Evening star., 1932-01-10


1t is known in Russia as "Shturmovoi,"
or the year Of storming over the top.
And it brings not only the announcement
from the planning commission that more
consumers goods will be available, but
daily there are indications of lessening
the hardship.
Plans for the transformation of Lentn-
grad-the dead st. Petersburg Of the
Czars-into a modern metropolis, with
adequate living quarters for its citizens
were announced last month. The state
ment came in the form of a joint docu-
ment signed for the Communist party
by Stain and for the government by
Premier Mo1otov. The sum of $145, ,000,-
900 is appropriated for expenditure dur
ing 1882 for housing and municipal i'm
provement in the city. The completed
project calls for the destruction of the
old slums and the rebuilding of the town
on an ultra modern scale. And statue
of Lenin larger than the Statue of Lib
erty is to be set up in the harbor.
The concern thus evidenced by the gov
eminent over housing projects points. to
the fact that it is making more room IN
it's thoughts for the improvement of
standards of living. Failures of directors
and workers in industry to do their full
duty is crime. During the first three
years of the plan trials of negligent or
wiIfu1y destructive men were largely
identified with the Five Year Plan. Re
Gently, employees who neglected to look
after living conditions of workers have
been convicted and fined.
shop not included in the group of CO.
operative stores that issue supplies ON
ration cards, has lowered its prices by
80 per cent in the last three months.
Though goods in these stores are still
fantastically high II paid $3.25 for loaf
of bread at an open shop that could have
been had on a ration card for 8 cents),
1t does have the effect of releasing more
of the comforts of life by allowing the
people to buy few things beyond the
rationed necessaries at lower price
than they have been paying.
And of important significance to the
people is the fact that Soviet purchases
abroad have fallen off drastically In the
last 60 days. Expenditures in America
for the first nine months of 1881 were
only $49, 400, 900, compared to $102 ,800,-
600 during the same period In the previ-
GUS year. In November of 1880 Moscow
spent $4, 1863, 900 in the United States;
and in the same period of 1881 only
$714,000. Which means this: That the
Russian masses will have more commodi-
ties for domestic use, since the whole
program of equipping Soviet industry
with foreign-made machines has been
paid for by raw materials shipped from
the needy land.
A threefold reason seems apparent for
the altered Soviet program of raising
the standard of living, consolidating
newly established industry and curtail-
ing purchases of machines abroad.
The prime factor motivating the ruth
less projection of the heavy" industry
plan at the expense of the people was
the fact that the principal metallurgic
and industrial centerS vital to war were
located near the European border and
were hazardously exposed to foreign at
tacks by land and air. The removal Of
these industries far interior to the bases
of raw supplies in the Urals and Siberia
was considered an urgent and immediate
need. without consideration for the
hardships inflicted on the people, the
nation was stripped of foodstuffs and
clothes. Transportation and distributive
facilities were pressed to this one end of
securing machines from abroad and in
stalling the basic production Of war in
dustry. To a large degree the funda-
mental necessaries of war have been
made available in the protected area.
Military fears so relieved, the relaxed
program is not dangerous.
The world depression, ANONYMOUSLY, is