The Daily Worker Newspaper, August 11, 1925, Page 4

Page Four Glitvaiece, THE DAILY;/WORKER FOREIGN CONCERNS HAVE INVESTED THIRTY TWO MILLION RUBLES IN CONCESSIONS IN SOVIET UNION (Specjal to The Dally Worker) yi} MOSCOW.—(By Mail.)—-Of the total number of foreigners ‘Who have ap-] plied for concessions, 34.6 per,cent are German, 11.9 per cent Englishmen, about 10 per cent Americans, ‘8.1 per cent French, 3 per cent Italians and 2.6 per cont Dutchmen, etc. 1,286 concesssion proposals have been registered since 1921 up to this time, of which 607 refer to the year 1923, when the so- called new economic policy was developing. The total amount of eoncessions so far agreed upon is 72, of which 8 pertain to mining enterprises, 14 to manufacturing industry, 6 to exploitation of forests, 6 concern the rural indus- + ————_-—_ —_—— ———— try, 7—trade, 19—transportation and to 55 million rubles, of which 32 mil- ees mclenellenaien:: “ebnnts33 per | lions have so far been invested. About For the past operation year, the government has received from the con- cessions a net income of 14 million rubles (10 millions of this total was | derived from mixed trading compan-| ies). About 20,000 workmen are em-| ployed in the concession enterprises. The mixed trading companies, as} well as the industrial and transporta- | tion concessions, which are yielding the largest profits, have apparently proved to be the more advantageous for the foreign capitalists. Steady Flow of Capital. There is a steady flow of private capital noticeable into the commercial business, the last reports concerning the transactions of Goéds Exchanges thruout the Union indicating the grow- ing role of private capital in trade. (Special to Thi PEKING, August 9,—The Chinese government today .decided to call the customs’ edénférence of the Washington treaty powers in Pek- | ing October 15, it was learned here this evening. Invitations are being prepared. An especially rapid increase of private trading is being registered in Moscow. According :to the records of Aa ant eh ee Nh AR ae * “Russia Today” Gives a picture of a workers government as the British Dele- gation saw it. : RUSSIA EVERYDAY— All the latest developments and accurate accounts from not only the leaders in every field of Russian life, but also direct correspondence from Russian workers in the field and * factory can be found in THE DAILY WORKER “America’s Only English Communist Daily” You Can Have Both “RUSSIA TODAY” ......... conse P15 THE BOOK! $1.25 (Duroflex Cover) cent of these concessions belong to German, 17.5 per cent to English and 12.1 per cent to American owners. Receive 14 Million in Year. 70 per cent of this sum:has been in- vested into trade and exploitation of forestries, which shows the foreign concessionnaires are apt to prefer en- terprises affording a quick circulation Thus, the private purchases reached, in May 13.5 per cent of the total vol- ume of buying transactions of the ex- changes as against 9.6 per cent of the total in April, while private, sell- the Moscow Goods;Exchange, transac- tions of private trade have grown from 23.8 million rubles, (in April) to 29.7 million rubles (in Mey), ie., 20.7 per cent. Private purghases have grown | | $1.75 (Cloth Bound) The Daily Worker for 8 months (6 months in Chicago) $4.50 for $5.00 $5.75 The Total capital which was to be | of capital invested by concessionaires in the | concessions already granted amounts ings constituted 5 per cent of the to-| 29 per cent, namely 16.4 million rubles | to 21.3 million rubles, tal, against 4.6 per cent in April. e ; RUSSIA T i 4 ‘ | (Continued from Saturday's Daily Worker ) SYNOPSIS.—The British trade union leaders’ report on, Soviet Russia, which is running serially in the DAILY WORKER, Saturday took up th@ subject of foreign trade in the Soviet Union. Transportation, industry and agriculture have already been described in the official report. The union leaders concluded that foreign trade and agriculture is steadily improving, and told how the finances of the Union have been placed on a stable basis. The New Economic Policy in relation to agriculture was explained. The industries are increasing production, the report stated. The last instal- ment of the report dealt in detail with the relation of the Union with for- eign countries. The regulation of trade, financing, foreign bank credits, dealt with. The instalment concludes that foreign trade Is workable, and statistics of foreign trade, status of foreigners, were some of the subjects that harm is being done Britain by the absence of full diplomatic relations. CHAPTER VI The Red Army The necessity for a “Red Guard,” a “Red Army,” was apparent to the Bolshevik minority from the earliest days of the March, 1917, Revolution, in order to effect the organization and armament of the proletariat and bring it into the closest relations with the Revolutionary Army. Rise of the Red Army * The Bolshevik Party, consequently, at once began: intensive work in this direction and to