The Daily Worker Newspaper, July 31, 1925, Page 4

i j 3 _ = 4 red \ y _ Page OS SG es ae ea ge NEW FAKE ARMS CONFERENCE DUE AFTER ‘SECURITY America Sosks Vantage ' Over Rivals SWAMPSCOTT, Mass., July 29.— President Coolidge today let it be known that American imperialism is anxious to see the European “Secur- ity Pact”, as the anti-Soviet bloc is called, to be realized. It is understood that with the sup- posed “security” thus afforded the western Eu ean rivals, against each other, the “security” of dll against the Soviet Republics can get more uni- fied consideration By making the western European nations unite against the Soviet Un- ion, a better field for applying the Dawes Plan and the temporary “stab- ilization” of the bankrupt countries permits America to extend its grip over its rs With “sec: upposedly assured, Coolidge aims also to force a reduc- tion of rival imperialists’ armed forces by the apparently “peace loving” man- euver of calling another “disarma- ment” conference. As soon as the “Security Pact” is signed, Coolidge in- tends to invite the various nations again to Washington to discuss fur- ther reduction of their navies and air forces. To Stage Another Farce, SWAMPSCOTT, Mass., July 29.— A new world conference looking to further disarmament, will be called by the government of the United States immediately following the’ perfection by the nations of Europe of the im- pending security pact, should the lat- ter prove possible, it was indicated to- day at the summer White House here by an official spokesman for President Coolidge, — cH SECRET NAVAL MOBILIZATION PLANS VANISH Japs Tracing Frick Don’t Work TOKIO, July 29.—Seijiro Suzuki, a clerk in the naval stores bureau of the navy department today faced court martial charges that he attempt- ed to sell alleged secret naval papers to F. E. Jordan, an American. Suzuki wrote Jordan asking 10,000 yen for the papers in question. Jordan immediately turned the letter over to the police and Suzuki's arrest follow- ed, It is understood that papers deal- ing with naval mobilization plans are missing from the navy departmeny. A spokesman for the navy depart. ment declared today that the papers i r E DAILY WORKER which Suzuki Offered for sale are not secret and are quite valueless. Jordan, an officidl of tne American trading company, has lived in Japan for five years, Hig home is in Cleve: land, Ohio. It is beHeyed that Suzuki's action was only a,trap to try to find out who had baie the genuine plans now missin; To Seek Dismissal of Suit. WASHINGTON, July 29,—Hearings on the motion to dismiss the national capital's evolution case were post- poned today until Friday by Justice Siddons in the District of Columbia supreme court, Delay was granted by the court to permit attorneys for Loren H. Witt- ner, treasury clerk who brought the suit, time to prepare answers to the dismissal motion. «Getting a DAILY WORKER sub or two will make a better Communist of you. {7 BRITAIN MAKES | NO CHANGE IN RUBBER POLICY U. S. Protests Will Be Disregarded ~ LONDON, July 29.—The foreign of- fice in a statement today goes out of its way in explaining that ambassador Houghton, in presenting the request of the American government for a mo- dification of present restrictions on the exportation of crude rubber from the British empire, emphasized only the effect of the present pplicy on tho United States. The statement voices deep regrev that the British government is unable to give any assurance of a change in policy. _ HELP! Let the gunboats load the guns, Send marines ashore. . . More wages?\;Ha! here comes the buns That they’ve been hungering for! Marines and sailors, forward step; Machine squads ahead; ° God damn. those chinks! the pep - Out of their hides with lead! We-ll take Quick, for God’s sake, Uncle Sam, Our pocket book’s at stake? Help, for Christ’s sake, Uncle Sam, The cursed strike to break! ‘Then from the hands of hungry men, And in the name of God, We foreigners will grind the “yen” And we will wield the rod; And take the goods and sell at home to put men on the shelf, And make the lousy unions groan— For God’s sake, Sammy, help!'! —By Henry George Weiss. ||WOOD CARVERS RUSSIA T | Continued from Yesterday’s Daily Worker) SYNOPSIS—The preceding instalments of the official report of the British Trade Union Delegation to Soviet Russia told’ how well the Soviet government treats its counter-revolutionary political prisoners, and de- scribed the Soviet form of government. The preface and introduction told of the extent of the travels of the seven members of the delegation, who visited not only the industrial centers, but took extended trips thru the agricultural regions. The last two instalments took up the question of Soviet finances, which is being continued today. The instalments will ap- pear in the DAILY WORKER every day. * *® @e Taxation, Soviet and Tsarist An independent calculation, based on estimates of the total national income pre-war and at present, after all necessary allowances and adjustments shows the present Budget to be 65 per cent. of the