The Washington herald., 1921-11-20
oCAc 6e,uAd3;
Scientific
Notes


SUNDAY. NOVEMBER 70. 1891.
RUSSIANS BETTER OFF. nut
PROFESSORS DO ODD JOBS.
~ Or. Vernon keIIess.
Permasent Secretary of the Natio.-
nj Research Council.
(Dr. Kellogg sous M. Hoouer's rioht-
hosd mon in the Belgium relief ,oort
during the todr. He has Just returned
from O frip into starving Russia, totth
the first American relief froiy
Through Science Service soe are abIs
to psbish this Interesting summa-y
, Of conditions in RHssian Enipersities1
For q long time after coming into
power the Soviet government OF
Russia maintained a seriously dis
couraging attitude toward the uni
versity faculties and the Russian
professional and scientific men In
general-the "intelligentsia" But
this attitude lie now modified and
still modifying. Along with the
other changes in attitude and &C
ton Characteristic Of the recent
months of Soviet government
changes very marked in relation To-
business and general economic mat
tiers, changes have also been msd-
] In the way of smeliorsting the sit
uation OF the university men.
The salaries, paid in paper rou-
| bles of constantly depreciating
value-they are now worth about
| 1900 TO the dollar-were very low
becoming. indeed, as the value OF
| the rouble lowered. simply derisor,.
But more important. in Russia. than
any salary paid in money
unless IL gets into millions q
( roubles a months the "paiok" a
spell IL as pronounced) OF food "a
I ton that is the essential part OF
( the reward for services TO the gov
eminent. As is Familiarity known
the Soviet government cStabHsh.d
several grades Of raticns according
I to various categOries into wh.rl
I the people could be roughly ~'vgu-
{ ed. The working man got the lars
est or best ration. the UniN,TsIt.
man nearly the lowest
In my recent CSeptember-O,'r-
berD visit to Russia as special rep
resentstive OF the American RELIEF
administration learned something
, at first hand Of the CLEANSING s,tu-
alton OF the university and pIuI-.-
sional men OF the country.
Samara is one OF the several u-y.
universities set Up by the Soviet
government II has four faculties.
medicine, law. agriculture, ana
workers" The workers faculty"
offers elementary classes FOR the
sons and daughters OF workinE men
/ and peasants 10 Mt them for ma
circulation in the professional de
partments OF the university. The
president OF Samara University.
himself a specialist tss he said) in
the Italian Renaissance. intimated
that this institution was meeting
many difficulties. the principal one
being that OF finance difficulty
not unknown outside Of Soviet Rus
STA. However. while we talked
students were going in and out Of
his office apparently on the usual
errands connected with registration
and other matters.
The salaries and "psiok" Of the
professors in the University OF Ka- Z
zan had been so meager that not a
man was able TO live on them. and
every professor was meeting hi
fsmily's needs for food By doing
something besides regular uniVor-
sity work. The means for keeping
himself and family alive were va
rious. but almost IN all cases they
included the successive sacrificing
OF personal and household belong
, ings. One professor OF biology told
me that he made shoes, and that hiS
wife baked cakes and sold them in
the city market He had sold an 81
his own and wifes simple Jewels
and trinkets and one Of his two
microscopes. Yet this man who
had not been able TO see any
books or papers published later
than 1914 has struggled along With
his special researches and has ac-
tually achieved two pieces 81 .N-
perimental work on Nitamircs
which seem TO me. with ms little
knowledge Of the subject. 10 r0n-
tribute certain definite new kuowI-
edge concerning these interesting
substances.
But beginning in August. there
had been a mater al increase .r
salary and in food ration. TIN.
monthly food ration had been paj
in August, on the following basis
dark mostly ryel rpur thirty
pounds: dried peas. nv. pounds rr.
real grits, fifteen pounds; sweets
| (not cane or beet suEa-), twr ana
one-half pounds: tobacco, three
fourths pound: butter. SIX pounds.
meat, fifteen pounds. fish. fyr
I pounds: tea. one-fourth U'u2G,
white -four, five pounds. Tho itrA-
from dark -four % tobacco. Irr'U-
sively. had been received. rhc RS
of them promised. hut not receive
About $50 professors and instrug-
tors receive this ration. The M b.
versity buildings are 50 cold thst
most of the men do an their work
except Occurring m their homes
About 5000 students had registered
but only about 10 per cent Or them
were in actual attendance. The
largest departments In point Or
student enrolment were medicln"
and science. My friend. the protcs
scr of biology, had never before
ridden In an automobile until n"
rode with me in our relief car.
About twenty men q the kazsu
I faculfN haua dfaH II Fha last two