RUSSIA’S PROGRESS.

Grey River Argus, 10 January 1928, Page 3

RUSSIA’S PROGRESS.

BACK ON 1913 STATUS. Industrial Productions. GAINS FIVEFOLD IN LAST 5 YEARS. ILLITERACY MARK LOWER. (From the Herald Tribune Washington Bureau) WASHINGTON, Tho Soviet Union Information Bureau has issued the following statement on the progress of the first decade of Soviet rule in Russia: “The first, decade of the Soviet state divides itself into five years of struggle in the face of civil war, invasion and famine, and five years of subst anti a 1 progress. “During the last five years industrial production has increased fivefold, the output per worker has more than doubled, and the number of workers in large scale industries has doubled. The monthly industrial output has been above the pre-war rate since the fall of 1926 and during the last two years th? agricultural output has been equal to the pre-war output in the same territory. The metal industry and ore mining are the only large industries still below pre-war level. During tho current fiscal year, begun October 1, 609,754,840 dollars will bo expended for capital improvements in industry, over one-fourth of this for new plants. The money comes mainly from profits and depreciation accounts.

“Industrial production increased 18 per cent, during the last fiscal year. “The oil output for the fiscal year was about 10,200,000 metric tons, as compared with 9,215,900 metric tons in 1923. Oil exports were 2,038 000 metric tons, compared with 914,032 metric tons in 1913. “The Soviet Union this fall gathered its third successive good harvest. Grain production was somewhat lower than in 1926, tho other crops larger ‘in some instances by 50 per cent. Bumper crops of cotton and sugar beets brought (production in these staples up to pre-war. About 35,000 tractors took part in this year’s harvest, as compared with 500 in 1913. “During the last/throe years electrical expansion has been rapid. During th? last year Ihe large-scale electric plants furnished five times ns much power as in 1913, the village! stations elevon times as much. Work has been started on Dniper River 1 Hydro-electric Plant, which will be somewhat larger than Mussel Shoals. Colonel Hugh L. Cooper, creator of Mussel Shoals, is chief constructing engineer. “Railway mileage is close to 47,000, compared with 36.500 miles in 1913 and 42,500 miles in 1917. “’Pho co-operatives have grown enormously; the consumers’ co-opera-tives have a membership of 12.000,000 and run upwards of 60,000 stores, and the farm co-operatives have a membership of 7,500,000. Last year the co-operatives conducted 44 per cent of the internal trade and upward of 10 per cent of the foreign trade.

“The foreign trade turnover increased from 199,000,000 dollars ■•ii 1922-23 to [about <800,000,000 dollars during tho last fiscal year, with a favourable balance of 30,000,000 dollars. Before the war the trade turnover of the Czarist empire was 2,490,500,000 dol. About 20 per cent of the imports last year came from the Uni-i ted States, as compared with less' than 6 per cent in 1293. American Soviet trade during the fiscal year ended September 30 was about 90,000,000 dol, as compared with 48,000000 dol in 1913. “In the Czarist Empire, four subjects out of five were illiterate. Illiteracy has now been reduced to 18 per cent among the male citizens of the Soviet Union and 53 per cent among the women. Expenditures for public education last year were 344,535,000 dol as compared with 142,140,000 dol in 1913. There were 3,000,000 more pupils in the public schools than before the war. “The death rate in Moscow last year was half that of 1913.

“The Soviet Union was the first of the larger countries in Europe to restore its currency to a gold basis. This occurred, in the summer of 1924. Since that time the budgets have been balanced without recourse to paper issues. “Under the census completed last spring, the population of the Soviet Union is 146,304,931. This is several million greater than the population of the same territory in 1913, and a gain of 15,000,000 in the last six years. The trend to the cities has been marked. The population of Moscow has increased 00,000 and that of Leningrad 50,000 in the last three years. “Retail prices in September showed a reduction of 15 per cent since last fall. The retail price index in September was 198 with prices of 1913 taken as 100. This compares favourably with other European countries.”