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Show f ', wm WW,, wfm, WM am, w, m. mm p m mm HOki UN ftffc V RUSSIANS Kr Mr 5; , Wtofe m JleA JL' . .. , ,,.. .,.,.J jt,.w..J INSTALLMENT SIX ! If allowed this much freedom, one might want the right to quit his fac-tory fac-tory Job and start a crossroad store, ' exploiting his neighbors by selling them merchandise from a temptingly tempting-ly convenient location, thus disrupting disrupt-ing the plans of the Soviet Food Commissariat. They would point out that under capitalism such little men often make mistakes, locating crossroad stores where there is no need for them, and then go broke. Here competition with the state Is outlawed, so inefficiency is protected end the people accept it because they know nothing better. Occasionally Occa-sionally some Russian expert returns re-turns from abroad with the news that keen capitalist competition has developed a cheaper, quicker way of doing something. Then, If he can get In to see the important commissars and beat down the natural inertia of a bureaucracy, the new system is installed throughout the Soviet Union. But more often than not capitalism capi-talism pioneers, while socialism only eonips. We continue on out the paved road. When it ends, we bump over ruts to German fortifications. They are neat Russian women built many forti-i forti-i fications during the war. and orderly like German entrenchments entrench-ments everywhere. At this point the German line ran through a little cluster clus-ter of houses, which was a co-operative farm and had been heavily shelled by Russian artillery because near it the Germans located one of the big siege guns which pounded Leningrad. The Germans got their gun out but its great emplacement remains, a careful job ol concrete work and camouflage. Already the people are returning. We see three ragged women picking about the ruins, trying to put on one end of a room a temporary roof which will shelter a stove from the rain. A shy, chunky, nineteen-year-old girl, dragging from another ruined house a heavy rafter, passes us on the path. She is in rags, but they are clean rags. Her hands have calluses as thick as those of a etonemason. Leningrad's people are tremendously tremen-dously proud of their city, and regard re-gard themselves as culturally supe rior to the rest of Russia. They are also proud that they were able to hold the Germans for weary, starving starv-ing months at the city's gates, and finally hurl them back. They are contemptuous con-temptuous of Moscow which they have always regarded as an overgrown over-grown peasant village.but particularly particu-larly now because of the panic which swept Moscow when the Germans were at its gates. Halfway across Leningrad we entered en-tered the Church of St. Nicholas. The church was built in two elevations eleva-tions and as we climbed the stairs, we heard singing. We had blundered in on choir practice. They were all women in early middle age, very well dressed by Soviet standards and decently dressed by ours. Presently there appeared a man who apologized because the Father himself was not here, but volunteered volun-teered to show us the various altars and the miracle-working ikon. We asked how the money was raised for keeping the church in repair, re-pair, and were told that the state took care of this. Communist Party members continue con-tinue their private contempt for religion. re-ligion. They regard such doctrines as the forgiveness of sin and the immortality im-mortality of the soul as childish superstitions on a level with palmistry. palmis-try. It is highly Improbable that anyone holding to any of these beliefs be-liefs would be regarded as fit for membership in the Party, which In Russia is the only road to power. However, the Orthodox Church is now the officially established church of the Soviet Union, with a representative rep-resentative on the Council of People's Peo-ple's Commissars, corresponding to ' a cabinet post in the Western countries. coun-tries. For this change, Hitler is largely responsible. ' After the 1917 Revolution, most of the Orthodox Church leaders emigrated emi-grated to the Balkans, and Hitler, as part of his invasion plans for the Soviet Union, seized on this historical his-torical background. He established a number of Orthodox churches in Berlin, including a cathedral, and earmarked millions of reichmarks for their support. After he invaded France, he commandeered silk to make religious vestments. When he entered Russia, he proclaimed himself him-self the Protector of the Russian Church; every German army quartermaster quar-termaster was equipped with these vestments as well as sacred church vessels, and churches were everywhere re-opened in the Ukraine. When the Communists dropped their anti-religious propaganda, and suspended - the official publication for the Society of the Godless because be-cause of a "paper shortage," their critics in the outside world insisted that these moves were only to impress im-press foreisners. These critics were wrong; the Party had sounder domestic reasons for changing their policy. For the Germans were making headway in the Ukraine with their religious propaganda. Not only was it popular popu-lar with the older people, but many of the young were joining the Germans. During the final stages of the Ukrainian mop-up, the Red Army came on entire regiments of Ukrainians in German uniform.: As further answer to this German propaganda in the Ukraine, three dignitaries of the Russian Orthodox Church were invited to see Stalin and on September 4, 1943, a formal reconciliation was effected and the Church got its place on the Council of People's Commissars. This is a complete reversal of the action of January 23, 1918, which separated Church and State in Russia. A further explanation of the change is that the Bolshevik Party now feels strong enough to tolerate, even to recognize, the Church. The party has not overlooked the fact that a patriotic, nationalistic nationalis-tic Church can be as useful to their regime as it was to the Romanov dynasty. The State printing presses in Moscow are now turning out beautifully beau-tifully printed religious books for the use of the Church, and it has consented con-sented to the establishment of a seminary for training priests. Although the Church is now recognized recog-nized and tolerated, it is not officially official-ly encouraged. The