New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1921-08-20
Bolshevism and Ruin
Authenticity of Disputed Quotation
From the Pravda


80 From the Pravda
To the Editor oi The Tribune.
Sir: In your issue of August IL .
letter was printed, signed by Kenneth
Durant, publisher of the Soviet Rus
STA, stating that neither the Moscow
Pravda nor the Petrograd Pravda Of
July ID contains the quotation l gave
to the press several days ago.
wish to cay that I have taken this
quotation from the Posledniya Novosti
of July %, 1921, Russian daily, pub
lished in Paris under the editorship of
Professor Paul N. Miliukov, former
Minister CT Foreign Affairs in the Rus
sian provisional government l hav=
received several copies Of the Moscow
Pravda for July, the latest of them q
July l6, but unfortunately the issue
Of July 13 has not reached me yet.
Since Mr.. Durant states that the state
ment I quoted, taking it from Profo<-
sor Miliukov's paper. is not contained
in the issue of July IL think that
there was a misprint in the Posledniys
Novosti, and while the statement ap-
peared in Pravda, it probably ap-
peared not on July 10, but on some
other date
I may add that we receive all the
Bolshcvist publications regularly and
usually quote from these publications
directly. There were many statements
issued by me during the last four years,
and none of them was ever questioned
by the Bolshevist sympathizers in this
country, in spite of their natural in
clination to discredit our information
bureau, since it represents the forces
Of the Russian democracy opposed to
Bolshevism
Turning now to the statement quoted,
I wish to say that the Bolshevist prom
Use to retire mot without first tearing
up by the roots the last remnants OF
the past" so that chose who take our
places be compelled to build on the
ruins, amid the silence of cemetery"
is nothing but repetition Of the
we'll known statement by Trotzky, who
said about two years ago: ut is pos
sible that we will go, but if we do we
will slam the door SO that the entire
world will remember US"
Tha. Russia is already brought 20
ruin is acknowledged by Lenlne him
self in the Moscow Pravda of July 16,
1921, COPY of which lies before me. in
which he says that 1--WE are living IN
der conditions of such restitution, ruin
overstrain and exhaustion OF the prin-
cipal productive resources of the peas
ants and workers that we have tenn
Torarily to subordinate everything else
to this one fundamental consideration
by any and all means to increase
the amount of food products"
The same Pravda of July l6 acknowi-
edges editorially that "the condition
IN all branches of the national economy
Of Russia must be characterized as be-
ing near q catastrophe" and that this
is not mere phrase. but a bitter
reality After describing conditions
of the basic Russian industries. the
paper concludes: ut is perfectly Oh
vious that our whole industry is on the
brink of a catastrophe"
Whether the statement questioned
by Mr.. Dursnt appeared in Pravda on
July Is or on some other date is not
very important. 1t is clear that Profes'
sor Miliukov did not take it from the
air, and it is also clear that the state
mon. questioned, striking as it is, is in
full accord with the latest Bolshev'st
admissions. The Bolshevist regime has
already brought Russia to ruin, and
those who will succeed it will have :"
build. to a great degree, "amid tho
silence of cemetery"
A. J. SACK.
Director Russian Information Bu.
reau in the United States.
New York, Aug IS. 1921.