New Mexico state record. (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1914-19??, 1920-07-09
PROBLEMS FACING
STRICKEN WORLD
Shall Chaos or Reconstruction in
Europe Follow the Great
World War;
CLASH OF FACT AND THEORY
Socialistic Idea of Conditions In World
Where All Men Are on ar Equality
Takes No Thought, Overlooks
Basic Fact In Nature.
Article XIV.
By FRANK ~coMERFoRO.

BY FRANK COMERFORO.
On November 10, 1917. the bolshe-
vik government was born. On Dec. 10,
1917. the b%olshevik government aboI-
ished private ownership of land. de-
claring all real estate the property of
the state. On February 10, 1918. they
issued a decree declaring all state
loans. internal and foreign. null and
void, confiscating all maritime enter
prises and all private banks to the
state, and Matchmaking foreign trade.
The constitution established the
communism of land in the following
words:
For the purpose of attaining the So
rlalization of land. all private prop
erty In land Is abolished and the en-
tire land Is declared to he national
property. and is to be apportioned
among agriculturists without any com
pensation to the former owners. In the
measure of each ones ability to Till
IT,"
The peasants Of Russia seized the
land. They willingly followed this
command of the new order. hut they
did not take the land as community
property. They are n q communists,
Their experience with communal land
owning had never satisfied them. I'm
Ter the old regime the peasants were
allotted land by the communal Mir.
The Mir held title to the land and di-
'Ided II by lot. The tenancy Of a farm
er on the land was uncertain under
he Mir system. The average length Of
the lease was about thirteen years.
Then came a new distribution Of the
Mir land. a new drawing. The peasant
was compelled to move to the new
strip of land allotted to him from the
drawing. This plan took from the
peasant all inducement to put his best
into the land. He had no motive for
Improving the land: II was not his.
At the next drawing II would probably
60 to another. and he in turn he shift.
ed on a piece of land which had been
neglected and allowed t deterlorate
Experience fred the peasant with one
thought. one ambition. t own his own
land. to have n permanent home.
something to work IN and work for.
So at the outset Of the program to
socialize the land we find the bolshe-
vik government attempting n commuD.
lstic program completely antagonistic
to the wishes Of the peasants.
Led to General Disorder.
Between the villages In Russia are
the great landed estates, the proprl-
etary land. These lands were the hest
lands In the vicinity and were well
cared or. When the order to seize
the land was given. the peasants turn
ed toward the proprietary lands. The
Villages fought with each other for the
possession and division of these
tempting estates. This was the begin.
ming of general disorder. small civil
war.
The b~olshevik government attempt
ed TO force It's program abolishing all
ownership of land. They JUS |
titled the confiscation of land, the
'" NV '''fiiiil'lliiNlb. w FtNl Va |
the earth belonged to the people, |
private title TO land was immoral |
and corrupt. that every man should |
have all the land he could actually
work. and not an acre more. They mr.
gued that II n man had more land
than he could work. n of two things
would happen: either he would allow
he land to remain idle. which would
he n waste. or he would hire
TO work II for him. They said the hired
nan would be either a farm laborer
Or n tenant; whichever relation he
to the owner Of the land. he
would he compelled to turn over part
If his labor 10 the landowner. In one
.nse II would he called rent, while II
receives wages. the wages would
'epresent something less than the
rnlue of the hired mans crop. This
would be the profit taken by the land.
'wner. They called this exploiting the
Instead of this condition. they
reasoned that the farm hand should
work this land and keep the full prod
ict for the state. In the plan of dis.
ribution the state. the owner of Every
hing. promised an equal distribution.
The bolsheviks argued that their pan
would make q better citizen on of
he hired man and give him an induce
nent to work. He was not ~ work
or himself. but for the good of all.
{ was q fine bit of idealism. but en-
irely contrary tn human nature. II
lad TO be worked out hy human he
ngs. Two things happened. One class
4 peasants worked the land only
nough to produce what they and their
needed. They reasoned. "why
hould we work after our needs are
upplied?" This natural attitude Of
hind reduced production. The theory
'hich promised increased production.
practice decreased production.
Refused to Share With State.
Another class Of peasants went onto
he land and worked hard and pro-
uced much. hut they refused TO give
p the product of their labor to the
tate. They reasoned that the result