Polk County news. [volume] (Benton, Tenn.) 191?-1983, 1920-05-13
Shall Chaos or Reconstruction
in Europe Follow the Great
World War?
RUSSIA OUT OF BALANCE
That lts Industrial Life Has Not Kept
Pace With Its Agricultural Has
Been Fatal to country's
Prosperity.
Article XVIII.
BY FRANK coMERFoRD.

Less Indn ~ per cent OF the people
OF Russia permanently" live in cities
or towns. l write the word "perma-
nently" to call attention to the fact
that a number of peasants and viii
layers come to the cities and towns
to work for part Of the year in the
industries. They retain their peasant
status and their dOmiciles in the vii
lagos. In 1910 there were ouly forty
| cities In the Russian empire with a
population of from $4,000 to 100000; ;
only four cities with population of
over 100000.
Poverty forced upon the Russian
people the cooperative spirit. In
great. long strain people can stand up
together better than alone. 1t is the
idea of consolation In compani0nship.
1t is principle of mass psychology
that group of men will dare to do a
thing. to stand q suffering or a dam
ger that no individual in the crowd
would undertake alone The Russians
have suffered from the dawn of his
tory, and one of the Oldest institutions
of Russian life Is the Artel. The Ariel
very much resembles the cooperative.
society of western Europe, with this
difference that the cooperative soci-
HEy ii Eufefe isiI AnssFl id i2 liig nssts
growth Of an eeonomies trend. IN Rus
sia II was the unprecedented result !
of necessity. 1t is the difference be
tween one who is hungry because he
Is dieting and one who is starving be |
cause he Is without food.
The workers of Russia have suffered |
the same slavery the peasants have en-
dured. The maximum wage has been
Ing men from province come to
city to work in the textile industries
or as carpenters, maSOns, etc, they at
once unite in groups of from ten to
fifty persons, rent house, keep a
common table, elect an elder of the
share of the expense. All over Rus
sia one finds the Artel-in the cities
In the lumber camps. even in the
prisons. When building is to be put
up an Artel Is organized. When a rail
road is being buiIt an Artel is formed.
In some instances the Artel resembles
a labor union, in that the arrangement
Of the terms of employment is. made
by delegate or committee appointed
by the Artel.
Live in Squalor and Misery.
Village life is primitive. The viii
1ixrn Ynf bn world ].
ages are very small, particularly in
the extreme north. The houses are
generally cheap wooden shanties. OW
ng to the great danger of fire. the vii ,
ages generally cover large area o
ground. The houses are scattered and
struggling. The cOnvenienceS found
wen in the American tenements arr
Unknown. There is no chance fo'
They live and sleep n Y
rowded smoky. unfinished houses '
rurnlture-they haven't what we cal !
urniture. even what the poorest farm q
enant In America would call furnish T
ngs. board for table, shake $
own far a bed.
Russa's Industrial life has Away u
cen out of balance with her agricui Y
lral life. Notwithstanding her riches II
raw material and her great posi-. II
ilties for a successful Industrial life u
ussia has continued to be II nation 81
18th 81 per cent farmers, Z or s per G
ant permanently engaged In industry i'
nd 3 or per cent of peasants who
evoted part of the time TO work IN p'
he industries. II has been said re IL
that the imperial Russian ~
)vernment from the time of Peter the nc
reat has been unceaSlng In Its efforts u'
II the creation and development of "
,me manufactures. All Of the evl W
,nce | have examined refutes this ''
atempnt There never has been any 3.
curity to the worker I'm Russia. The
u protection he has had has beer n
s interest In the family allotment y
e could go back there and be hun 4
v: In the city starvation was the
niger. n
The czars put every obstacle In the -
Nv OF education and of course this
evented the growth Of industry.
In 1902 the principal Industries In -.
issla, representing all OF the facto ~
IS throughout the empire, Of which -.
= annual production was valued ui
,re than $1,000, were textiles, food
oducts. animal products wood, pa