Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-07
FAILURE OF SOVIET
is Barred IN TRIALS
French Radical Describes
DisiIlusionment Following
Dombatz Hearings.
BY PAUL MARION.

Marion for eight years an Outstdnd-
ing figure in the French Communist
Party and chief OF the political a1i-
tution and propaganda section, tells
OF his establishment after IS
months in Soviet Russia. What he
found in Russia led him to resign
from, his party. In these articles he
describes ,Uhat he found.
PARIS. October 2 (N.A.N.A0.-In
May and June. 1928. 40 technical
officials Of the Dombatz Works were
tried before the Supreme Court at
Moscow.
The Dombatz or DonetZ region lies
In the southeastern part of European
Russia. The o. G. P. U. political
; police) charged that they had discov-
cred a huge economic conspiracy car
ried on by the accused and by the
former proprietors of the works, who
had now emigrated abroad.
The whole case for a long time had
was intended to prove in sensational
manner that the difficulties in Soviet
productivity were principally due to
the sabotage" Of the small bourgeois.
Economic System on Trial.
I had been asked to attend the trial,
and to send few articles about 1t to
: France But quickly saw that it was
impossible to maintain the official
argument Of the case. because the trial
seemed to me to be much less the trial
of the people in the dock than OF the
whole economic and political system Of
the U. S. S. r.
From the very beginning the lockers
on, at all events. felt uncomfortable
The first Of the accused to be examined
was Beresovsky. an engineer. and his
evidence was highly disturbing.
Beresovsky was a former pupil of the
ST. Petersburg Academy Of Mines. HIS
language. In trying to explain his posi-
ton and the position Of those he called
his accomplices was so clasSically Marx
ian (for instance, he talked Of I'VE small
bourgeois constantly slipping up between
capital and labor") and he gave so will
ingly every detail required by the Gov
eminent prosecutor on the conspiracy
and on the psychology of technicians
trained in a capitalist school," that one
really thought he was reciting lesson
learned by heart.
The o. G. P. U. trade mark stuck out
clearly over all his evidence, and nobody
was astonished later to see him escape
the death sentence, which, according to
the prosecutor. he had deserved hum
dred times over.
Many Disgraceful Incidents.
Furthermore, the impression that the
conspiracy was engineered by the police
with view to certain political result
grew in the course of the trial. which
was full of disgraceful incidents.
The fact. however. that the Bolshevists
were obliged to justify their economic
failures to hand over the responsible
people" to popular justice was only 9
small part Of the lesson learned from
this trial.
Seen from the angle of the technical
assistance Of the Soviet and particularly
from the angle of the plucky evidence OF
some of the accused, this Is how I sum-
med lIp the position of the Russian en-.
gineers:
The technical people were working
with feelings Of disgust in the Soviet
factories. They could make no show o:
initiative because they felt themselves
checked and spied upon by crowd OF
bureaucrats and inefficient Red direc-
tors. They were and are under suspicion
bv the workmen, who are stirred up be-
hind them. in order to draw away the
dissatisfaction of labor from the Soviet
regime, which Is really responsible for
all the evils under which they surfer.
II the technical stats are hostile to
Communism it is because several years
of experience have taught them that this
system absolutely blocks all develop
ment In production and creates an un-
bearable frame Of mind.
In Moscow feeling ran very high
about the trial among engineers and
public servants. and in spite of the habit
az holding ones tongue that one &C.
auires In Russia people did not hesitate
% discuss the proceedings. I then
learned the real condition OF Russian
production in spite of the optimism OF
Cfficial statistics and forecasts.
Our industry is a tiny island lost
IN a huge peasant sea. It Is directed
by a beaureaucracy smothered in REQ
tape and costing more than 1t earns
This bureaucracy lives at the expense
of the peasants, from whom 1t draws
revenue in two ways: First, by agri-
cultural taxes and, secondly by specu-
3ating on the prices that the govern
nent arbitrarily fixes at very high
level where industrial goods are con-
cerned and at very low level where
agricultural produce has to be sold.
Army Of Soviet Parasites"
"In this way the state always can in
crease the number Of factories and show
a profit and it can maintain an army
of Soviet parasites. This, however. Goes
not mean that our system Of production
is not terribly improbable and mucn
below the capitalist system as REGARDS
output. Moreover. every attempt az
further development Is planned by tne
celebrated economic scheme OF nv
Years ago will run its head against tne
opnosition of the peasants, who are fali-
ir1e back more and more upon tnem-
selves and are having as little as posi-
bic to do with the towns" ,
This was the substance or Wnat
was told by men who, some OF tneIn
held important positions in INDUSTRY OF
In state administrations. All my per-
scsal experiences agreed. For instance
! remember an old locksmith VINO mac
become the Red" manager OF the
Moscow slaughter houses and who con-
fessed he knew nothing about MS ne"
Job. ..,or
an at the Pravda printing WORKS
simply to give political lectures 10 ~
or 40 apprentices employed there AZ
INV hotel. whereas in France servants
would have been enough, there were IL
servants and other employees.
$500, 100000 Embesxled.
T had been told by American and
German engineers that the erection Oh
new works in Russia cost four times as
much as abroad, and that every unoer.
taking gave rise to so much waste ano
corruption that PreobrajensKy. former
faVOrlte OF beIhn, "iio' woH 49,,
Russia. was in opposition. reckonec
that between 1923 and 1928 $60O,OcO,'
f,ff1 had been embezZled, counting only
the cases Of embezzlement heard In tne
courts. This did not take into &C.
count money stolen more di:creetly,,
as it was put to me. or which had
formed the subject of secret trials un'
der the o. @. p. u.
often when was going along tht
streets in Moscow and as passed
new building, either completed or under
construction, a friend of mine wouie
say. "You know the people VINO gun,