The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-09-05
Thriving Workers. City Rises
In Midst Of Siberian Tundra

Now, in 1884, there live here
10000 people. Five thousand five
hundred of them work in the apa-
tite industry, in mine or mill. Other
thousands work in the various other
industries springing up, or are
building workers, mostly. They are
paving the streets with rock, and
putting in a sewer system.
They are planning a city here of
100000 in 1897, and this city will
be Khibinogorsk completely re-
built, on the latest scientific model.
1t will be a city, not of wood, as is
the present town, but of brick and
stone houses. 1t will be city with
parks and imposing public build
ings. And it will be outside the
limits of the present town, on
higher ground, away from the lake
shore, which will then be open for
a great extension of the present
factories, and railroad yards.
But meanwhile, the presen t
wooden town is being steadily made
more convenient to live in, and is
long ways from the primitive
tents and barracks that it started
from. 1t has, for instance, ten
clubs, eleven libraries, and twelve
bath houses, the latter, with white
and blue tiles" as the Khibinogorsk
citizen proudly points out to you.
The bath rooms accommodate 5000
workers at a time.
There is a laundry with capa-
city of seven tons daily.
There are factory Kitchens"
that is, public restaurants, for the
workers in all plants, and in the
mine.
Special Diet.
Speaking of food. the diet In
these restaurants is carefully bal
anced against Arctic deficiency
diseases like scurvy. There is a
greater proportion of green stuff,
and particularly of onions than in
other parts of the country. In ad-
dition to that, and in defiance of
the polar climate, Khibinogorsk
workers this year successfully raised
SO hectares, or over $50 acres, of
individual kitchen gardens, and ex-
pect to make it 300 hectares next
year. This is in addition to the
1,000-hectare State farm Indus
tria' at Apatite, near by, which pro-
vides milk and meat mainly for the
miners and mill workers.
A big new hospital building with
1000 beds is being constructed, but
many departments of this hospital
are already functioning in tenn
porary quarters. In addition, each
plant has it's "ambulatory" or local
hospital, and is equipped in each
department with first aid rooms,
like the factories all over the Soviet
Union.
Don't get the idea from this that
Khibinogorsk has a RICH rate of
sickness. The attention paid to
diet, to medical services and Sani-
tation has abolished epidemics, even
of children's diseases-and there
are plenty of children.
Education is flourishing. There
are four year elementary and ten
year schools for all the children.
AS for higher education, there is
a technical high school on mining
with 500 students. There is med
ical school with $50, students. spe-
cializing, of course, on Arctic con-
ditions, And $50 young workers of
the mills are studying in the fac
tory and mill apprenticeship schools.
Cultural Advances
In addition they have House
OF Artistic Upbringing," with a
musical conservatory attached. The
house specializes in the arts, includ-
ing the ballet, and classical dancing
as well as plastic and graphic arts.
1t has $50 students, young workers
most of them, from mine and mill.
The musical conservatory teaches
classes in piano, accordion, stringed
instruments, and choral singing.
Much of this work will be trans
ferred to the 5000, 000-ruole Pal
ace of Culture which is being built
as part of the new city, but the
school of music and arts will prob
ably even SO have it's separate
building even after the Palace is
constructed. Radio plays a big part
in artistic programs here, especially
( IN the stormy winter: the town ha