Lenin's links with London. A few words about english traditions

TEXT 6C

SaaaHHe I. ripomnume mewm, ombicKuean e wm omeemu Ha noc-maeMHHbie eonpocu.

LENIN'S LINKS WITH LONDON When did V. I. Lenin visit London for the last time?

1. V. I. Lenin came to London on five separate occasions (cJiyqan). He first came in April 1902 to continue the illegal publication of Iskra, after the activities of the German police had made it impossible to con­tinue it in Munich.

He stayed for a year, but was again in London in July 1903, when the Second Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party had to be transferred (nepenocHTb) from Brussels because of the activities of the police there.

In April 1905, Lenin again came to London from Geneva to attend the Third Party Congress, and was in London again for the Fifth Party Congress in April 1907.

His last visit was in April-May 1908 to work at the British Museum gathering (co6HpaTb) material for his work Materialism and Empirio-criticism.

How did N. K. Krupskaya learn English?

2. In her Memories of Lenin his wife N. K. Krupskaya tells how, when they arrived in London, they "were met at the station by a com­rade living in London in emigration, who had a fine knowledge of Eng­lish". "At first," she goes on, "he acted as our guide (rna) as we were in rather a hopeless position by ourselves. We thought we knew the Eng­lish language, having even translated a whole book from English into Russian, when we were in Siberia. I learnt English in prison (iropbMa) from a self-instructor (caMoyqm'e.nb), but had never heard a single Eng­lish word spoken.

How did V. I. Lenin divide his time in London?

3. When we came to London we found we could not understand 104

a single word, and nobody could understand us. At first this was very comical. So we had to learn all over again. We started to master English pronunciation (npon3HomeHne) little by little, we went to meetings, where we listened to speeches in English, and to Hyde Park to listen to Englishmen making speeches, and we conversed with our landlady (xosflHKa). We also exchanged lessons with two Englishmen. We taught them Russian and they taught us English."

Krupskaya helped Vladimir Ilyich with the correspondence, kept house, bought food, prepared meals.

Lenin divided his time between editing (peflaKTHpoBaHHe) Iskra, looking through the correspondence that came illegally from Russia and studying in the British Museum Reading Room.

Where was the Iskra published?

4. It was possible to publish the Iskra thanks to the help gladly given by Harry Quelch, editor of the journal Justice, which was print­ed in the building now known as Marx House. Before Lenin's arrival in London, arrangements had been made with Harry Quelch for the pub­lication of the Iskra in the editorial offices of the Justice.

The small room where Harry Quelch and Vladimir Lenin worked together in those days still stands and is kept as it was in their days in Marx House — a standing memorial to the cooperation between the so­cialist movements of Britain and Russia.

SaaaHHe II. Upou/nume meKcm eu^e pas u ebiQeMime e KawcQou. uacmu UHmepecHbie qmi eac (paKmu.

3aaaHne HI. CQeAaume KpamKue cooQw^Husi ho cAeQywinue meMbi. 1, V. I. Lenin's visits to London. 2. V. I. Lenin's life in London.

TEXT 6D Saaanne l.npoumume meKcm.

A FEW WORDS ABOUT ENGLISH TRADITIONS

1. When we arrived in London the day was fine and warm, there was a bright sun and a cloudless sky, but the general opinion abroad is that London has fog or rain, or both, every day of year. After a short rest we wert for a drive about the city. We saw many places of interest, such as Trafalgar Square with Nelson's Column in its centre, the British Museum ana the House of Parliament. When we drove into the Strand, which is one of the busiest London streets, we could see a long stream of cars, buses and taxis. The newest and most comfortable cars ran side by side with eld ones made more than twenty years ago.

'   2. The traffic regulations in Great Britain differ from ours; we are ( to keep to the right but in the streets of London you are to keep to the left.J The street traffic is very heavy; it is much heavier than in Mos-

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