pre-war Budget. , This impression is because the burden, though reduced by one- Russia itself, that present taxation is heavier than pre-war. This impression is because the burden, though reduced by one- third, is thrice as hard to bear. First, because of the reduced productive power, reserve resources, and taxable margins. Sec- ondly, because these new taxes have not yet been accommo- dated to, and absorbed by, conditions of life. They are only just emerging from the primitive stage of confiscation and the secondary stage of payment in kind. Thirdly, because this new taxation is largely a substitution of direct for indirect taxes. This, though it really relieves the burden on the worker and peasant, makes him realize what the burden is. Abolition of the sale of alcoholic drinks over 20 per eent. strength is a measure which has immensely helped national recovery, and will in time roduce a national renascence, but its fiscal effect has been to require 760 millions per annum new direct taxation to replace the national revenues from vodka—and this does not include 250 millions of local revenues. The peasant paid this pre-war 9$00-1,000 millions far more readily than his present 200-300 mil- lions direct taxation. Economies In order to lighten the burden and to balance ‘lie Budget, Russia has severely reduced expenditure. Military expendi- tures, as elsewhere explained, have been greatly reduced. The Red Army expenditure can be estimated as about one-fifth Tsarist expenditure. Further, the enormous expenditure on the economic and educational experiments of War Communism have been removed in the first case by the New Economic Policy and reduced in the second case by a policy of severe economy. Public services, lighting, transport, all are now charged for as elsewhere; excepting educational and medical care, which re- mains free. The Government departments and those enterprises not abolished or put on a business basis as trusts, ete., had their staffs reduced by half. Finally, the Central Budget was relieved of all expenditure that could advantageously be left to the local Budgets—-such as education, public health, roads, ete. We may, in fact, estimate that State expenditure has been reduced by the Revolution to one-quarter of what it was. And there does not seem to be any region in which it can be still further reduced. It is indeed the avowed intention to increase it considerably at the earliest possible moment in respect of education, public health, etc., and also in respect of a new national debt to be incurred for re-equipment of industry and agriculture. To these recent economies must be added the economies of reconstruction originally effected by the Revolution, such as the abolition of the national debt, the interest on which had risen to 400 million per annum, even before the outbreak of the war. The war more than doubled this in interest on its new foreign debt of nine milliards, and in addition accumulated 16 mnillions of internal debt—so that the total annual interest would have been at least 1,200 millions. A smaller saving was that on the Tsarist subsidies of 55 million to the Church, and of some 16 millions to the Crown and Court. Corruption Another saving( as important as any, has been the suc- cessful campaign carried on by Communism against corruption. It is impossible to make a comparison in figures—one can only Say that the Tsarist officialdom was on the whole as corrupt as Soviet officialdom is on the whole conscientious. , Under War Communism fraudulent officials were shot if Communists, or if non-Conimunists were severely sentenced. Though there is to- day a relaxation from this extreme rigour, the efficiency and probity of Soviet officials are maintained at a very high stand- ard. Add to this that the total expenditure on administration, police, judicature, and central government generally, which was 480 millions under Tsarism, is to-day reckoned in pre-war rou- bles 190 million. Direct Taxes The taxes at present in force are:— (1) The Income Tax falling on the townspeople and well- to-do, producing in 1923-4 about 63 millions. (2) The Industrial Tax, which produced about 68 millions, is a tax paid on the profits of all financial, industrial, and com- mercial enterprises and is graduated to the character of their produce, ie., production of or trading in luxuries is rated high- est, and so on down. This tax is, of course, generally trans- ferred to the consumer, but efforts are made to check this transfer in the case of private enterprises serving no useful pub- lic purposes. On the whole, it is estimated that two-fifths of the tax is paid by the urban middle class, and an equal amount Thru Courtesy of the International Pub- lishers Co, by the town workers and clerks, the remaining one-fifth falling on the peasants. (3) The Rural Tax paid by the peasants and producing about 158 millions per annum. Indirect Taxes (4) Excises on sugar, tobacco, tea, wine, beer, and such like, mostly imported products. The proceeds amount to 242 millions. . . (5) Customs duties, producing 59 