Evening star., 1952-05-08
I'VE the Satellites
By WiIIiom |. Ryon


Associated Press Foreign News AnoIysi
Sirens shrill, traffic and pedes-
trians scatter.
A sleek green American car
screeches to a halt opposite the
State Bank Building on Bucha-
rests Kisselev street. Three senti-
nels snap to military attention.
Escort cars, crammed with
bodyguards. pull up behind the
1850 Oldsmobile as a guard opens
the door.
Grim and unsmiling, the ham
mer- -jawed first lady of Romanian
Communism steps out and walks
rapidly into the building through
a battalion of security militia and
police agents. She does not even
notice the stiff salute of her per-
sonal security chief.
Ana Pauker, for all her new
riches-her four cars, her lavish
villa, her legion Of personal body
guards and attendants - seems
worried. Nominally, the foreign
minister, she has just managed to
get rid of few high Communists
who may have been her mortal
enemies in high places+but how
many more are there? How much
longer will she last in the place
of power she has held since the
Russians obligingly evicted the
monarchy?
Eyes of Russia Are Upon Her.
The Russians have been watch
ling her. Even the Defense Minis
ter, Gen. Emil Bodnares. a Ukrain-
ian whom she has considered her
ally-how long would he remain
her friend if she should lose the
confidence of Moscow? And there
are rumors.
It was a close squeeze with
VaSile Luca. The Finance Minis
ter had a thirst for power. Even
Bodnares had feared him. For Ana
it was fortunate Lucas recent
currency reform caused so much
chaos in the country. It gave he1
la lever. She and Bodnares had
him fired as Finance Minister and
Vice Premier. They put in less
Ambitious man. Dimitru Petrescu
former president of the state sup
|ply commission. Petrescu, coming
from the management division OF
the Workers (CommuniSt) Party
lis himself manageable.
Luca, at 81, had felt he was 60
ling places. A leading Communist
since 1919, veteran of many jails
he had been a confidante OF
Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, the
|present boss of the party. It took
some doing to get rid Of him.
Helped Humble Government.
Luca had been secretary-gen-
|eral of the National Democratic
Front in 1914, and had a big part
in forcing the governments anti
Communist majority to bow to
Soviet military demands. That
was even before Moscow's Andrei
Y. Vishinsky stormed and ragged
lat young King Mihai and forced
him from the throne.
Luca soon became secretary OF
the central committee and showed
his mettle by destroying the anti
Communist opposition. He took
part in the Cominform meeting
that threw Yugoslavia'S Commu-
nists out of the Bolshevik family
He helped send Peasant Party
leaders to prison.
But as Finance Minister, Luca
ran into trouble in January OF
this year. He decreed that old
lei were to be exchanged at rates
ranging all the way up to 400 old
for one new, on a sliding scale
At the same time prices were re-
duced. The results was chaotic.
Before currency reform, the
average Romanian worker earned
6 6,000-7,000 lei a month. Prices
before currency reform were like
this: A mans suit. rationed, up tc
8,975 lei, or up to 10000 on the
free market; rationed shoes for
women. up to 4,800 and a little
higher for mems; rationed sugar
Sc lei a kilo and 200 on the free
market; jam. 240 q kilo, and so