fight the opportunist: “defensive” policy of the Mensheviks. They concentrated upon the workers and soldiery in order to arm the proletariat, and develop its strength in readiness for the next stage of the Revolution—that struggle for the Dictatorship of the town workers and poorer peasantry which the Bolshevik Party knew must shortly come. The work of organizing the Red Guard began di#UMarch, 1917. District Staffs were formed, and by June the Red Guard already was several thousand strong. In July of that year these District Staffs were proclaimed illegal by the Kerensky Govern- ment and were forced to go “underground.” But the work did not suffer by this, and the Red Guard General Staff came into being. . The Kornilov attempt in August brought the Red Guard again to the surface. The Provisional Government ‘authorities found themselves forced to allow the workers to arm, and after .the Kornilov affair had been cleaned up the workers began openly to form their own regiments. In Leningrad at this time drilling, was carried out at 79 works and factories, and Factory Committees were setting up their own system of compulsory military training. The workers at several undertakings enlisted as one body in the.Red Guard, So that the Bolshevik military organization could hardly provide enough military instructors. By the time of the November (Bolshevik) Revolution the Red Guard in Petrograd amounted to 13,000 men, with machine guns and armored cars. Similar work had gone on in Moscow, where more than 3,000 workers were armed before the Novem- ber Revolution. Organization of the same kind simultaneously proceeded in the Donetz mining area, in the Ural mineral region, at Odessa, and other centers. But, while building up the Red Guard in these places, the Bolshevik Party was also busy inside the Army. It began in February, 1917, but there was no real development here until April, after the formation of the Party’s “Military- Organization.” In June, 1917, took place the Party’s first “All-Russian Mili- tary Conference,” to which came representatives from 60 army “organiaations” (43 of these were “Front-Line” bodies), elected by 30,000 Bolshevik soldiers. By these means considerable armed force already existed in October in the shape of a Red Guard numbering a good many thousands. When the decisive moment came, at the most im- portant point (Leningrad), 13,000 armed Red Guards were available in addition to sympathizers from the Army and Fleet. Besides these, the greater number of soldiers on the nearer fronts were now on the side of the Bolsheviks. At the elections to the Constituent Assembly almost all the 120,000 men of the Baltic Fleet voted for them. Out of 770,000 on the Northern Front 480,000 votes went to Bolsheviks, and on the Western Front 653,000 out of 976,000. Including the Moscow and Lenin- grad garrisons, out of a total of 1,800,000 men 1,200,000 voted for the Bolsheviks. - i This explains the success of the November Revolution: By December the Red Guards in Leningrad numbered 60,000. From these, and from those in Moscow and elsewhere, divisions were tormed which took part in the fighting against Petlyura, Kale- din, Alekseyev, Korniloy, Denikin, and other counter-revolution- ary military leaders. Red Army Becomes a Regular Force Waging war with these improvised forces soon showed the necessity for a regular military establishment. The old army had broken up along the lines of its natural class distinctions. It was plain that until the mass of the peasantry convinced itself that the land had been taken away from the landowners, thus becoming conscious of the necessity for defending the Revolu- tion, the working class, in the shape of the Red Guard, helped by those peasants who had joined the Red Guard from the ranks of the old army, must bear the weight of the struggle against the Revolution’s enemies. The Government, forced by hard necessity, had decided on February 22nd, 1918, to accept the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty with Germany, which imposed upon Russia demobilization of her old army. But Lentin; foreseeing the need of atmed defense of the Revolution, the same day signed a decree (whose details had already been worked out a month earlier) for raising a Red Army. The preamble to this decree ran thus: “The Work- ers and Peasants’ Red Army will be formed from the more con- atic Sia ‘ $515 ifr A ODAY SUBSCRIBE! Thru Courtesy of the International Pub- ‘Hishers Co. n scious and organized elements of the working class. This new army will be a pattern for the replacement of standing armies in the near future by popular armaments, which will defend the coming European social revolution.” 