THE NEW DESPOTISM.

Auckland Star, Volume LXV, Issue 307, 28 December 1934, Page 6

THE NEW DESPOTISM.

An English review to hand has an article upon education in Russia, and the following extract may be quoted: "Unhappily durin" the last decade a new supporter of the principles of intolerance and a new exemplar of the suppression of free thought has appeared in an unexpected quarter, the new-born Republics of Russia have resurrected tlie old and worn-out intolerance and again imitalled the official censor upbn free speech and assembly to an extent never before maintained. Imitating with considerable exactness the old eneniy of freedom, the Bolshevist Government has drawn up an index of prohibited books .in which, according to Fulop-Miller ('The Mind and Face of Bolshevism'), are included the works of Plato, Kant, Schopenhauer, Herbert Spencer, Nietzsche and other. Western philosophers. It is stated that the Russian '.Main Committee for National Education,' of which Lenin's widow was president, issued a circular declaring 134 books to bo prohibited, and ordering that all the works of 94 authors were to be entirely removed from public libraries. Power was also given to provincial officers to ban other books at their discretion, and every book intended for publication in Russia has to be submitted to the censor beforehand. It certainly seems to be beyond reasonable doubt that by these and other provisions in., their official codes and circulars, freedom of thought and speech has been formally negatived within Russian territories." The legislative provisions above quoted are sufficient to prove the perversion of liberty and will be a matter of sincere regret to all upholders of freedom that in this new social experiment the censorship methods of the worst exponents of human tyranny have been selected for imitation. In an editorial note it is pointed out there has been recently a slackening of the censorship and sonic works are now admitted for publication. ANTI-CENSOR.