New Britain herald., 1921-12-28
RUSSIAN SOVIET
 NINTH MEETING
Congress Will Consider Many
 Formidable Questions

Moscow, Dec 2S.-Many Formidable questions appear on the agendu of the ninth ull-Russian soviet congress which convened here on Tuesday December 20. Foremost among these 1ro the consideration of the pre- liminary results of the new economic policy which abandons communism to considerable extent, and the ta- mine which threatens to wipe out mil- lions of Russians in the NolGa dis tricts before the next harvest
 II is more than q year since the last meeting of the all-Russian soviet congress and the congress has actual ly become much less important than might be imagined from reading the soviet constitution, It has over 2,0OO members. Village and town soviets call elections by means of which dele gates are selected to attend conVcn- tons in provincial capitals which designate the delegates to the Mos COW congress,
 Only workmcn. soldiers, sailors and peasants who do not employ any la- borers except their own families, arc entitled to vote under the constitu- tion. Bolshevists make no claim that the elections to the congress are democratic. They frankly call their system q dictatorship of the proIe- tariat and do not pretend that their government has the support Of a ma jority of Russians.
 At every session of the all Russian soviet congress a central executive committee of about 200 members is elected which holds office until the next congress is called and is the body in which the chief functions of gov ernment are vested by the constitu- ton.
 In practice this committee, whose members are scattered all over the Russian republic and federated gov crnments, has been found unwieldy. IL is too large to assemble convenient ly. By degrees the actual control of affairs shifted to the council of com nlssars, which corresponds 10 a cabi- net, and Is under the chairmanship of Nilolai Lenine.
 M. Kalcninc, who is the legal head of the government and is generally spoken of as president of the republic,
  sian sovct congress by virtue of his position as chairman of the central executive committee of that body He signs treaties, grants parGons, receives diplomatic representatives and per forms other more or less formal tasks, but has no such powers as are vested in the American president
 The calling of the all Russian soviet congress at thls time is probably due to the fact that the government de sires formal approval of it's changes in economic policy by more or less representative body
 Leon TrOtzky will address the con gross concerning the army and mili- tary affairs. Lenine will speak on the changed economic policy. kamenoff will discuss the famine. Chicherin will report on international relations and Bagdanof, chairman of the su- preme economic council, will discuss the progress of plans for the revival of industries. The re-establishment of agriculture will also be considered.
 Sessions of the congress generally last about week and resemble the national convention of an American political party nOre than a session of the American COnPt ass. Commissars make reports of the work of their de- partmants, the central executive com mlttee makes . report and nomina- tions are made for a new central executive committee which is promptly elected and the session ad- journed.