THE RUSSIA OF TODAY

Evening Post, Volume CXXVII, Issue 71, 25 March 1939, Page 19

THE RUSSIA OF TODAY

SCHOOLMISTRESS'S VISIT

YOUTH'S OPPORTUNITIES

Russian children have more opportunities for developing their talents, and leading full and happy lives, ,than the young people of any other country, is the opinion of Miss E. •E. Lawton, art mistress at the Presbyterian Ladies' College, Melbourne, and Miss J. Brown, both of whom x*eturned recently from an extensive tour abroad, states an exchange. They spent ten days in Russia, and visited many of the educational and recreational centres for children, which have sprung up under the new regime.

Miss Lawton gave a description of the Palace of Pioneers, near Moscow — a nation-wide organisation corresponding to the Boy Scouts, or Girl Guides. It was estimated that 80 per cent, of the children of Russia were members, and to be prohibited from joining was a disgrace. The youngest members were called "Octoberites." These graduated to the pioneers, and finally to the Young Communists' League. CHILDREN'S CAFE. The palace was a very fine building, j and other centres were more or less modelled on it. It boasted a children's cafe, equipped with, low tables and counters, where milk and buns and ice cream could be bought. A beautiful theatre had seating accommodation for 600, and the most modern of equipment. There were marionette and puppet shows, and full facilities for carrying on a variety of craftwork and hobbies, not only recreational, but definitely educational in their value. Horticulture was on display in the winter garden; the playrooms were equipped with every imaginable variety of toy; and in one room, a group of boys was lost in concentration over chess boards. It had been arranged for children. from the tenth classes of the various schools to attend lectures at the pal-ace-on the correct method of voting— for in Russia, they were qualified to vote at the age of 18. Another centre providing educational, recreational, arid creative opportunities to the younger generation of Russians was the Maxim Gorky Park for Culture and Rest. This extended for over four miles along the river bank, and boasted seven theatres and four cinemas, and had 3000 employees. There were tennis courts and basketball courts, open-air . dance pavilions, parks, and gardens with fine reproductions of ancient and modern sculpture, stands for orchestras, and a lake equipped with canoes and boats. For those in a frivolous mood, a Luna Park offered all sorts of attractions; and for those in a daring mood, there was a special tower from which yoling people took a delight in jumping with parachutes. Miss Lawton and Miss Brown spent 10 days in Russia. They bought inclusive tickets from London and innumerable coupons were issued to them for meals and accommodation. The cost was about £1 a day inclusive. The country was too busily occupied in building homes for the worker to worry much about hotels. In a beautiful room, the only touch of grandeur might be a priceless carpet, from some old nobleman's home. DRESSING NOT ATTRACTIVE. One of the most outstanding shortages was leather. As a result most people wore canvas shoes. Dressing, on the whole, was not attractive. Few of the women had hats or stockings. The menfolk wore no collars or ues, and their suits were made of synthetic wool. Food seemed plentiful enough, but it was not fresh food. The ' meat was usually white meat, such as chicken. Fruit and vegetables came out of tins. As an artmistress, Miss Lawton was naturally interested to see something of the craftwork done by children in other countries. She was impressed by the amount accomplished by English teachers without special training for teaching handcraft, and without equipment, often enough, in crowded class rooms. Creative effort was definitely being encouraged. Children could draw what they liked, instead of what they were told to, and always efforts and originality, and sometimes a rare skill, too, they put into it. They drew what they saw —scenes lrom the street, or the Caledonian market. One small boy put a great deal of effort into a sketch of his sister going "to have a perm," he said.