millions. : (6) Duties amounting in all to 66 millions, of which the most important are a rate on urban buildings and lodgings and taxes on Bourse operations—on hawkers, and on entertain- ments. All these indiriect taxes may be roughly estimated as fall- ing one-fourth on the peasantry, one-fourth on the middle class, and one-half on the workers and clerks, , This gives the general result that of the total amount of the revenue raised by taxation about one-half is paid by the peasantry, one-third by the workers and clerks, and one-sixth by the middle class. And when it is remembered that the latter class also_contribute in the form of loans free or forced, it becomes evident that, in the first place, they are now able to work at a profit, and in the second place, that a large, perhaps the largest, part of that private profit is absorbed by taxation. Central and Local Finance Another important feature of Russian finance is also still under elaboration, and that is the respective responsibilities of the Union, of the Federations forming the Union, and of the Republics forming the Federations. kegs ‘ The actual financial powers at present held by the various components of the Union are so varied in precept, vary so much in practice from the precept, and\ are so er in rap development, that it is impossible to review them here. The principle underlying these precepts and practices is, however, clear enough. It is to consider as a financial entity any unit in the Union that seems capable of conducting:its own finance— ~whether that unit be a Federation like the R'S.F.S.R. or a self- governing Republic like Georgia. This is subject, however, to the financial supremacy of the Union in all matters specifically assigned to the Union. And, in matters of. finance, Union authority includes the conclusion of external and internal loans, the establishment of a general economic plan forall industries of general importance, the production of a general Budget which must comprise the Budgets of the constituent Republics and assign to the latter the necessary resourtes from Union revenues, the exploitation of mineral wealth, woods, and water, and the granting of all concessions. This obviously assigns io the Union an authority that would, if fully exercised, centralise the power of the purse entirely in Moscow. . Local financial authorities cannoj impose fresh taxation without central authority. ; Analysis of Budget as to Central and Local Finance The Budget of 1923-4 can be allocated between Central and Local Departments as follows: U.S.S.R. (Union), expenditure, 85.9 per cent.; revenue, 95 per cent. R.S.F.S.R. (Russia), ex- penditure, 9.8 per cent.; revenue, 3.2 per cent. UK.S.S.R. (Ukraine), expenditure, 2.3 per cent.; revenue, 1.1 per cent. Z.S.F.S.R. (Trans-Caucasia), expenditure, 1.8 per cent.; reve- nue, 0.6 per cent. B.S.S.R (White Russia), expenditure, 0.2 per cent.; revenue, 0.1 per cent. These figures show that at present the Union is financing the Federations, whose local revenues are insufficient to cover their cultural and administra- tive expenditures. The local budgets of these Federations show the following results:— .. : Revenue Exhenditures Deficit Deficit ‘Per cent of . Revenue. be Se 1,252 1,458 206 (16.5 U.K. 8. 8) Re. 325 333 8 2.4 Zz. 8. F. S, R. 68 76 8 11.8 B, ete 22 4 2 91 “ Budget Procedure a The procedure by which the Budget is fram... y the Com- missariat of Finance in co-operation with the Gosplan—the expert State Planning Commission—is most interesting, but too intricate for report here. It appears to ensure a consideration of the Budget in the general interests of national economy, and a proper control of the central and local administrations and industrial interests. The function of the Gosplan in this respect appears to be one of the features of the Union administration that has an instructive value for all Governments of a federal structure, or that are undertaking social reconstruction. An Act of October 29th, 1924, not yet published, but which was put at the Delegation’s disposal, requires (Article 9) that the Gosplan shall report to the Council of Commissariats and the Commissariat of Finance as to the consonance of the Union and autonomous Budgets with the general of Gov- ernmental and social economy, and also as to the effectiveness of its execution, » General Conclusions : Financial reforms and reconstruction, in so far as concerns this latest and)Jast stage of it—a definitivé Budget without a deficit—is not yet fully achieved. But on the pipes lines it should be attained in the next few years, And general con- clusion that will be come to in respect of Union finance by any impartial inquiry is that, not only is it now on the right lines, but is a long way ahead of Continental c which are at present profiting by the confidence of the. investor. ° A ae a ad Fama gs er amreeme eee THE OFFICIAL REPORT OF THE BRITISH TRADE UNION DELEGATION TO SOVIET RUSSIA Copyright in the United States by the International Publishers Co, All Rights Reserved. Copyright by the Trades Union Congress