The New York herald., 1922-10-22

first time in Russia, and is to be found
not only among the Bolsheviks but
also among the peasants. who believe
that France and England induced the
Gar TO sacrifice millions of them in
an imperialistic war with which Rus
sia had no concern. and even among
the old bourgeoisie. nobility and milf
tary men. who blame the Western
Powers for not intervening strongly
enough The peasants who boarded
Romanov paper money are not
, pleased, II is true. to find that It is
now worthless: but those who boarded
gold are fairly well satisfied; and.
in any case. the great mass of the
peasants boarded nothing and are
now starting, without a handi-
cap, on the new money, which
they receive at present from private
grain merchants green grocers. bakers
and spectators in exchange for their
crops. Consequently the peasants are
on the whole behind the Soviet Gov
ernment: so an ex-landowner admitted
sorrowfully to me to-day
One OF the most striking sights in
the streets OF Moscow to-day is the
enormous number OF people who are
selling things at booths, or out OF
baskets on the curbstone, or out OF
boxes or hats. Hawking was forbid
den in Russia two years ago: but that
repression has only made the disease
break out with a virulence that re-
minds one Of an Oriental bazaar. Along
the ratings of the churches are ranged
women who sell cigarettes. matches.
needles. thimbles and every sort OF
small hardware. Students and grown
men are frequently to be seen at the
street corners selling flowers. Station
ary hawkers specialize in hammers.
nails. pincers. pocket knives and all
kinds of cutlery. Itinerant hawkers
carry apples, boot laces, bread, eggs
and onions; while at temporary stalls
you can buy grapes, chocolate, ice
cream. cakes and every kind OF fruit
and vegetable that can be had at this
season. :
There are many temporary book
shops where one can sometimes find
among dreary litter OF old almanacs
and school books odd volumes from the
Libraries Of vanished noblemen. Many
shoemakers ply their trade on the
pavement, and 1 saw yesterday a
plump and gaudily dressed young lady
being shod in the street. like a horse
the shoemaker holding her foot be-
tween his knees while he hammered
a piece of india rubber on to her small
heel. In the markets the variety Of
the objects sold is SO great that can
not give list Of them. There is
brisk business done in furniture, cloth
ing. cameras and field glasses.
The result, then, Of the ambitious
policy which was to create one colossal
business concern OF Russia-namely.
the Russian Government itself-has
been the creation Of the largest num-
Der Of small hawkers that ever
blocked the streets OF city. The
small shopkeeper-a respectable and
deserving member Of all civilized com
munities-was crushed. but now he
is allowed to open shop again, with
crowds of unlicensed peddlers outside
his window, and the Governments
liberation of these peddlers fs prob
ably due to its dislike for the small
shopkeeper.
Shops Boast of Selling
Trust Manufactured Goods
Big business seems, however, TO
have a curious fascination for it. In
a draper's shop on the Tverskaya
saw yesterday a notice boasting that
the firm represented "s9 Trusts and
453 Factories" but the rolls Of cloth
in the window were very inferior stuff.
This draper was a Government SER
want. and the trusts and factories
were Government institutions, which
are run at a loss to the State, though
II is not the common people who bene-
At. for the cloth is dearer than English
cloth Is in England This ruinous sys-
tenn Of Governmental capitalism can
not continue indefinitely. and when It
disappears along with the street
hawker stage we may find Russia
dominated by ring OF the most CO.
lossal private capitalists that the
world has yet seen. The Bolsheviks
admit that this danger exists, but
they think that they can avoid Il. I
don't think they can.
Moscow is not only busy, II II even
gay. The streets are crowded all night
with people listening to open air con-
certs given by itinerant musicians.
The parks are also crowded till morn
ing with people Of both sexes listening
to bad music and drinking inferior
beer; this is a revival of the old Gus
tom OF crowding into the "sadi' (gar-
dens) during the white nights" TO