Russia Daily Deal

Daily Deal

One thing the Soviet State always gives its citizens is ACTION--a new deal, good or bad, almost every day on something vital to every Russian. Last week with customary abruptness the State:

P: Suspended until next May operation of the drastic decree requiring millions of Soviet citizens not indispensably employed in cities to move to the country (TIME, Jan. 9).

P: Called in the "gold bonds" issued by the Soviet Torgsin. Reasons: 1) counterfeiting; 2) clandestine speculation in "gold bonds" by Russians who doubt the statement of their leaders that "the Soviet Union is on the gold standard."*

P: Released an avalanche of white & black bread, baked from flour previously stored in State warehouses (partly against the possibility of war with Japan), which was offered for sale without restriction or food cards last week in 50 Moscow Soviet stores. Instanter lines formed in front of every store (one line was estimated by correspondents at 1,100 persons). Nonchalantly the all-powerful State intimated that avalanches of candy, canned meat, canned vegetables and canned fish might be released from the same or additional stores at any moment.

* Zealous hoarders of U. S. banknotes (mostly $2 and $1 bills of the old large size) are several hundred thousand Soviet citizens. To them U. S. Secretary of the Treasury Woodin was a hero when he said: "We are definitely on the gold standard. Gold merely cannot be obtained for several days" (TIME, March 13). In Russia gold merely cannot be obtained until a decree drafted several years ago shall have been issued, if ever.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.