The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1920-12-21
RUSSIA
HAS QUIT
FIGHTING
Soviet Government Is Anxious
To Have No War and
A Lasting Peace
BT LOUISE BRYANT

tSTAFF CORRESPONDENT I. N. SERVlCEl
Copyright. 1920, BY the I. \. Service.)
MOSCOW. eBy wireless TO Berlinl.
Dec. 21.-soviet Russia viii have its
FIRST peace Christmas this year since
the creation Of the soviet form Of gov
crnment, This was the message sent
TO the outside world today by Leon
Trotsky. peoples commiSsar Of war.
Trotsky has just returned from South
Russia where he directed military op-
erations on the Crimean front. lie
says that Russia is not making any
preparations for %nture lighting. All
1he energies of the soviet, he says, are
now being turned toward the economic
upbuuding Of the country.
CNoTE-According to press dis
patches from Constantinople Soviet
Russia has embarked on a new war in
Tersia, using troops that crushed Gen.
WrangeTs anti -Bolshevi'1 army. Con
stantinople reported that the Russian
reds had invaded northwestern Persia
and we're advancing on Tabriz, over
coming all opposition)
Seated in his office, in the building
OF the Supreme Revolution War Coun-
cil. Trotsky dictated the following
statement:
As 10 the situation on the fronts,
may say that at this moment we
have no active front. In the south We
have eliminated Wrangel. In the west
and southwest VIC have eliminated Pet
lura and Balachoyitch. In the far east
NC have routed the icgions Of Semen
off. This is the first occasion in the
past three years that the military sit
ration in Russia has given way To
tranquility. There is no lighting any
here Just at present.
Tho military reports from the
fronts deal only with the Te-orSaniza-
tiou with the newly liberated districts
and with the enumeration OF booty
captured by our armies"
How long do you expect this period
TO last?' Trotsky was asked
lie replied;
In this regard you ought 70 look
fer enlightenment beyond boundaries
Of Soviet Russia; in those official head
quarters where all plots and attacks
and campaigns against Soviet Russia
are being manufactured.
we want lasting peace. we wanted
last spring. We slRuld think that the
entente would grant concessions now
that we have offered amnesty to the
Wrsngel crowd and in view OF the
utter hopelessness Of their undertake
ing.
Russian peace. however, was not
wanted in Paris and London. The re
suit has been that after bitter strug-
Gle and immeasurable losses POLAND
sot less than we had been Offering her
Wrangel's adventure in South Russia
swallowed up some tens Of thousand:
OF lives and few billions OF francs
The result is that WraGgefs hordeS
were annihilated."
What do you regard as the ehiei
problem Of the moment" Trotsky was
asked. He responded:
The economic problem. You know
tnat I recently returned from the
Donetz basin where 1 together with &
commission sent by the council peo'
ple's commissars studied conditions IL
The coal and iron field, We learnsc
that the metal Industries and the Goa
mines in the Donetz basin are now be-
yond danger either from Armenia ol
the Caucasus. 1t is quite possible tc
double or even treble the product oi
coal within the next fe wmonths.
am convinced that the measures take-
by the government guarantees salts
factory results. We are restarting tn
big metal factories in the south Rail
vay transport is improving. The at
tention OF the country is being dire-r
ed from questions Of politics and wal
10 economic construction. We ar
very much interested in internationa
trade. Still more we would like to b'
left in peace. On this condition W.
could pledge ourselves not to unsheatl
4 e sword IN the future
What are your purely military
problems?" Trotsky was asked.
He replied:
We wish to decrease considerabi:
re numbers Of the men in the arm,
but at the same time increase the fight
ing ability of the army. The capital
istic press has fed its readers on fancy
stories about the alleged disintegra
tion OF the red army and about Com
rade Budennys betrayal and so on
There sti1l may be in Europe som
numskuIs who believe such tales q!
these"