The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1927-11-02

most of our industrial states have the oppo-
site type of representation, giving the
country districts much greater proportional
representation than the Cities The provincial
soviet corresponds to our state legislature. 1t
takes charge of such activities as roads, high
schools, agricultural and health work, also
equalizing the burdens of taxation between
the richer and poorer localities.
The provincial soviet congresses elect dele
gates to the All-Russian Congress- 1t has been
commonly stated that the cities also send
representatives directly to this All-Russan
Congress, thus giving still further over-rep-
resentation to the urban workers. This con-
/ ception however, is erroneous. The cities do
not elect representatives directly to the All
Russian Congress, but instead only send them
| to the provincial congresses.
Within the last few years, the organization
Of the Russian state has been changed to pro-
vide greater flexibility and initiative for the
various nationalities It's name has been
changed from the Russian Socialist FEEDER
ated Soviet Republic to the Union of Socialist
| Soviet Republics. Russia is only one republic
in this union, although, Of course, it is the
largest and most important, including as it
does the whole OF Siberia. The others are
the Ukraine, White Russia The Transcauca-
sian, the Turkoman and the Uzbek Republics,
with some fifteen smaller Autonomous re-
publlcs, and sixteen Autonomous provinces
! to provide for the various racial minorities,
all of them being definitely socialist govern
ments. The way is left open for other ma
tons which embrace Communism and adopt
the soviet form Of government to join this
union. Thus if Germany were to turn Soviet,
! it could be admitted to the Union. The ulti-
mate aim is to build up a federation which will
be Soviet League Of Nations, but with much
more centralized power than the present
League possesses.
The All-Union Congress has about 1900
members. This makes it somewhat cumbrous,
SO that it only meets for approximately one
week every two years. 1t therefore decides
only general policies, turning over most of the
legislative functions to the Central Executive
! Committee of the Union, composed of Ala
representatives, elected by the All-Russian
Congress, and 100 elected by the various re-
publics. This committee passes most of the
fundamental laws of the Union, and chooses a
|presidium of twenty-one members, which is
| the supreme authority between sessions of the
Central Executive Committee. The Central
Executive Committee also elects the Council
I of Peoples Commissars, who are the execu-
tive heads of the various major departments.
There is a unified administration for the
whole Union of some of the departments, such
as War, Foreign Affairs and Transport.
Others, such as Labor, Finance and the Econ
omic Council have Commissars for each of the
republics and for the Union as a whole, al
though the major policies tend to be deter
mined on a national scale,
Underneath the Peoples Commissars is a
Council of Labor and Defense composed of the
Chairman of the Peoples Commissars togeth-
er with the Commissars of Workers and
Peasants Inspection War; Labor, Supreme
Economic Council Ways and Communications,
Home and Foreign Trade, and representa-
tive of the All-Russian Council of Trade
Unions. This Council has charge of the gen