The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1921-03-26
SPARGO OPPOSES
TRADE COMPACT
WITH BOLSHEVIKS
Sees Menace in Recent Proposal
OF SOviets
NO DELEGATION NEEDED
Commercial Agents from Russia
Likely to Become Dan
gerOus PrOpOgandists

Editor of the Banner; In your is.
sue of last evening you say: by all
means trade relat ons " tn Russia
should be resumed at once" You
argue that what little trade is possible
WI help the poor unfortunate Rus
slams and WI not hurt the rest Of the
world, and that it will make 1t easy
for those crack-brained Americans
who think they favor Bolsheyism, to
90 over and try It awhile"
VIII you permit me to say briefly
that while you manifest a correct un-
derstanding of the present economic
condition in Russ a. and correctly ap-
prase the silly propaandist humbug
about the "yast trade possibilities Of
Russia at the present time, you ap-
pear to misunderstood the political
aspect Of the question of trade rela-
tlOns as il affects the United States.
So far as the United States Govern
Iment is concerned there is no prohi.
bton OF trade with Soviet Russia
There is mtei embargo which pro
hibits the expectation to Russia of
guns and ammunition and other pri-
mary war mater ais. The reason for
th embargo are obvious enough. and
even the l}olshevld themselves have
met ser Ously protested against the
embargo. Any American manufactur-
er or trader who has anything that he
believes he can sell 20 Russia. is at
liberty to do so, provided only that he
VIII accept al the risks involved in
such trade This is prec sely the at.
ttude of the Government in the mat
ter Of trade with Mexico, to which
YOU refe.'
American firms are already and
have been for several months, trading
with Sow ct Russia No change in our
pol cy is necessary to make il possible
for "crack.bHaiued Americans or
Americans OF any kind, to go to
Soviet Russia While the State DC.
Ipartment does not issue passports to
! Russ a, for the reason that we do not
| recognize the Soviet Government,
passports are issued to Esthonia, the
new State carved out of a former Rus
s an empire and bordering upon Soviet
Russia Once the American has
reached EsthOnia 1t is not at al f.
icult to make arrangements to enter
Soviet Russia-prOyided the Soviet
authorities are vii, ng, and, of course,
if they We're not wiling such entry
would be forb dden, even If normal
political relations We're established
The Soviet Government, on the
other hand, does not perm t any Rus.
sian citizen to trade " III the United
States or any othe foreign nation.
It has made trade an absolute mono
/ poly Of the Government Herein lies
the first difficulty; while the indivd
al American trader can Sc goods to
/ the Soviet Government, through the
latter representatives. that arrange
ment does not satisfy the Soviet Gov.
ernment Therefore, it is seeking a
special trade treaty Having practical.
/ ly nothing TO export except some
stolen gold it must arrange for
Ic'ed.ts upon an immense scale If 1
can receive those credits there is a
possibility Of its endurance for a long
time to come. Certainly, there is
nothing that we know about the Boil
shev HI which would Justify the be-
/ lief that extensive credits can be CIV
en- to them without seriously endang.
ering our own economic life.
The goods which the Bolsheyiki are
most desperately in need of, notably
( locomOt YES and electrical machinery
can be purchased today for cash in
Germany and delivered to the Russian
border for less than IS per cent. OF
what it costs to manufacture them in
this country The Russians know
this, for they have their trade repre-
sentatiyes In Germany. just as Ger
many has her trade representatives, in
Sow ct Russia Yet the purchases are
met being made
The Soviet Government has appeal
ed to Pres dent Harding to be permit
ted to send a delegat on of trade rep
lresentatiyes 10 this country. Now il
is quite obvious that there is not the
slightest need for such delegation tC
Wis the United States Our indus
trial capacity and resources are suf
hciently wellknown, and do not need
investigation The most rauona
lCONISe NOUlV ne lot us W StUu
small expert economic comm ss'on t.
Russia to ascertain her needs, the
possibilities of payment, the available
securities for credit, and so on
A BolShev'st trade M ssion in this
country would inevitably become The
center of the Bolsheyist agitation, o
which we have far too much already
There is on file in the state Depart
ment at Washington a mass Of eyi
denCe to show that the Bolsheylsi
trade en- ssar es have conspret
against the Governments which gave
them hospitality This was true in
England in the case of Kameney II
was true also in Germany in the case
OF Joffe. Here in the United States
with our large alien population, only
partially assimilated at best, we can
not attord to expose ourselves to that
DANCE
May / add that a. the leaders of the
democratic forces of Russia, whC
have been maintaining the struggle
against Bolshevism, and are striving t
br ng about the restoration of norma
conditions IN that unhappy country