russia Congress of the Textile Workers’ Trade Union. October 6-11, 1922, Moscow. Printed from the facsimile in the special Edition of the newspaper Golos Tekstilei (Voice of the Textile Workers) January 25, 1924.
Source: Lenin Collected Works, Progress Publishers, 1971, Moscow, Volume 42, page 423^b.
Translated: Bernard Isaacs
Transcription\Markup: R. Cymbala
Public Domain: Lenin Internet Archive (2004). You may freely copy, distribute, display and perform this work; as well as make derivative and commercial works. Please credit “Marxists Internet Archive” as your source. • README

Dear Comrades,

I apologise for having had to let you down. I had the toothache, which not only kept me from my work just when I had started it, but kept me fretting for a whole week. All meetings (at congresses) have to be cancelled again for a week.

I am very sorry that I cannot meet you at your congress. I hope that Comrade Kutuzov will tell you everything in detail and convey to you my best greetings and wishes.

Yours,

Lenin

Notes

[1] The Fifth All-Russia Congress of the Textile Workers Trade Union was held in Moscow from October 6 to 11, 1922. It was attended by 350 voting delegates and 117 delegates with voice but no vote. The congress discussed the report of the Trade Unions Central Committee, and reports on the state of the textile industry, on the All-Russia Congress of Trade Unions, on the organisational question, on the conditions of labour, on cultural work and the international labour movement among the textile workers.

At the opening meeting the delegates elected Lenin honorary chairman of the congress and sent him greetings. On October 9, 1922, they invited Lenin to the congress, and he accepted the invitation. He was unable to attend it, however, as his health had taken a turn for the worse.

Lenin’s message of greeting was read out at the morning session on October 10. The platform committee, on behalf of the delegates, sent him a letter in reply to his greetings.