The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1933-09-06
The Challenge OF Soviet
Collective Farming Seen
By Tavo Close Observers

bullying policemen to hunt up lying
and ranting politicians while all
about them stoolpigeons and dicks
swarmed about like disease-carry=
ing cockroaches! <
American Farmers Learning Fast
American farmers are learning
fast. The use of militia and police
and deputies against them shows
the farmer who his enemies are. Not
only tear gas, bullets, but also air
! planes, as in the Wisconsin strike,
are being used against him. But
in Russia the army is the broth
er of the farmer. There are
three regiments around Stain
grad sponsoring three collective
farms, sending them banners. On
the expiration of his term, the Red
soldier often goes back to the village
and the farm. He swings immediate
ly into the work. There are thou
sands of stories like the one about
the soldier of the 31st Caucasus
Regiment who helped pull back
ward farm to fulfill its sowing pro-
gram by 1877 per cent and it's live
stock program by 100 per cent. The
Red Army sends newspapers and
books to the farms, it establishes
veterinary colleges. Organizations
of soldiers and commanders wives
set up nurseries, kindergartens, and
classes for farm women. A letter
from the Stalingrad Cavalry Bri-
gade to the farm congress shows the
intense feeling of comradeship be-
tween army and farmer:
"The obligations of the fighters
for socialist harvest is to raise the
quality of the horse they use. The
horse is living machine which
must be tended with care. All good
collective farmers must learn to val
ue, love, and care for the horse as
does the Red cavalryman." And the
letter ends with directions as how
to clean, groom, and feed the horse.
Catch the American army address
ing our farmers this way. !,
Farmer Worker Relationship :
More important than this is the
relationship between worker and
farmer. In America capitalism does
its damnedest to sow the seeds of
hate between worker and farmer.
Proof of this is the processing tax
on wheat which, in order to help
the farmer, has boosted the cost of
bread to the worker as nigh as 20
per cent in many localities. But in
Russia worker and farmer cannot
get along without each other. Fac
tory workers are sent to the farms
to teach peasants how to repair and
run tractors, combines, plows, to
help with cleaning seeds, etc. They
work in the Machine Tractor Sta
tons, the centers which educate the
peasants politically, train clerical
and accounting staffs, and establish
rotation of crops. AS result,
all spring sowing, done rs per cent
by hand in 1928, is now done by
machinery. Harvesting by sickle has
been replaced by harvesting by COM
bines. Latest reports show the Rus
sif liners have doubled their in
co., { or last year and their gov
eminent has bought up 100000
calves to be distributed among the
farmers who have no cows for their
personal use.
a Living Hammer
So tbs story ends by showing
how millions Of poor peasants are
fast becoming "well-to-do modern
socialist farmers" 1t is told with
that real wisdom, the wisdom of
Lenin and his disciples, which is al
ways simple. Simple for the workers
and farmers of the rest of the world
but so hard for the capitalists that
they will break their heads over it.
Reading this story puts living
hammer into the hands of every
worker, and a living pitchfork into
the hands of every farmer.
"When we have set the U.S.S.R.
on an automobile and the peasant on
tractor, let the capitalist gentle
men who boast so loudly of their
civilization try to overtake u.s.
Stain once said. This is the chal-
lenge of the farmers and workers
in Russia found in this pamphlet.
1t is a challenge capitalism can
never take up. 1t is a challenge
American workers and farmers I'M
der the leadership of Communism
can and will take up.