Evening star., 1928-03-21

his first, and holds 1t. There are
three peasants. or rough workers, half
sitting, half-lying. hunched together.
One is smoking a cigarette. And here
Is a woman. perhaps 35, stocky and
built like a sack of grain.
And where are they all going?'
"Oh, Tif1is. Baku, Batum This is
through four-day train"
Pour days in this care"
VERY likely"
NO bath. no chance to take off their
clothes and rest any better than this?"
mo"
I was half sick and quite convinced
that Russia was total loss. No mat
ter that at the next station I was
transferred to comfortable compart-
ment in clean, Second-class car, I
could not change my point of view
so soon.
Peasant at His Lowest.
The very next day, in another city
OF 10000. clean and new-looking
houses, new factories, and fairly good
stores, a new street car line, electric
lights, busseS, not bad-looking droschkys
and taxis and considerable commercial
activity, seemingly clean, brisk city.
Yes, l liked the city and felt en-
couraged. Russia was not quite doomed
yet
But en- route to All old monastery.
where was to spend the night, a low
peasant village half hidden IN the snow.
You want to see the worst as we'll
as the best?" (This from my guide)
Yes"
We'll, there are l2o, 900 900 peasants
in Russia. some 5000 villages, not un-
like this one. l know this, for I was
hNp lRnH .,rStl l. TEI1
you the peasant at his lowest"
So into the first peasant hut, occu-
pied by an old man and his wife, their
son and daughter-in-la and three chill
dren Of this younger couple, seven in
all. And besides these, a COW and a
goat and their droppings And the
room not more than Is feet square, an
earthen floor with straw on it, a stove
in one corner. on which perhaps the
patriarch slept, and for the rest hunks.
shelves fastened TO the sides of the
walls.
And In the corner, away from the
COW and goat, a table with some dough
on 1t for bread, and a Samovar for tea
But candles, and the windows sealed
up for Winter. and thick, smelly shubas
(goat or sheep skin coats). And on the
wall. cockroaches without number, as
well as an ikon with a candle before 1t.
Well" said my guide as We came
out. there you are The old genera
ton and the new. That cabin Is typical
of our poorest peasant. / will not say
they have no brains. They are Shrewd
enough, but they have no invention.
l can't say why. Maybe there are hun
dreds of thousands. like them. l won't
deny 1t. But most of them live better"
(Then he showed me two more just as
bad)
But don't forget" he added, that
only a mile from here is government
agricultural station, with a tractor and
an electric engine and milk separator
and a combination reaper and threSher,
cows, horses and pigs, and the latest
theories and ideas on farming--intensive
farming But how to get at these fell
lows? Not so easy! Age-old customs
But they are. in most cases. receptive,
interested and hopeful"
And from what / saw ! agreed. for
they followed us here and there with
open eyes. Some of them talked vol
ubly TO me In Russian. though / could
swear they are intelligent tempera-
mental, hopeful.
Young Soviet Dreamers.
And when I visited the local Soviet
In a log cabin such as We knew in
America hundred years ago I saw for
myself that here was a new and vital
center of political and social ideas
which were interesting to these people
and that 1t was directed by earnest
young Communists trained IN the
dreams and theories OF the leaders OF
the party at Moscow
A. t@At frr fxz Al ACHrrN a n d-fNff
village of huts. in the midst of a vast
field of snow and cold. were classes for
political and economic education-agri-
cultural, industrial, theological.
And that here In this place was
stirring O movement intended TO teach
these people TO lift up their heads, not
TO be afraid. not to submit TO wrongs
or evil, but to fight, to demand and
achieve a fair reward for their efforts,
to learn of science and practical mate
rial achievement.
AS You looked at the little hu;s In
the SHOW, and the vast and virtually
uncultiyated fields and forests. ana the
thousands of gilded churches with their
ikons and gold. and thought Of the
comfortable mentors of an earlier day
teaching these people tame and un-
thinking submission to an Indifferent
and parasitic aristocracy. you said all
hail TO these Communistic dreams OF q
better dayl
They may be all wrong regarding
what man is like or what they can do
with him In the matter of brotherly
relations. but at least they are sensitive
TO the vast and cruel differences that
come about God knows whyD between
masses. and are determined, for the
time being anyhow tthey think perma-
nently). to be rid OF them. And with
that much OF their program / agree.
Nothing will ever make me believe that
thus far they have not brought about
enormous changes for the better
But looking 10 the future-~well. IL Is
an enormous problem. The Russian
land take II to be a semi -Asiatic tenn
peramenD is not the European and far
less the American (U. S. A.. What n
difference
One Bath for 40.
They think nothing OF living In the
enormous apartment houses or fiats for
workers~~four. Ave. seven, even 10. In
single room. ! have seen 1t. And, TO
your honest American horror and aston
ishment. the housing committees OF the
nlIIerent factory workers co-operativeS
List Your Rented