5 Intensive work at once began, and on March 20th a Com- mittee was set up in Moscow to determine the strength of the various formations, the organization of the cadres, and to make arrangements for the provision of officers and commanders. This Committee, anxious to get the benefit of the best and most recent experience, sought advice from the foreign mil:tary mis- sions then in Russia, It is interesting now to remember that British. French, and Servian Colonels took part in the com- mittee meeting that determined the number of men for a new Russian Division, and that the very people who later had to be fought, and beaten out of the limits df the Soviet Union, actually assisted\at the birth of the Peasants and Workers’ Red Army. In February, 1918, in order to supply the want of trust- worthy officers, regular schools of military instruction were instituted in various large centers; six in Leningrad, four in Moscow, one each in Oranienbaum, Tver, and Kazan, to which none was admitted unless‘of peasant or worker origin. By 1921 the number of these schools had risen to 200 but since then it has been reduced and now is sensibly smaller, ° *°* Even while the new leadership was being ‘trained, and an army being formed upon modern lines strong énéugh to repel a powerful enemy, the freshly raised volunteer levies were call- ed upon to defend the frontiers and fight the ititernal enemies of the peasants and workers. These levies bravely struggled against the Don counter-revolutionary movement. They broke the forces of General Kaledin, who then shot hittself, and drove Dutov south of the Urals. But their experienéés showed up a want of trained professional leaders, in which “the counter- revolutionists greatly excelled. : “eae Already, on April 22nd, 1918, Trotsky. had reported to the Central Executive Committee that it .w: alerts , once to find military leaders of similar quality to those of the enemies, and had procured assent to his proposal to make use of old regime officers willing to serve the new. Government. As the counter-revolutionary attack, now openly helped by France, Britain, America, Servia and Czecho-Sloyakia, became fiercer during 1918, requiring great and constantly increasing numbers of men to be raised and rapidly trained, the voluntary system was altered to that of obligatory service-in the autumn of that year. On the 2nd September the Revolutionary. Military Council of the Republic was formed to take over the conduct of the war and co-ordinate the activities of the different fronts; at the same time the Peasants’ and Workers’ Council of Na- tional Defense was set up. at = The struggle rapidly became a bitter, savage, Civil War, fomented and supported by foreign Imperialism, which sent its soldiers to invade Russia in the North and on thé Hast. The German Revolution stopped German help to Kragnoy and Deni- kin in the South, but the German soldiers streaming thence home to their own country after the November, 1918, Armis- tice, were quickly replaced by British troops in Geogia and Transcaucasia, and by British ships of war in Russia’s Black Sea ports. Numbers and Casualities The Red Army was now rapidly growing. “By the end of April, 1918, 106,000 volunteers had joined. In the following four months the strength rose to 392,000; at the end of Decem- ber the figure was 790,000. A year later, on April 1st, 1920, the army had swollen to 3,660,000, with 74,000 officers. At its maximum in January, 1921, towards the close of the Civil War, the final total reached 5,300,000. The casualty figures per 1,000 per year dufing these years of Civil War were 15 killed, 47 wounded, 391 si¢k. The corres- ponding figures for the Tsar’s Army during the European’ War were: killed, 25; wounded, 122; sick, 135. qs Of the officers and leaders, statistics show that in October, 1920, 43 per cent. had had no previous military education, 13 per cent. had served as non-commissioned offigers in the old army, 10 per cent. had been through the Red Army officers’ training schools, 22 per cent. were officers made during the war, 6 per cent had served.in the military administrative services, 6 per cent. were old-time regular officers. Taking them from another point of view, one-third came from the former educated classes, two-thirds were of more proletarian, origin. There were not a few instances of treachery amon these former army officers; especially on the Archangel front against. the British; but, on the other hand, they also provided many ex- amples of devoted loyalty to the new Goveriifjent. There is the well-known case of General Nikolaev, taken prisoner. dur- ing Yudenich’s advance on Leningrad, with British support, in 1919. Yudenich hanged him for being true to the cause of the people and faithful in defense of the Soviet Government. Present Organization Revolutionary Russia’s great military instrument was thus forged into workable shape by hard necessity duging three years of constant attack from all sides, aided by British naval and military forces in the North and North-West, by Poles, French, Germans, Greeks, Serbs, Finns, Esthonians, Letts, Italians, Rou- manians on the West and South-West; by British again in the South, by British, French, Americans, Czecho-Slovaks, Japan- ese from the East. These experiences gave Russia tried and competent leaders, led to a simplified