The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1931-04-25
Bv yALENTINE v. KoNTN.

BY VALENTINE " hORlN.
Over each bank Of the pneister
River. groaning and cracking under
the silver blue block of melting ice,
the shaggy curves Of the Carpathian
Mountains lowered darby like a pair
of giant twins. Ilya, the boatnan,
lowered his boat into the river, and
keeping close to the fallen railing of
the bridge. roved half way across
towards the Rumanian side. Balanc-
ing himself in the rocking boat, he
shouted something the cup Of his
hands. The wind carried back to
him the reply from the other side.
Before the Rumanian guard had had
time to notice, uya turned the boat,
and struggling with the let floats
attacking him like white wild cats,
reached out short with most unusual
news. "Bolshevid are coming!"
This was in the days Of Civil War.
when we had no newspapers, no tel
egraph. and all our information was
smuggled by word Of mouth from the
Rumsnian side. Our town has been
ravaged and terrorized by Petlras
drunken army some months ago.
Ilya's news created not a little ex-
element in the town. WAS it true
that Bolshevih we're coming7" people
asked each other nervously and
specifically.
Red Army Arrives
They came sooner than we ex-
pected, leaving no chance for Pet
lra's soldiers to make a show OF
an army. Like hunted animals, Tx
rianians ran along the bank of the
river, throwing into the water their
fur hats with brightly colored tails,
and trying to cut off in a hurry
the little braidS growing in the middle
of their cropped Monaghan skulls.
From across the river, Rumanians
greeted the Bolshevik army with
shower of laundering bombs. And
throughout the night, the two towns,
buried in the grave of Carpathian
shocks of the exploding earth.
The next day. the Bolsheviki es-
tablished themselves in the town
quietly and with unusual proceed
ings There were no massacres, no
robberies, no killings. Instead, they
went about the storekeepers in town,
taking inventory of their goods, and
locking up their shops. They brought
with them leaflets and posters which
the ydistributed lavishly among the
working elements Of the town. Before
long, half of our youth in town join
ed the Communist Party.
Vaska, the bookbinder's apprentice,
began to call himself Comrade Cher
noff, and took the lead in going
around rich peoples homes and con-
fiscating their luxuries. zhenya, the
girl who has been working in the
millinery shop, learned to ride horse
and went to villages to speak to
peasant women. The shop keepers
in town feared her. The intellectuals
snickered at her and called her "Sec-
ond Jeanne dare" For the first
time in our town, things began to
look as if something were going to
happen.
Town Bustles With May Day Plans
At the end of April, when the
brown Of Carpathian Mountains be-
gan to curl with soft, lemon colored
down the city at the foot of the east
ern mountain was bustling with
preparations for May Day. The for
mer Alexander Square, opening up
towards the river. so that one could
look across until the Runanian
mountain shut off the sky, was dec
GRATED with posters and festoons.
There was to be a march and a DEM
orlstration Of the workers in honor
Of the International Workers holiday.
ALI this was new in our town, but
was received with great enthusiasm.
The center of attraction on the square
was a huge wooden collonade, lit UP
by electric bulbs, declaiming in
gigantic red letters a revolutionary
rhyme:
~In spite of bosses hate and
ire,
Wen spread the flames of
world fire.
Just Jake look at that" said
stepan Mikl1ailovitch Ogonov, the
the former director Of Boys Gym
nasia, passing by the square with
friend Of his, former banker. "They
are forgetting that one can easily
see across the river. Runanians will
never allow the demonstration to
take place"
Kolka, the former bootblack, who
vas putting under the weight Of
huge poster, heard the remark and
raised his head.
We are forgetting nothing. COM