Show PROBLEMS FACING STRICKEN S WORLD shall chos or reconstruction in europe follow the great world war bolshevism BUILT ON SAND movement Is not based on an equality and without equality there can bo be no freedom right of might I 1 article by FRANK FRANI COMERFORD on the tenth day of ot july 1018 the bolshevik government adopted a constitution ution they named tile the new nation the Itus russian socialist federal soviet republic they li ung out a flag a red cloth in the left corner of which oil oh top near the pole are to in golden letters ill 11 II B S F S n R 11 the coit coat ot of arms s of the new russian government consists of a scarlet background on oil which ft hufh a golden scythe and a hammer are placed pl aced ar crosswise os wise handles downward n in sun rays and surrounded by a wreath inscribed russian socialist federal soviet republic of the world unite the constitution ot of it a country la Is its foundation it must be solid and strong it if liberty Is to be secure the whole superstructure ute depends upon the lie foundation government f 1 a alouse made of 0 laws you cannot have pence freedom anil and order without law the people who ho live in tile the house t the he great nat national lopal family havea have n vital interest in the house in which they live it Is their boelter their security it Is tile right of 0 every free m man an to have a say in the kind of house ho he Is to live in a tolee olce in fit the making of tile tho laws he Is called upon to ta obey and maint maintain nIn tito he house bous e of freedom Is one eltI citizens zens liou house 1 se its as much as it Is an others without Vili out equality there cannot ho be freedom livery Itus russian findan hadan equal to determine tho ilia kind of government that should pre vall in his land the bolshevik government shifted on off by denying the people th qa right to a say bay in ili the form of af government of their country A minority wIlli without out consulting tho the people w blout gang them it a chance to express exit exa chev the views forced upon tho the people a constitution so rio flu bolshevik government goverline nt was built on oil the falso of minority role the alie priti clale that all governments govern menta derive their jelt from rom the consent of tho I 1 sent to ilia ho scrap bead ao government by soviets the russian constitution provides for torn it government of soviets sot lets the word soviet menus council the soviet Is 11 a body of who run tho the government in ienir country of calling alleo bodles boales soviets sov lets wo all thew lowns fill commissioners trustees city councils or br burds kurds of aldermen state slate legislature evri grem under the bolshevik constitution all power Is given to tile the so bo lets vieta tills this Is and lias has been the rallying cry of the nivin members bers of the soviets the soviets have the power to make laws law a as well as the lie power dower to enforce obedience to the laws the legislative and executive power Is ik combined lit in lie he soviet the bolshevik constitution divides russia into reg regions lons province counties towns villages rural districts tino ind local rural districts for the sake of comparison we can liken russia to the united states a province lit in russan to ti it state lit in our bunjon and so an on down through the list we have no political division corresponding to tilo alio region a unit larger than an american state tho Itus russian citizens liberty Is measured by the voice he la Is given lit in selecting the men who are to make the laws lie he must obey tho constitution fires his freedom it says how far lie may boand go and no further farther we we haro icare heard much about tile lie poor peasants the constitution m makes nices them paupers haupers lit in liberty down tit at ahe bottom of government tho the lie poor pen peasant sant Is given tile ithe right to voto for delegates to ilia locel rural soviet this little body haq ha about the ilia same power lit in shaping tile tho policy colwy of flud and making tho laws that alint affect life liberty mid and property as the township commissioners have tn in the united Si lites their authority js Is confined to purely local matters when ali poor paw iut lias has cast tills till one and meaningless voto vote tm a representative in the locel rural soviet lie Is through so far ns as any direct 11 roe t say bay in who shall govern ailin mid and how governed by officeholders the ilio poor peasant having cast fats big ote for the local rural soviet leaves lenvia tile the task of government to lie officeholder s the deputies elected to tile tho local rural soviet meet and elect the ho to tho the next higher governing unit ruml soviet here we and the first governing body for which the tha poor peasant la Is s v vote but not tile tho last insl the next unit of government in russia Is 1 the county tile the pomplo do not have a vote for the delegates to the county mo soviets viets these county commas are elected by the kimbers niem bera ot of the city and village end and the numbers members of the rural soviets so vleta here we ro have government one step removed ft fraro tile the people of the cities anti and two stops removed front from the poor pens anfe an 9 rile clie provincial soviets are elected tile papy y and the rural so BO tleta again the people tire without a direct voice in own government the constitution says the all Itus stan congress Is the supreme power this body in the government