The Washington times., 1935-11-18
SOVIET STAGES
'MASQUERADES'
FOR VISITORS
ARTICLE w
BY MICHAEL BURSTEIN
(Shock Brioddier of the FtUe.YeGr
Plan In Souiet Russia

. (SnOCK bTIQuutST Oy LILG rbOC-A v"
Plan In SoUiet Russia
After months of negotiations,
the Soviet visa was obtained and
my brother raised the funds neces-
sary to pay for it and for my
passage to America.
Had my Soviet record not been
impeccable, could not have oo-
tanned the political clean bill OF
health given me by the Soviet
police. u
Without it, I could not have
left Russia at any price. ! enl,
phasize this fact because l know
now that anyone who tells the
truth about Soviet conditions eX,
poses himself to viliticatlon ano
defamation by the StallnlSt
apologistS abroad.
II was not until I crossed the
,. soviet border that I realized 10
Athe full the abyss into Whlch tne
Russian people have fallen unoer
Stain.
.. Workers Become Slaves
IN spite of the depression IN
America and other western coun.
tries it was clear to my naked
ave that the standard OF hvlng
Of the Russian masses nao
dropped so low under Communism
] that the poorest worker IN the
canitalist world was immeasurably
better off than even the privileged
shock brigadier under Stain.
The depression created IN Russia
by Stains five-year plan was a
thousand times more SataStropliic
than the crisis in the capitaIlStlc
countries. Under the Communist
dictatorship, the peasants became
serfs, the workers became slaves
and the entire population OF Rus
sia was condemned to eploenlcN
of famine and to chronic StarVa'
ton. ..4
How is it possible for the SOVIET
government to deceive the outSloe
world as to the condition OF lcs
workers? I have been asked TINS
question so many times since my
arrival in the United States.
Now, was myself compelled
more than once to participate
with thousands of fellow workers
in the masquerades staged by the
Communists for the deception Oh
foreign visitors.
Stage Elaborate Show
The RED Putiloff" plants IN
fenjngrad. which manufactures
many products of steel and wnere
was employed, is one OF Cne
show-places for foreign delega-
tions. Hundreds of American Vlsl'
tors are guided through 1t IN
groups every year.
Asa former soldier in the Car
list army, I can testify that our
commanders never made such
elaborate preparations to receive
a general as our Soviet factory
managers made to receive foreign
visitors.
Such visitors we're never brought
to the factory Unexpectedly.
The propaganda section OF the
Ieningrad Soviet would notify the
"Partcom" and the "Zavkom "
(the Communist party and the
factory committees) of an lmpend-
ing visit by foreigners.
A swarm of minor officials
would then get fearfully busy
The higher functionaries would
issue orders, and the shops and
grounds would be cleaned ana
washed. The workers would be
warned to enter into no converse
tion with any Of the visitors VINO
might speak Russian.
Thus the stage was set to make
the foreigners believe that they
were witnessing the everyday
routine of the factory. Visitors
were usually brought to the Putil-
off plant during the luncheon
hour, so as to save them the en-
barrassment of seeing us at the
lathes where we we're being driven
at a furious pace. 1t also pro-
vided an opportunity to hold meet
ings and to have us cheer the
speeches of welcome.
/. Every visit by a foreign delega-
ton thus became a grand specta-
Gle. A pack of slaves was exhib-
tied as an assembly of freemen.
And we, the slaves, were the stage
hands in the performance, but un-
like ordinary stagehands, we knew
the full meaning Of the show,
only the distinguished audience
did not see the tragedy beneath
the stagecraft.