General Council in Great Britain. Ee | CHAPTER III INDUSTRY The outward appearance of Moscow and other principal towns is almost the same as it was before the war, except for an improvement in cleanliness. Shops are open and the middle- class is again in evidence, pursuing its usual life of private profit and Pleasure, But the object of the Soviet system in the eco- nomic region is to organise production and consumption so as to exclude exploitation of the worker and peasant. And this has resulted in a very complete change of conditions under the surface. rs War Communism Under War Communism the whole administration of indus- try was officially organised under 59 Head Centres, which again were under the Supreme Economic Council. This so-called regime of the Head Centres (Glavi) was mainly occupied with supporting the war fronts against foreign invasions and “white” incursions and with supplying the immediate needs: of the popu- lation from old stocks. Most of the skilled workers were in the ranks, and until peace no effort could be made to revive indus- try. Production fell, until in 1920 coal was only 27 per cent. of pre-war, salt 30 percent., ore 214 per cent., engines and ploughs about 14 per cent., while the total production fell from six and three-quarter milliards to one milliard. But this War Commun- ist system of “Glavi,” that had brought the Revolution through a series of wars, any one of which would have overthrown a less strong and stable. war administration, soon showed that it was unsuitable to peace conditions.. Indeed,-it became clear that Russian economics were in a vicious circle. Industry could’ not produce becaitse the agricultural population could not buv; which, again, was because they could not get industrial prod- ucts, ploughs, engines, etc. Moreover, the attempt to supply the industrial population by forcibly requisitioning food supplies from the peasantry had led to what was practically a new civil war between the. workers and peasants, and the peasants had consequently curtailed production until it was sufficient only to meet their own needs. The failure of War Communism when at its height in 1920 was due to its artificiality. While it professed to be revolution- ising the political system into a more real relationship with economics, it was really trying to revolutionise the principles of economics so as to reconcile them with its own political ethics. Russian Communism was at war with capitalism, and in war the laws of economics, /like other laws, can be ignored for a time. It is the last and greatest achievement of the Russian Revolution to have recognised, as it did in 1921, that this war was being prolonged at a progressive risk to the real results of the Revolution. Various alarming symptoms, such as the growing armed resistance of the peasants to requisitions, the Cronstadt revolt, and the growing demoralisation of the workers, made it neces- sary to abandon the Communist experiment and re-establish a business relation on which the existence of the Soviet system depends, required, in the first place, a substitution of taxation of the peasantry for requisitions, and, in the second place, a restoration of freedom of trade in foodstuffs and the products of small industry. Russia made peace with the enemy within the gate in time. The subsequent three years under this Socialist compromise, known as the New Economic Policy, show very. different results in material prosperity and in moral progress than did the three preceding years of uncompromising War Communism. New Economic Policy and Nationalisation The first measure of the New Economic Policy did practi- cally, though not in principle, denationalise the conduct though not the control of industry. A The nationalisation of industry had been, in fact, much less systematic and sweeping than is generally supposed. “Work- ers’ control,” éstablished November 14th, 1917, was followed by confiscation of certain enterprises, but it was not until the decree of June 28th, 1918, that the large indistries were gen- erally nationalised. Smaller industries were still only dealt with specifically and sporadically until the height of War Com- munism, when by a decree of November 29th, 1920, all enter- prises employing more than five workers with machinery or ten without, were nationalised, and private property in small industry was legally abolished, But this last development was never generally realized, and was almost immediately reversed by the New Economic Policy. The smallest enterprises up to 20 workers were first denationalised by a decree of December 10th, 1921, which also left under private control any larger enterprises not already nationalised. Further, under the decree of March 22nd, 1923, the exploitation of.enterprises of any size might be denationalised for a period by concession. The small industries and home handicrafts (Kustarni) were as a whole never really nationalised at all, though the decree of September 7th, 1920, attempted to do so. Their freedom’ of trade was restored them by a decision of May 17th, 1921, and