and improved Army ad- mintstration, settled the question of training in'mnilitary schools, courses of instruction, and staff colleges; and ii general welded the Red Army into an efficient organism. Simce the close of the Civil War it has naturally been much redweed in strength. Now, according to recently published figuresi the total of all arnis of the standing defense forces (Army, Navy, Air Service) is no more than 563,000 men, and the money (£40,000,000) (at 4 Srv | THE OFFICIAL REPORT OF THE BRITISH ‘« UNION DELEGATION TO SOVIET RUSSIA Copyright by the Trades Union Congress General Council in Great Britain, TRADE Copyright in the United States by the International Publishers Co, All Rights Reserved. provided for defense by the 1924-25 estimates seems to confirm the substantial accuracy of this figure. The Soviet military organization makes possible, however, a rapid expansion from this peace footing. A system of “Territorial National Service” has been adopted. The annual contingent gets six weeks’ training, and serves for four years in “Territorial” formations. These formations are “national” in the actual sense of the word. Divisions are formed wholly composed of separate na- tionalities, which are trained and serve in their respective na- tional territories, and words of command are given in the cor- responding language. Moreover, in order to provide “national” officers and leaders, certain of,the military training schools are also on a national basis. Education and Discipline * Training Schools for Officers are divided into three classes —Ordinary (a three years’ course; for the technical services the course is four years), Special Instruction Schools, and Staff Col- leges. Battalion Commanders must pass the second class or Special Instruction Schools; Staff Officers must go through the three years’ course of the Staff College. Besides technical education of officers, great attention is paid to the general and political education of the lower ranks. In this direction every effort is exerted to make the Red Army soldier conscious that he is a defender of the rights and revyo- lutionary gains of his fellows as workers, as well as a bulwark of the nation against attack from outside. Discipline is strict! while on duty, but off duty all ranks, high and low, freely mix on an easy and equal footing.- There is, in fact, no trace what- ever of that social gulf separating officer from man that is a so carefully, cultivated characteristic of some other European armies. In consequence, the difference of beating of the Red Army} the following gem: man from that of his Western equivalent is most marked. One| houses are vacant and THE LAND OF PROMISE LIES BEYOND JORDAN! Room for “Laborers and Their Betters”’ By ALEX REID. We are in receipt of a sheet issued by the chamber of commerce of Petersburg, Va., incorporated, of date July 8, 1925, from which we have dis4 covered that Petersburg is the center of blissful peace. All ye 100 per cent- ers turn your eyes towards Virginia, the land of promise and peace, the. land without labor trouble! Indeed, here at last is the land of rest and ° sublimity. On page one we find that “labor troubles are unknown in our city and™ all our citizens live a happy life,” and” from this statement we are supposed to believe the workers in that happy community receive comparatively high wages and are happy indeed. Then we turn to the wage scale ag, shown in page seven of the same docu- ment and we find the following reasox for their happiness: “Carpenters, 40 cents per hour. “Painters, 35 cents per hour. “Hod Carriers, 35 cents per hour, “Stonemasons, 50 cents per hour, “Labor both white and black, 25 to 30 cents per hour.” No need for comment. Under “Housing” heading, we find “A number of for rent. (These can see at once that pains have been taken during his training|are available for the better and the to stimulate intelligence, to develop consciousness of his rights | labor class.)” - as a human being, and to bring out individuality. All this in| Laborers and Their “Betters” Quite sharp contrast to the practice nearer home, and for an exactly contrary reason; in order, namely, to create a force consciously Distinct, It is not mentioned who are the bet- ready and eager to defend the workers, its own fellows, against] ‘€" lass, but knowing the tribe that either outside or inside attack. ai The members of the Delegation visited various Red Army barracks and clabs. The most noticeable feature was the ex- cellent provision made for education—political, professional and are generally members of the cham-: bers of commerce, we know they d6n’t mean the workers by any means. In- deed, the C. of C.’s statement miakes clear that workers and their “betters” general. In each barrack, there is a room known as the “Lenin| are different species. It will be inter- Corner.” On the walls are the usual “wallpaper” contributions | esting to the ku kluxers and babbittry of the soldiers themselves. Rooms are provided for readirig, |to