RUSSIA TODAY DESCRIBED BY SPENCER CLARK
January 21, 1933
Speaker Said Much Was Being Accomplished in the Soviet Union
听听听听 Mr. Herbert Spencer Clark ad颅dressed the St. Catharines Women鈥檚 Canadian Club last night on a subject of world-wide interest-Russia of today. Mr. Clark recently made an extensive trip through Russia, travelling with Dr. Sher颅wood Eddy, Maurice Hindus, and part of the time with the Shaw-Astor party, and so had an intense颅ly interesting story to tell. Over a hundred graphic pictures contrib颅uted materially to an understand颅ing of conditions in that vast coun颅try, which is larger than the whole of North America.
听听听听 Russia has drawn great attention for the last fifteen years. She has' been in terrific action, and she is gradually emerging from chaos into constructive achievement. Russia is the only country that has maintain颅ed a dominant policy and one party over this period of time. While the pictures landed to stress the more favourable and reconstructive side of life they gave an average cross-section of what the visitor sees. Bad conditions still exist in some parts, but they are mainly a legacy from the old regime.
听听听听 The visitor, from the moment he enters me country, is conscious of the personality of Lenin. He early dedicated himself to the re颅lease of Russia from the old des颅potism, and won universal popu颅larity and acclaim by his work. Stalin, call the "iron-hand dictator'' is the most powerful single indi颅vidual, but he is not a personal autocrat, and works in close harm颅ony with cabinet group.
听听听听 The "five-year plan" is an im颅mense constructive effort, the key颅note being "planned economy." The country is more concerned with in颅ternal problems, more than extern颅al ones. The religious persecution is not as severe as has been reported. Many churches and cathedrals are open and conducting services. The great Winter Palace is now a mus颅eum and art gallery. Art suffered much less during the Revolution there than in the French Revolu颅tion. Practically all the art trea颅sures were saved. The largest Leningrad cathedral, the Kazan, holds services, which are attended largely by the older people.
听听听听 The Summer Palace, once the "Czar's village" is now called the "children's village." It is a preventorium and fresh air camp. Rus颅sian children get the best in food, clothing, education and health, that the country can provide.
听听听听 Characteristic posters showed the type of propaganda circulated everywhere to teach the new ideals. Coal production, steam generating plants and huge elec颅tric generators, all advance Lenin's project of complete elec颅trification of the country and the building of a great industrial nation.
听听听听 The women workers seem to en颅joy their lot. The government pro颅vides community laundries, nurs颅eries and restaurants. Children are cared for in these scientific, well equipped nurseries while the par颅ents work. Workers' clubs, some颅what like Y.M.C.A.'s are attached to all large factories.
听听听听 Transportation has always been the greatest handicap, but now efficient rapid service is given by well-developed airways.
听听听听 In the Red Square in Moscow, the Lenin mausoleum is unique. In a great granite structure, Lenin's body reposes in a glass casket. Crowds line up and enter the mausoleum at seven o'clock each evening. Five thousand people a day file past this casket.
听听听听 Education is widely encouraged and where in the old days about one-third of the population was literate, today nearly three-quar颅ters is, a tremendous change in one generation.
听听听听 To a great extent, the state cares for the individual. Housing conditions are slowly improving. Hospitals and prisons are being revised, and brought more up-to-date. Young people are organized for sports, handicrafts and educa颅tion.
听听听听 In the out-lying districts, the old conditions prevail to some ex颅tent. Those who have joined the collective forum movement have the benefit of modern equipment and expert help, but the individ颅ualist farmers are still poor and miserable. They cling, neverthe颅less, to their old creed, believing, as one farmer expressed it, that "God didn't create men collective颅ly, He created them individually.
听听听听 Mr. Clark was presented by Miss Eccles, president of the club, and Mrs. Alban Butler and Miss Mar颅quis extended the thanks of the audience.