was formally regulated by a decree ye ly 7th, 1921. Therein small industries are defined as those “employ less than 20, and no ope may engage in more than one enterprise. shi of gniric (To be continued in next issue) \ sf a TO BUILD UP. STRONG UNION! Realize Need of More Perfect Union (Continue from Page 1) effect upon the wood carvers and our leaders in the past, and brought about this most unhappy state of affairs. The Lockout of ’91. The beginning of our downward career started about 1891 when ‘the Furniture Manufacturers declared @ lockout against the Wood Carvers* Union. I was only on apprentice at that time, but I cam recall the great union ‘spirit that manifested itself I remember when the boss came in among the wood carvers at that time. j the carving reom in the shop where f was working and told the wood carv+ ers that they must work ten hours @ day or get out! (They worked eight hours a day then). The carvers thought that the boss had gone crazy thinking that he could compel them to again work ten hourg per day. And I am sure fhat the same spirit existed thruout the ranks of the Union carvers at that time. They didn’t realize that something was hap- pening, in the furniture industry that they were being organized upon a large s¢ale. The wood carvers had to face something which they hadn’t had to face before,,and that was—organ- ized capital. The wood carvers went into the fight with the best of fighting spirit. They stayed out nine months without a break in their ranks, and fighting every inch of the way The leaders showed the fighting spirit so-meces- sary in leadership, going thru battles unflinchingly. Defeated But Not Whipped. Despite solidarity and their devotion to the union, the strike which lasted eight months went down to defeat. I believe that fight left some scars and deep wounds on our pioneer leaders, some of whom are still with us,’ for they don’t show any semblance of their former fighting spirit (and I hope these lines will revive some of their former fighting spirit), or else it is the different defeats they went thru since the fight mentioned above that created such a hopeless outlook in their minds. I can aprpeciate any- one going from defeat to defeat may experience a serious effect from them, The trouble is that these leaders never took enough pains to analyze the real cause of their defeat. They, only blamed it on various Ss | that happened, which are only natural in any fight, and they only owed the reactic ‘ ‘We must wer that is arrayed we are contemplating any ¢ u the organized furniture trust, ai only the organized trust but state apparatus from soldiery down to police. It only depends upon to what extent the power of the state is neces- sary to crush the workers their strike for the just cause of their own protection. , A Crime Not to Study and Act. Now, we cannot allow such a state of affairs to exist in our ranks for I consider it a crime for anyone to sit idly by and make no effort to remedy the same, if he has any ability. We must from now on bestir ourselves in a campaign of building up our own forces. We must get every unit in our union in action in this work, We must see to it that every wood carver and carving machine operator be within our fold. We must awaken the spirit and solidarity of unionism in our ranks, We cannot longer tolerate the damnable indifference of their duties to their union, We must see to it that we bring about such condition in our union whereby we can enforce our constitu- tion and by laws, which have become only a dead letter, and that every member get the full protection he is entitled to according to our by-laws and constitution, And how can this be brought about? Most of the carvers who are not in our union at present have been members at different times heretofore. No doubt that they think they have just reason to stay out. They may have some grievance due to shart- sightedness all around. And of course there are some who ‘think. selfishly, who always let someone else do the fighting, and he is only blacklegging. All Lose Or Gain Together. But even those we must convince that, due to their behavior, we are! bound to go down in defeat, and they must naturally go down with us and accept worse conditions, Therefore, it is their duty to come in with us and help to maintain a better stan- dard of living. 4 We must always point out to them how the bosses ate well organized with their manufacturers’ association, chamber of commerce, etc., which only recently held its international | — congress, And not only that, they » have the whole state apparatus at their disposal, the soldiers, courts, po- lice, and all the capitalist press to mould the mind against the interests of the union men on strike, and vari- ous other institutions, : Therefore, it is the duty of every worker to take the lesson trom the capitalists and proceed to do liké- wise—perfect his union. Built power- ful industrial unions. Since we see how the state is used, we must ‘set up our own political party based upon rade unions for thetr protection, ‘ ‘ 5 } i i ve | |