Evening star., 1948-07-04
By A. !. Goldberg
Assoeioted Press Foreign Correspondent

OF trouble, bolllng over tne names
of the Conform attack on Marshall
Tito of Yugoslavia.
The Communist leaders of eight
nations read Yugoslavia and its
Communist Party leaders soaring
sermon on their faults, and set in
train a series of developments whose
end cannot yet be seen. This Com
muniSt document must rank as one
of the most important in the his
tory of Marxist Socialism.
Outwardlly this laying down of
the law by the modern prophets of
Communism was intended to topple
Tito from his pesdestal as a Com
munist idol. But the language OF
the bitter pronouncement was i'm
plicit in its warning to lesser idols
in the Communist hall of fame that
they must follow the path laid down
by Moscow.
Communist governments in the
Moscow orbit Immediately began
trying on the new Conform boot
and they found it pinched them too
Everything that the Cominfornl
criticized about Tito's nationalism
his go-slow with the farmer OF
peasant class, his permission ano
even encouragement of private
traders however small, and his try
ing to run a government which gave
even an inch to non-Communist
parties-evertyhing could be said OF
them too, and maybe more.
Education Campaign Begun.
For the record, these national
Communist parties Immediately be-
gan to indorse the new Cominform
bible They began passing the new
religion down to their local hockS in
big doses. A campaign of educa-
ton down to the smallest Com
munist groups, based on the latest
word of the Communist law-givers,
was Immediately announced in
Czechoslovakia, for example.
The first reaction was for Com
munist parties everywhere. with a
strikingly sameness of language, to
adopt resolutions affirming the con-
demnation of Tito, his henchmen
and their horrifying heresy.
Yugoslavia, seemingly, was the
first big spot of rust on the shin
ing Iron Curtain, and Communists
everywhere began rubbing at it with
all feverish haste.
Their feverishness was heightened
by their own sense OF guilt on all
but one count. One of the most
deep-lying charges levelled at the
Yugoslavs was the anti-Russian
campaign they were accused of
waging Tito. said the Cominform
was trying to set himself up as a
bigger Caesar than Stain, and fail
ing to give Russia her full due as
liberator.
Others Equally Guilty.
The other Cominform parties could
not be accused of that. They have
faWned on Russia and everything
Russian. There has been no indica-
tion in Poland, Romania, Bulgaria,
Hungary or Czechoslovakia that a
close spying watch was kept on Rus
sian functionaries, as was charged
against Yugoslavia.
But on other counts some of the
Cominform countries seemed tarred
with the same stick as Yugoslavia
Klement Gottwald, in the heat
of the Communist February revolu-
ton that placed him at the head
of Czechoslovakia, said there would
be no collective farms in Czecho-
slovakia. His program permits pea
SAINTS to own their own land up tc
125 acres. Private enterprises with
up to so employees are still tol-
Grated. This fostered the middle
class that the Cominform frowns
on.
Premier Georgi Dimitrov of Bull
garia once announced himself in
favor of Slav federation. including
what are sometimes called the "hon-
orary Slav" peoples of Romania.
Hungary and Albania. Moscow
slapped him down on that, and DIM
itrov, old peasant schooled in party
discipline, subsided. He was no
Caesar grown greater than the
Kremlin shadow.
For others who thought they were
doing all right as Communist gov
ernments, there was a lot of soul
searching ahead.
Some Farmers Have Cars.
If the dirt grubbing peasants
scratching for living in Yugoslavia
could be considered Kulaks inde-
pendent, even wealthy farmerS
then what of the really conservative
farmers in other countries of this
belt lying around Russia, farmers
who sometimes have their own trac-
tors and even automobiles?
What of the attitude expressed
by one important Communist in
Czechoslovakias Foreign Ministry
who was asked to comment on the
Cominform resolution and replied:
What the Cominform does has no
consideration for Czechoslovakia.
This a Communist government?
Nonsense. This is Popular Front,
a coalition"
That was the sort of thing the
Cominform attacked
In addition, it seemed likely there
would have to be lot of overhaul
ing of goals and tactics for Com
rades Palmiro Togliatti in Italy and
Jacques Duclos of France who have
not hesitated to seek halfway OBJ
jectives in order to make headway
toward turning their countries
toward Communism.
The Cominform did leave a
couple of loopholes. 1t indicated
that changes had to be accom-
plished by these Communist breth-
rem, but not at false speed.
For Yugoslavia, it left line of
retreat. In effect, it said, You
have sinned, brother. Repent and
be saved" But it left the impress
sion, I'VE don't think you can"
Any idea that Tito and his Serb,
Croat and Solvene Communists
might grovel in a mass breast beat
ing and plead for forgiveness lasted
only "a hours.
Belgrade Language Sharp.
The tip-off that it would not hap
pen was the Cominform confession
that troubles with Tito went back
to last March and April. The Com
informs, coming out in public made