Evening star., 1922-02-05
RUSSIANS REDUCE
GRAIN ALLOWANCE
Force Government Workers
to Buy Food at Market
Prices, Now Rising.
BY LOUIS LEVINE.

By Cable to The Star and Chicago Daily News
Copyright, 1872.
MOSCOW, Russia, February 4.-The
soviet government announces that II
will reduce the grain allowance from
14,50O,OOO pools (5S0.000,000 pounds)
to II, 100000 pools (440,000,000 pounds)
a month. This will affect the 100000
workers and employees in the govern:
ment factories and institutions, who
will no longer receive part of their
wages and salaries in natural prod
ucts at low, fixed prices. Hereafter
they will be paid entirely in cash and
thus will be obliged to buy bread at
the market prices. which aredncreas-
ing steadily and frightfully.
The government took this step re-
luctantly, being forced to it by the
food and fuel crisis. which has been
growing worse. The authorities doubt
if they can collect the annual 1000
tax of 160.00O,000 pools (6,4OO, OO0,O00
pounds) of grain. They are uncertain
also as to their ability to obtain the
purchase or in other ways. Up to date
The total collected in soviet Russia IS
l25,O0O,O0O pools (5.00O,000.O00 poundso J
of grain, of which only 97OO0,0oO
pCodS (3,SSV,uVV,VVV pounuSI ~
taxes. the remainder being in ex-
change for manufactured articles;
Thus the government has collected 6O
per cent of the tax.
Chief Causes Of Crisis.
In October and November the gov
.rument collected 55,000,0C0 pools
,22OO,0O0,00 pounds, but in Decem, +,
off. The chief causes of the Crisis are
l. The difficulty of collecting taxes,
even in provinces having fair crops,
because of the talk of taxing mach,n-
cry and the avoidance of the tax by
2. The failure of Ukrainia to meet
axnectatious. The government
thought it could obtain 57,ooo,ooo
poods (2,2S0.000,00O pounds there
partly in taxes and partly by eX-
actually received 14.ooO.00O (5so.ooo..-
600 pounds) of -four. Ukrainia and
the Crimea are both starving. only
half of the Ukrainian districts nave
enough food for local purposes and
only Volhynia, Podolia and kiev haye
a surplus. This is exported Illegally
to Holland and elsewhere. Hundreds
of thousands of peasants are eating
grass substitutes for bread. the
Ukrainian government is having DIFF
ficulty in collecting its own food tax
and there is no question OF supplying
soviet Russia.
3. The transport difficulty. The
Siberian government collected 27,000.-
600 poods G,OSO,0OO,00O pounds) Of
grain. but up to January l. 1t had ex-
ported only 100000 pools d60,00O,-
400 pounds. the remainder lying at
railroad stations and at assembling
points miles away from the line. The
government is making strenuous ef-
forts to move the grain and M.
Dzerihinsky, commissar of railroads,
is now in Siberia. The problem is
complex in view of the shortage of
fuel, cars, locomotives and railroad
the government to curtail the famine
relief 1t must be remembered that.
besides the foreign relief, there are
two other sources of help--he gov
ernment and voluntary contributions.
American Relief Work.
Besides providing 6,1S7 kitchens
with food and help, the American Re-
lief Administrator is feeding 1,1G0.-
900 persons. Other foreign relief
agencies provide 169 kitchens and
feed 10000 persons. The Russian
government maintains 1925 kitchens
and feeds 800,0 900 persons. It is using
100000 poods (20,000,000 pounds) Of
grain a month, but is carrying out
only one-third of it's program. The
In December the relief committees
expected 100000 pools (SO,000,00
pCunds) of grain, but collected only
5000 poods (24,000.000 pounds). The
capacity Of the people to give is
lessening.
In view of this, the arrival of
American grain is anxiously awaited.
1t has been announced tentatively
that the sAmerican Relief Admins
tration will provide 100000 adults