then becomes transformed into a universal participation of the people in a militia.
Here, "quantity passes into quality." Such a degree of democracy carries with it the abandonment of the framework of capitalist society, and the beginning of its Socialist reconstruction. If everyone really takes part in the administration of the State, capitalism cannot retain its hold. As a matter of fact, capitalism, as it develops, itself prepares the ground for everyone to be able really to take part in the administration of the State.
We may class as part of this preparation of the ground the universal literacy of the population, already realized in most of the more progressive countries, then the education and discipline inculcated upon millions of workers by the huge, complex, and socialized apparatus of the postal system, railways, big factories, large-scale commerce, banking, and so on and so forth.
With such an economic groundwork, it is quite possible, immediately, within twenty-four hours, to pass to the overthrow of the capitalists and bureaucrats, and to replace them, in the control of production and distribution, or in the business of apportioning labor and products, by the armed workers, or the people in arms. The question of control and bookkeeping must not be confused with the question of the scientifically educated staff of engineers, agriculturists, and so on. These gentlemen work to-day owing allegiance to the capitalists; they will work even better to-morrow owing it to the armed workers. Bookkeeping and control—these are the chief things necessary for the smooth and correct functioning of the first phase of communist society. All the citizens are here transformed into the hired employees of the State, which then is the armed workers. All the citizens become the employees and workers of one national State "syndicate." It simply resolves itself into a question of all working to an equal extent, of all carrying out regularly the measure of work apportioned to them, and of all receiving equal pay.
The bookkeeping and control necessary for this have been simplified by capitalism to the utmost, till they have become the extraordinarily simple operations of watching, recording and issuing receipts, within the reach of anybody who can read and write and knows the first four arithmetical rules. When the majority of the citizens themselves begin everywhere to keep such accounts and maintain such control over the capitalists, now converted into employees, and over the intellectual gentry, who still retain capitalist habits this control will, indeed, become univer-
80
