The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1929-11-02
By A. Gaister


the transition from small-scale to
large-scale production, and (b) from
petty proprietary to collective own
ership and cultivation. This break
with the customary basis and meth
DDS of production of the small pro-
Queer does not take place under
pressure of the memorable laws
whereby capitalism eats up the
small farm, but under the pressure
of the economic way" (Marx),-
i.e., the more advanced and progress
sive methods of farming as demon
strated by the proletariat.
What have we to show that these
collective farms are an advanced
and progressive form of agriculture
as compared with present farm
ing?
In the first place it should be no
ticed that the large majority of the
collective farms have an elaborate
agricultural inventory for farming
on larger scale. A large number of
collective farms own tractors, al
though their number is still consid-
erably below the demand.
The majority of collective farms
are using assorted seeds, the use of
the latter in the R.S.F.S.R. being as
follows: In communes 1877 per cent,
artels 77.6 per cent, and in societies
66.S per cent. In the Ukraine, as
sorted seeds are utilized by all the
communes, $50 rer cent. of the ar
tells, and 24.9 per cent. of the socie-
ties.
The collective farms have also
abandoned the three-field system
the bane of agriculture in Russia.
The multi-field system of crop ro
tation IS now prevalent in the ma
iority Of collective farms 1868 per
cert, of the communes, 48.1 per cent.
of the artels, and Alt per cent. OF
the societies).
The delay in the survey and dis
tribution of the land has held up the
application of the multi-field system
on many of the collective farms. The
steps taken, however, by the Peoples
Commissariat for Agriculture, for
the rapid ALLEGATION of the collective
farm lands will also increase the
percentage of farms having multi
field crop rotation.
Taking advantage of the pre-emi-
renee of large-scale farming, the
collective farms are increasing the
more marketable cultures among
their various crops. For example,
in the eastern district seed grasses
occupy only per cent. in the lower
groups of the peasant farms, and
II per cent. in the higher groups
of peasant farms. Even in the most
simle form of collective farming,
i.e., the societies, grasses occupy
bigger place than in the higher
group of peasant farms. In the lat
ter, grasses occupy 20 per cent,
while in the communes they constl-
tute as much as % per cent. of the
area sown. In the Central black
soil district, sunflower seed COM
prises 5.5 per cent. of the area sown
in peasant farms and 10 per cent.
in collective farms; sugar beet 0.6
per cent. on individual farms, and
Is per cent. on collective farms.
We find the same correlation IN
other districts of the Soviet Union.
The better supply of equipment and
superior organization of farming
bring better harvests in the collect
i've farms; in the Central black-soil
region the yield of winter wheat was
9 centerns per hectare from the
peasant farms and II from the col
lective farms. In the Ukraine, the
corresponding ratios were 10 and ID,
and in the Northern Caucasus: 5 and
respectively.
Progress in Every Way
From this cursory survey of the
productive successes of collective
successes of collective farms, we
have ample grounds for concluding
that the poor and middle-peasant
enterprises which go to make up the
collective farms, in uniting into this
latter form, create type of farm
ing which, by its technical level and
its productivity excels not Only the
individual poor-and middle-peasant
farms, but even the most advanced
peasant undertakings. During the
present year, in addition to fur
Their increase in the number of col
lective farms, there has been con-
siderable movement towards their
general Strengthening. The great
growth Of collective farming during
the past year, was to a considerable
extent due to the formation. of small
collective farms which even caused
a diminution of the average acreage
of collective farms. In the current
year, however, there has been an in
tensive spreading of the system OF
uniting groups of collective farms
out of which "giant" farms have
sprung up. Entire districts (Elansk,
in the Urals, Volovsk, in the Tula
region, the Digorsky Kombinat in
the Caucasus. etc., are experiment
ing in the construction Of these
"giant" collective farms, erected on
the basis of out-and-out COLLECTIVE
ism. These movements towards
large-scale collective farm construc-
ton are decisive, for only under
This condition will the Collective