The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1931-12-18
MANY FINNISH
FARMERS WANT
TO BUILD USSR
HAVE NOTHING AFTER MANY
YEARS OF TOLL UNDER
CAPITALIST u. S.

| OuuSI CuS LlLl0 UI rims In
America Not Very Anxious to, Go
to Russia" the Helena Independ-
ent of Nov. % prints a story of
the migration of the Finnish farm
ers of the United States to Soviet
Karelia. Every single word of the
story cries out that the title grv-
en- to the story is a complete lie
and the head writer a vicious liar,
writing lies about the Soviet I'm
ion in order to prevent the work
ing masses from rallying to the
defense of the Soviet Union a.
gainst the imperialist attacks.
In our last issue and in the
current one we have published
letters from two of these Finnish
comrades who have left for the
Soviet Union to aid in the up
building of Socialism in Soviet
Karelia.
These letters also are a COM
plete refutation of the lies in the
title. of the Helena Independent
story. If the Helena Independent
editor had any sense he would
have changed the story to contain
the same lies that are contained
in the title.
| Many Ready to Go to Karelia
The story itself reads as fol-
lows:
Between $50 and 1000 Fin
nish residents of the middle
west and Canada have profess
ed a desire to leave America
and contract for work In Kare-
liza according to John Heino,
Duluth attorney, who has act
/ ed as counsel for several of
| the emigrants.
"They are, however, unable
TO dispose of their property or
secure the necessary $500 to be
! deposited with the Soviet Re-
public of Karelia, Mr.. Heino
has learned from prospective
emigrants.
5000 Have Already Gone
"Since the first group of
Finnish people left America
and Canada, about three years
ago, Mr.. Heino estimates near
lyS,OOO have followed, about g.
200 from states in the middle
west and about 600 from Can
ada.
The majority of the emf
grants and prospective emf
grants are from Minnesota
Michigan, Wisconsin and North
and South Dakota, and are
farmers and labOrers. Nest of
them are naturalized citizens
of the United States where
there are approximately 3OO,-
600 Finnish people, with about
one-half that number living in
the middle west.
Information has been given
the prospective emigrants that
II they are unable to secure the
necessary $500 for the Karelia
government by the first of the
year, they will be unable to
enter the country under con-
tract, Mr.. Heino said. The
Karelian government, he ado
ed, demands a deposit of $500
from the head of each family
contracting to work for the
government, keeping the money
Tor two years and returning Il
to the depOsitOr without inter.
est after that time, provided
they work for two years. Amer
lean citizens are permitted to
stay two years without renew
al of passports.
Retain National Characteristic
The Finnish people of east.
ern Karelia, Mr.. HeinO asserted
preserved In a great measure
their language and their racial
and national identity. Finnisr
is the official language on =
parity with Russian and Is the |
language of the schools. Mo-
TIM one-half of the population
Of Karelia which lies east of /
Finland, is inhabited by Firms.
The Soviet government of Kare.
ia has made the requirement Of
entry of a family into Karelia the
deposit of specified sum in order
70 provide for the initial expenses
OF maintaining the new Immigrants
until they have been brought into
the industrial functionig of the re-
public. Otherwise the expense Of
keeping thousands of new arrivals
would be a severe drawback on the
rapid industrialization of Karelia
After two years, tho, the money i