The Waterbury Democrat., 1931-06-27

defines forced or indentured labor as labor that is non-voluntary and is subject to penalties for non-per- formance. The treasury view is that virtually all labor under Soviet rule Is of this type. Officials cite a de- cree of the commisariat of labor issued last November. The decree says that skilled workmen who re- fuse the tasks offered them will then be put to doing unskilled la bor and if they refuse this will be removed from the employment reg ister. To be stricken from the em- ployment. register means that the worker loses his food book, is de- prived of the right to buy in the stores, and is driven from his lodg- ings.
 Russia's alleged dumping of goods into the United States, as into other countries, is a result of her effort industrial development. She Is strap ping herself to do this, export ing products, including foodstuffs, which she could we'll use.
 Protests have been raised in other countries against the dumping" but no government has taken very positive action. All governments, like the American, are pulled two ways-for an embargo by those whose products suffer from Russian competition, such as lumber, pulp wood, oil and manganese, and against any restriction on import trade by those who have developed markets in Russia for their products and do not want to antagonize the Soviet government.
 Any embargo would provoke pro- tests from American manufacturers who are selling to Russia, and who even now are seeing this trade slip from their fingers. The demand for an embargo from other interests. on the other hand, is just as insist ent. if not more so.
 Russia in recent months has cur tailed her purchases here because of the hostile feeling against her and the lack of credits in this country. Some European governments now are guaranteeing credits. She still has to buy some types of industrial machinery and will be forced to continue to do so because of the su- periority of the American product.
 Before the treasury has an op- portunity to try its broad embargo plan there Is likely to be another fiare-up over alleged Russian dump ing, this time involving oil. There are persistent reports that Detroit company has contracted for 15O,OOO barrels of Russian oil. Russia has sold large quantities of oil else where, extending her trade by leaps and bounds in recent months, but this is the first intimation that she is planning to invade the American market on a big scale.
 The Standard Oil company of New Jersey and others, 1t is under stood, are ready to protest vigorous ly to the treasury if such shipment enters American ports. Customs or ficials said such a shipment would be subject to the same conditions as other Russian shipments-that is, an inquiry would be made as to whether convict labor entered into its production. If so, it would be banned.
 American oil companies also have recourse to the anti-dumping pro- visions under which high tariffs are levied on imports that are proved to be in the Humping" class. These provisions have not proved very effective thus far.
 Mills expects to rule next week on the pulpwood shipment now waiting at New York, which is con- signed to the International Paper company. Officials of the Amtorg Trading corporation and representa- tiyes of the paper company say the pulpwood does not come from areas from which imports are banned un- der a treasury ruling several months ago.