Progress?

According to the Russian Information Bureau at Washington,* considerable progress in industry, as reflected in trade figures, was made by Bolshevik Russia during the fiscal year which ended Oct. 1, 1924.

Production. Commodities showing decreases; grain products, salt, goloshes, tires, tobacco products.

Increases were: lumber (20%), coal (40%), petroleum (18%), martensite /- (80%), iron ore (112%), copper (60%), manganese (45%), textiles (35%--50%), flax fabric (35%), matches (30%), rolled iron (50%), pig iron (122%), steel (35%), hides (3%), raw sugar (40%), cotton crop (800% within a two-year period.)

Trade. Imports increased 100%; exports 150%. Foreign trade at pre-War price was 25% of the pre-War figure. Two fifths of this trade was with Britain, but exports to the U. S. increased 500%.

Agriculture. Sown area was 10% greater; gross value of crops increased 4.5% at pre-War prices and 150% at current prices; hog and cattle increased 64% and from 5% to 10% respectively.

Currency. Russian currency was put on a firm gold foundation, the chervonetz (new currency) remained stable and was for the most part quoted at slightly over par on European exchanges. In the first three quarters of the year, however, 180,000,000 rubles (gold value) were issued without gold security.

Population. The 1924 population was 75% of that of Tsarist Russia, the loss being accounted for by the loss of Finland, Esthonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and east Poland.

Taxation. Taxation was seven gold rubles per capita against eleven gold rubles preWar.

Industry. Heavy industry reached from 40% to 60%, light industry from 60% to 80% of the pre-War figure.

*Much in the report should be discounted. The figures quoted relate to the gains or losses made during the fiscal year 1923-24 over the previous fiscal year; to be noted is the fact that industry as a whole is only about half what it was before the war (see above). Moreover, decreased taxation does not argue for increased prosperity but rather against it; for, under present conditions, it is impossible to collect more, although the need for higher taxation is admittedly acute.

/- A hard, brittle substance of the nature of a solid solution, consisting of iron with 2% or less of carbon.