The Cordova daily times., 1920-09-23
RUSSIAN TRADE
 IS NOT LIKELY
 TO INCREASE


 to export raw materials in the near future has been greatly over estimat- ed by foreign countries in the opinion of Colonel B. Englehard, formerly a member of the Russian Duma and student of economic conditions in Rus sia before and after the revolution In talk with an Associated Press correspondent he said that foreigners seem to fail to realize the collapse of the Russian transportation systems, reduced to manpower and rundown condition of the Russian farm lands.
 This comment was evoked by re- ports of the negotiations of Russian economic agents with Premier Lloyd George in London and the announce ment that the United States had lift ed prohibition upon American trade with Soviet Russia.
 Colonel Englehard is confident that Russia will again play an important role in European markets but, said he, <'the revival of Russian trade will not come until there shall be established normal state of life when men shall renounce attempts of establishing i'm mediately the paradise of communism. Tt should be borne in mind that European Russia has been greatly re- duced in size," said Colonel Englehard Formerly it had over 5,0OO0OO square kilometers of land and 157, 100000 in- habitants. Poland, Finland, great part of the Caucasuns and several Baltic provinces, with about 50.000,- 900 inhabitants and about 1,250,1G0 square kilometers of land have de tached themselves. The greater part of these detached territories or dinarily had a notable surplus of grain and othe farm products which con- stituted the major part of Russia's ex- ports.
 "In 1913, the last year when condi- tions were normal in Russia, exports were valued at 15OO, O,OOO,OOO gold rubles or S750,OOO,O00 The greatest single item on that list was grain. The total grain exports were 12,S70,O00 tons, valued at $325 ,000,O00 European Rus sia used to harvest 5S,500,000 tons of grain annually. With it's reduced area and with the breaking up of big es- tates, lack of machinery and ruin that was wrought by continuous war in many of it's most fertile areas it may be affirmed the grain harvest of the soviet republic will scarcely reach 315O0,OOO tons annually. One cannot say now what events here will be in the immediate future. So far as Siberia and the provinces in Central Asia are concerned they used to pro- duce 800 pounds of grain for each in- habitant and it is doubtful whether any considerable quantity of grain can be exported from Siberia
 Colonel Englehard says livestock of all sorts has been reduced so greatly
 
 consider the exportation of meat or live animals. The civil war in the Don and Kuban wiped out the sheep there and make the extensive exporta- tion of wool impossible. The sugar industry is so disorganized and fuel so scarce he does not believe soviet Russia will be able to supply it's local market for many years
 Flax is the one product which Col will be able to export in large quanti- ties immediately.
 Oil is the greatest hope of the sov jet government in the opinion of Col nel Englehard. Large quantities of oil still are stored and produced in the Baker fields and it is the product which all the world is seeking. Fight ing has interrupted the Baku-Batum pipeline repeatedly during the last few months, but Georgia and the Bolshev- iki have now reached an agreement and the prospects are better for oil sales in Batum. The Grozny oil field, which is entirely dependent upon the Vladikavakas railway for transporta- tion is also in the hands of the BOl- sheviki, who have control of the rail- way and can readily transfer the pro- duct to Baku if rolling stock is avail able.
 But up to the present time the Bol- sheyik regime has only diminished the production of oil,' said Colonel Engle- hard. 'It seems certain that the na- tionalization of enterprises every place by the Communists will work the same havoc in the oil fields that it has in the Russian industries as r1 O1