Party realizes the new policy is popular abroad, and strengthens in America and England both its own position and that of its friends in those countries. Consequently, it encourages all news stories and picture layouts coming out of Russia portraying the new state of affairs. Something of the basic attitude toward to-ward the Church, however, may be seen in a little thing like electric light rates. A state-owned store pays only 1.16 kopeks per kilowatt-hour for its current, a home user is charged 5.5, while a church must pay 41. The case is far different with the Church of Rome. This has become important only since the war, when the Soviet Union absorbed the Baltic Bal-tic States and parts of Poland, all of which contain many millions of Roman Ro-man Catholics. Some concessions have been made. After Hitler s attack on Russia, the Soviet's Polish prisoners of war were released from internment camps and organized Into several divisions originally headed by General Gen-eral Anders. The Soviet government permitted the teaching of the Catholic Catho-lic religion to their children in special spe-cial Polish language schools, organized organ-ized by the Soviet Department of Education. Anders was also permitted per-mitted to have thirty-seven Catholic chaplains for his seven divisions. Regardless of the basic contempt of all Communists for religion, the Orthodox Church is a purely Russian Rus-sian institution, and its clergy are now as completely obedient to the Kremlin as they were once subservient subser-vient to the Czar. But the Pope, an Italian living in Rome, is another matter. The Soviet Government permits per-mits outsiders to have little contact con-tact with, and certainly no authority over, the people within its borders. So as long as the Soviet Union contains con-tains within its frontiers a considerable consider-able Roman Catholic population, any agreement between the two could only be an armed truce. The Leningrad Defense Museum turns out to be an enormous world's fair type of exhibit telling the story of the city's recent siege. In the lobby there is a bronze statue of Lenin, addressing the people peo-ple during the Revolution. There are dozens of groupings. We are shown how Leningrad's luxury and precision pre-cision industries mobilized for war. Here is the telegraph apparatus connected with the line laid under Lake Ladoga, Leningrad's only communication com-munication with the rest of Russia during the siege. There are pictures I of the transportation system across j Ladoga's ice; the top layer had melted, but cars were traveling hub-deep hub-deep over the lower one. A scale model of Leningrad's bread factory shows how it operated oper-ated without electricity or running water. A collection of lamps was made from bottles after the electricity elec-tricity gave out. There were also exhibits of the daily bread ration as it had to be successively reduced because of dwindling supplies. The smallest was 125 grams (about 4 ounces) on December 25, 1941. We are shown pictures of people pulling the bodies of their dead on sleds through the streets toward cemeteries. But the reporters tell me that bodies frequently were kept in the house or buried after dark, so the survivors could continue using the food card. A most interesting series of montages mont-ages is devoted to the partisans; explaining how organizers are parachuted para-chuted into occupied areas, how the bands camp in the forests. There are photographs taken from German prisoners showing the execution of Russian Pirl narticani. The famous Leningrad electrical plant is named for Kirov, Stalin's close friend, whose assassination in 1934 started the big political purge of the Communist Party. It employs only 3,000 people. Before the war 6,000 worked here. It now produces no consumption goods only generators, genera-tors, hydro-electric turbines, and electrical equipment for the Red Army. At one point girls working at a row of benches are winding and assembling as-sembling a small electric motor. Eric says it is a standard type which sells for $55 In America. He knows, for he makes and deals with electrical equipment at his Spokane factory. They tell us 250 people work in this division, turning out 400 motors mo-tors a month. So we do a little figuring. figur-ing. At American prices, these motors mo-tors would bring a monthly total of $22,000. If divided equally among the 20 assemblers here, each would get $88 a month, which is almost exactly the wages they do get, in terms of the actual purchasing power pow-er of the rouble. This leaves nothing whatever for overhead or the wages of the management, man-agement, nor does it allow for the cost of the wire and metal parts. since these people only assemble. Obviously, If their factory is tc make a profit, that little motor must be sold for at least double what il would cost in America, and this because be-cause of the inefficiency of Soviet production methods. One worker turns out only 1 610 motors per month. Is it unskilled management or unskilled labor? Whatever the answer, the picture Is the same in almost every plant we visit. The main Kirov plant before the war, the director says, employed 32,000 workers. How many now? He dodges almost the only time anyone any-one has refused to give us a frank answer. The plant functioned all through the blockade, producing mostly ammunition for Leningrad's defenders. Now its principal work is the production of tank motors. A particular grinding machine is presided over by a beautiful girl-tall, girl-tall, blonde, and blue-eyed but her Slav face is unusually grim. She can't be more than twenty-two. She explains she works not for the extra I N . f Bla.n.h, JZA, . .vw. .A Hundreds of thousands were made homeless In Leningrad district, pay but from hatred her father and mother starved during the siege. At the factory, she says, the workers ate grease from the guns and oil from the machines. The Germans occupied Peterhof and all Leningrad's other suburbs. For instance, Ligova was a suburban subur-ban town of 35,000. When the Russians Rus-sians reoccupied it, they found not a living souL The same with Push-klna, Push-klna, which had 50,000, and Peterhof, which had 45,000. Peterhof a beautiful beau-tiful palace copied from Versailles, but painted the Imperial lemon yellow. It stands in its beautiful gardens, a stately roofless ruin-burned ruin-burned by the Germans. (TO BE CONTINUED) |