of russia takes the lie place of our congress our president rind and the cabanet it has the supreme legislative and ex power do the people have anva a vote tote for these nil all powerful congress men certainly not the all russian congressmen are elected by the caty alt soviets and by the soviets of t the provinces who were elected by the city and rural soviets the rural iro soviets viets having been elected by tho the local rural soviets whose members were elected by the people congress Con gres not governing dody body the all hussoun congress to Is it a very large body the first congress met la in 1917 it numbered about 1200 delo dele gates gatea the eighth congress Is now january 1020 lit in session and the th present membership hns has grown to over two thousand it Is a big cumbersome body unfit for nelve nt lve purposes it Is more of a B L i a platform tor for the he roller reller ni f those who have speeches burdening g their chests the congress never sits tor for more than a week it was never Intended intended to be till an organ organ of government the constitution tells the story I 1 section 28 tends reads the all cong congress shall elect a central exe executive cu committee of not more than 20 members 1 thle this takes the gov government emment another step from froin the people section 30 says when the lie all rus sian congress to Is not in sess slon tho the central executive committee la id the supreme power of the republic hut but we have not reached tho the end of the journey from the people to the sent scat of power section 35 reads the central executive committee shall select a coell ell of peoples commissars commissary commis sars who tito shall manage the affairs of the itus ilus Social federal soviet lie but jet et us rend read on section 37 alie the council of peoples commissars commissary commis sars Is In trusted with will the general management of tho the affairs of tile the republic section 33 por for tho the accomplish of tills this tho the peoples com coin inis sars shall issue dge decrees dons orders oders and in general talc alt all steps necessary for tho ilia proper and rapid conduct ot of government affairs section 40 tito central executive committee lins has tile tho right to revoke ot or suspend till all orders and resolutions ot of ilia lio council vo tinell of peoples commissary commissars commis sars kut but a noto note to this section of flip th constitution renda reads measures requiring immediate action may be enacted directly hy by lio lie council of peoples commis commissary commissars sars 11 without voice in government the codgell of pe peoples Is 17 in ili number the people had no voice in selecting the peoples coni com In mis Isgard sars they were not riven given ti it chaleo in picking me central executive committee they were not allowed to vote for the all Itus congressmen 0 lit in tle rural districts tile tho poor peasants were not even allowed to vote for lie he men who lio selected the men who lit in turn selected the conga n at the head of th alit t sacred reven teen Is a the chief of ade at lit ills hand sits commissar of force in ili charge of bf ti 3 army ard navy when I 1 think of the part tue file people play in this ills newest form of free government anti and tho the distance they are aie kept front from their count rys ryn afra affairs irs I 1 cannot help but see sec thein through this constitution us its though I 1 were looking at i them through the wrong end of a pair of opera glasses truly it Is a long way from the people to the lie throne of the people make only tte the first and short est cst step there are five long and important epps between the poor peasants and the power and three between the city kotc voters ra and the real government of Rusl fl the bolshevik government Is it government of for ers and by it Is iq lin coans formula reversed I 1 have haord it said that democratic government Is 19 a failure because political do not truly represent chii people there lissome Is some truth in the statement but tho the people hivo a remedy the system Is not nt at fault I 1 cannot understand der stand tho lie logic for the faith flint a government which provides three or live teta eta of nf officeholders between the people u and rid the government will ali make thill things gs hotter better title conveys much meaning the title peoples la Is full of meaning it Is obese with power rile title Is copyrighted in the constitution ution ill ili december 1018 beld 1 e addressed u letter to the american work nork tit in which lil ci lie sold let incurable pedants ped ants cra mined full of bourgeois democratic ind parliamentary lia prejudices shake gravely over our soviet let them deplore tile the fact that we have no no direct elections I 1 suggest that leitne put the soviet plan before organized I 1 lubor labor lit in the united states anil ask the union card carriers of america to give up direct elections in ID their imbor unions and accept a schemm acne sc ne of government for their unions modeled after the plan and se fee how many follower follow e i ris he will ft III get the rank and file of the abor movement guard jealously Jen louly their right to aloice a voice and vote for measures meas and men len lne li in a master machin foL if he can prove that bat he designed und and built the soviet steam roller I 1 know 0 O W where he can set get a jov job when he be Q quits ulta moscow what tammany give tf the services of jr alt 1926 ua basters wasters UBI |