The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1917-06-02
MIRACLE TO SAVE RUSSIA.
MINISTER OF FINANCE STATES
INDUSTRIAL CRISIS so GREAT
COUNTRY FACES ECO.
NOMIC RUIN,
Unless Government Finds Solution
Soon Plants Working for DOZENS,
Will Shut Down-Big Factories Al.
ready Closing. -

Russia is so acute that, according to
recent utterance of the minister of
"nance' M. Shingaroff, only miracle
can save the country from economic
ruin. The demands Of the workmen
were SO enormous. he declared, that
IL seemed impossible to keep the in
dnstrial wheels going for any great
length Of time.
The Socialist members at a recen.
ministerial council. said that the only
possibility they saw of settling the
dinicuity W.T. bring the war =, a
close
Neitherf the coalition cabinet nor
the newly appointed commission to
regulate the difficulties between cap
itai and labor has yet found a way to
settle the Industrial crisis. The com
mission is composed of the ministers
of finance. trade and industry and
labor, but since there Is a wide di-
vergence Of views between the minister
or finance and the new socialistic
minister OF labor. ii seems probable
that this commission will be con-
rronted with the same difficulties that
attended previous efforts at reconcile
alton. rs
An investigation of the factory
conditions I'm Petrograd leads to the
alarming but inevitable conclusion
that unless the government soon finds
"a means OF adjusting the present diff.
ficulties most Of the Industrial enter
prises working for national defense
will be compelled to close within a
few months. tN
TIE outstanding features OF the la
Dor situation are as follows:
An investigation shows that vir-
tuaiiy the same difficulties prevail in
all the big factories in Petrograd, ana
apparently authentic reports from
Moscow. Donetz and UraI districts in
dicate general disorganization. In
many Of the factories the demands
by the workmen for increased wages
are actually greater than the entire
profits of the factories under the best
conditions of production. The work.
men, through their committees. are
In virtual command of the factories
and all business has to be submitted
to them for approval. Wages In a
majority Of the factories havo already
been increased from 100 to $50 per
cent, but there has yet been no offset
in an advance of prices of output.
In number Of the works in Petro-
grad the workmen recently demanded
the Immediate payment of $4,000, 900
ruhles--normally $6.500. 0.O0O--to cover
an increase OF fifteen kopecks an
hour for each workman since the be-
ginning of the war. The directors of
the organization Immediately commu-
nicated with the government and
asked to be placed under voluntary
arrest as protection against the
threats OF the wOrkmen, which. as
usual. accompanied the demands.
The directors were two days housed
in the ministry Of justice. The gov
ernment finally informed the directors
that the matter would be considered,
and with the demand of the workmen
held temporarily In allegiance. the di-
rectors returned to the factory.
An eight-hour day has become ef-
fective in all factories According TO
the estimate of leading manufactur-
er, the output of these factories has
suffered an average decrease OF 40
per cent since the revolution. He en-
planned that all these concerns were
confronted with an imminent short
age of raw materials and with bank
ruptcy.
| Not only have the prices of pro-
ducts not met the advance i'm wages,
/ hut payment has been so slow that
industry is I'm urgent need Of working
capital. The manufacturers find It
difficult To borrow money, as the
banks naturally are not eager to ex-
tend credit To factories which are In
control OF temporary wOrkmen's COM
mittces. AZ n result some OF the fac
tories. according to this informant
will be compelled to close within Il
month. An ironiCal feature of the
difficulties confronting the employers IS
the fact that although suffering seri-
Gus loss, they do not dare to close
their establishment, owing to threats
of bodily and material vengeance. The
far has superseded the authority of
| ihn Nn In,