know that there are Lions clubs and education, recreation, and lectures, all of which are organized} rotary clubs where they may sport clary were instruments of the previous ruling class. by the men themselves. I seems thoroughly healthy—the young soldiers and their girl friends freely using them for games, dancing and co-education. Red Army cducation is the most powerful instrument for com- bating illiteracy and the insanitary ways of Russian village life. The social atmosphere in these clubs] themselves, Under the head of “Labor Laws,” there is a blank. Nuf sed. A good supply of slaves are guaranteed to the business inclined, but this will not give much comfort to the hundreds of The education given in the Red Army is, of course, entirely | unemployed that are running around Communist in character, but there appears to be more freedorn the country looking for work. They for political discussion than is usually considered compatible | state that they have “a good supply with Army discipline. i hesitation in producing humorous drawings of incidents i: connection with Army regulations. The soldiers run their ow: eranuitic societies and arrange their own entertainments. The ma} «entertain their friends in barracks. Soldiers get two hours a day general education and one hour political., Technical training is not provided, but soldiers ean visit factories for instruction. For example “wallpaper” artists have no] of labor with a surplus #f male and ‘emale, white and colored.” Another gem. Under the heading of ‘Unions and Labor Trouble,” “Peters- burg is an open shop town.” When anyone reads the wage scale it is unnessary to tell them it is open shop, another name for the American plan, the great plan of our American Soldiers are under no restrictions as to taking part in po-| babbitts that guarantees to the slaves litical and social life. The pay is one rouble, 30 kopecks per month, as compare with the Tsarist pay of 50 kopecks per month in peace time and 75 kopecks per month in war. Accommodation in bar- racks is not so good as that provided in the British Army, but an equal opportunity to starve. Work- d ers! why don’t you indorse such an advantageous plan? A few open shop mines are some- where around the hillsides, but they don’t quote wages. Anyone interested relatively better allowing for Russian standards of comfort. | in the soft coal mines may find the in- General Conclusion The preceding shows that the present Red Army is not onl) a very different institution from the old Tsarist Army, but has also developed into something very different from the revolu- tionary army of the civil wars. intensive course of education in their civil responsibilities. emotional appeal is to proletarian solidarity, not to patriotic sentiment, and it seems even more effective in stimulating their military enthusiasm and efficiency. It is evident to the Delegation that in the Red Army a sol- dier is not only a citizen, but that his soldiering is utilized to in- struct him in citizenship, and that discipline does not seem to siffer thereby. CHAPTER VII The Judiciary Early Revolutionary Judicature . One of the first acts of the October Revolution was to es- It is now composed of young | congenial for industrial workers. sh aaah tis fat service, are put through an| there are any doubting Thom reeruits who, during their whole se are p §) The | lead them to the wage scale. formation he wants by writing to the sounty poor farm or bughouse near Yetersburg. %s Very Congenial, “Social and living conditions are All those looking for peace and hap- piness will climb on board. We are bound for the south, but not for, Petersburg! > Organize P>, Silk Mille, - ALLENTOWN, Pa., Aug. 9.—An ine tensive drive to organize Allentown silk mills with the intention of bring: ing the 8-hour day in all Pennsylvania silk mills is being conducted by the Associated Silk Workers’ Union, The local of the associated has mostly rib- bon weavers organized at present. Al- lentown mills are busy, many working at night as well as day, and 50 hours tablish a judicial system by a decree of November 24th, 1917. | per week prevailing. , It abolished all the existing judiciary with one exception, that In double-shift mills women. work of the Justices of the Peace. The motive for this was the gen-| from 6 a. m. to 2p. m., or from 2 p eral conviction, justified by experience, that the Tsarist Judi-|m. to 10 p. m. The law does not The Jus-| permit women to work after 10 p,m, tices of the Peace were a concession to the people, granted un-| More Uniform wage scales will be der the reforming regime of Alexander the managed to survive the subsequent reaction. They had, how- ever, been restricted to civil cases, not exceeding £25 1n value, and to criminal eases up to six months’ imprisonment. (To be continued in next hate)" iberator, that had sought later and organization work ex- tended to Easton, Phillipsburg and other Pennsylvania towns. i Get a bundle for every meet- ing of your trade union local, —