THE ETHNCGRAPHICAL COMPOSITION OF THE SOVIET UNION

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP78-03362A000400070005-3
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: R
• Document Page Count: 93
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: March 13, 2009
• Sequence Number: 5
• Content Type: REPORT

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INTRODUCTION .......................................................
1
PART I
CENTRAL RUSSIA; THE, M0SM, UKRAINL,
AND BLACK EARTH REGIONS ................................
3
1.
The Great Russians
3
2.
The White Russians .............................
4
3.
The Ukrainians or Little Russians
4
PART II
NORTH RUSSIA: FINLAND TO THE URALS,
AND THE BALTIC STATES .,.o ......... ....................?
7
1.
Finno-Ugrians .,... .............................
7
A. Karelian Finns
8
B. Esths ..........?..r.?.r..rr....?r.........?
8
C. Lapps ......................................
9
-;-r yenians or East Finns
9
2.
Baltic-Aryans ..................?...............
9
A. Lithuanians ................................
10
B. Latvians ...................................
10
3.
Pomortsi Russians
10
PART III
KAZAKHSTAN AND Ca1TRAL ASIA ............................
12
1.
Kazakhs ........................................
14
2.
Uzbecs .........................................
15
3?
Turkmens .......................................
16
4.
Tadjaks ........................................
17
5 .
Kh irgh i z .. ? ...... ? . ? . .............. ......... ...
17
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PART IV
SIBERIA ................................................ 19
1. Old Settlers ............ .......................
2. New Settlers ................ ...................
3. Native Tribes ..................................
20
20
20
A. Turkic .....................................
21
(1) Buryates ..............................
(2) Yakuts ........ ........................ 22
B . Manchu ........................... , .......... 23
(1)
(2)
Tungus and Lamuts .....................
Manchu .......................r.....r..
24
25
C. Finno-Ugrian ...............................
(1)
Ostiak ................................
( 2 )
S amoyed e s .......... ............... - .. .
26
(3)
Tatarized Samoyedes ...................
27
D. Americanoids 27
(1)
Gilyaks ...............................
27
(2)
Yukaghirs .............................
28
(3)
Karnchadals ............................
28
(4)
Koryaks
29
(5)
Chukchis
29
(6)
Asiatic Eskimo ..................?.....
29
FART V
OUTER MONGOLIA
.........................................
31
PART VI
THE CAUCASUS AND TRANS CAUCASIA .......................+ 36
1. Georgians .....................................~ 38
Armenians ...................................... 39
ii
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3. Azerbaijans ..................................... 39
A. iviountain Tatars ?~~~~~~~~~....?.?.......??..? 39
B. Nomad Tatars ................................ 40
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Poland
Czechosiova
Hungary
Rumania
Iz- Greenland
o'
Scale in Miles
0 goo woo
North 180?
pole
Alaska
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The Union of United Soviet Socialistic Republics - the
USSR - is commonly knownas: Russia; therefore the inhabitants are
glibly called Russians. In similar fashion we are Americans, natives
of the United States, although we include many different groups of
Indians (the only native Americans) and a wide variety of non-native
groups of European extraction, a fair percentage from Africa, and
even a few recent arrivals from Asia. The descendents of these people
and their numerous hybrids are the present day Americans.
There are 187 ethnic groups in the USSR (including appropriate
regions), and 153 languages or dialects are spoken. Even if the
smaller groups are ignored, there are thirty distinct nationalities.
In reality the ""Russians" are a more heterogenous total than the
"Americans. 11
Historically, the Russian Empire grew from a Great Russian
nucleus until almost half of the population was composed of non-Great
Russians. Ethnographically the USSR presents a Russian core in the
central area of European Russia, and non-Russian fringes to the south
and east into Asia, along the Arctic coast, and the recently re-
incorpo-rated Baltic states.
In this short briefing on the ethncgraphic composition of the
USSR, the country is divided into six major regions:
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1. Central European Russia: the i::oscow, Ukraine, and
Black Earth regions.
2. North Russia: Finland to the Urals and the Baltic States.
3. Kazakhstan and Central Asia,
4, Siberia.
5. Outer Mongolia.
6. The Caucasus and Trans Caucasia.
No two-hour presentation can adequately cover the ethno-
graphic characteristics of the many ethnic groups in Russia. In
order to give you some familiarity with the subject, the nucleus
of the Russian population -- the Slavic element, including the
Great, Little, and -.'hit e Russians -- will be combined in a once-over-
lightly treatment. More time and detail will be devoted to the native
or indigenous groups of the Soviet Republic which the Slavic nucleus
dominates, influences to varying degrees, and is in the process of
absorbing.
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PART I
C VTRI.L RUS;:.IA, THL; DM~OSCOW, UKRAINE,
AND BLACK EARTH REGIONS
The Slavs of Russia, a diversified ethnic group which
has a basic language and some physical characteristics in common,
number over 153,000,000 people, approximately 770 or three-fourths
of the entire population. These people are Caucasians. In general
they belong to the Greek Orthodox Christian Church.
Most Slavs live in European Russia (there are disassociated
groups in Poland, Yugo-Slavia, Czechoslovakia,.and other Balkan
countries). In the course of conquest -- of people, of country, of
economic resources -- the Slavs have pushed down the Volga River
and eastward to the Pacific; this later movement was accelerated by
the construction of the Trans-Siberian. Railroad, and there is a marked
congestion of Slavic people all along this transportation artery,
The major subdivisions of the Slavs are:
1. The Great Russians (Valiko-Rossya). The 105,000,000
members of this Slavic group have expanded in all directions from
the Moscow region. They speak the Great Russian dialect (the national
language) which belongs to the Aryan linguistic root and the Indo-
European linguistic stock. (It is worth repeating that Aryan applies
to language, not physical type.) Although varied, the people are of
medium height and stocky build, and usually are round-headed; skin
color is white and the hair often has a reddish tinge. Mr. Molotov
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CENTRAL RUSSIA
Q So0
Scale in,Miies
Baltic Sea
white
S''a
ILo
North Russia
* Moscow
Czechoslovaki
Hungary
WHITE
RUSSIANS
0 Kiev
UKRAN/A NS
Rumania Odessa CRIMEAN
TA TA RS
BI ack Sea
??
?
?
b
?
?
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could be put on exhibit as a fairly typical example of the Great
Russian.
2. The White Russian (Belorussiya). The homeland of the
1jVhite Russians is the upper Dnieper River. There they sought refuge
in the Pripet Marshes from the Tatar threat of the Mongolian invaders,
during the 13th and 14th Centuries. (The White nussians have a
characteristic dialect.) They are blonder and taller than the Great
Russians; they were comparatively sheltered in their unattractive
retreat area and received less i ongolian blood than did the other
Slavs. The term 11INhite" has nothing to do with skin color nor with
the "White Guards" who were defeated and almost exterminated by the
Bolshevik Red forces during the Revolution; the name originated from
the white clothing they once favored.
3. The Ukrainians or Little Russians (Malorossiya). These
people occupy the southwestern steppe land of Russia, around the
central city of Kiev. They are more brunet than the other Slavs and
have more slender builds, The western Ukrainians, between the Great
and White Russians and the Slavic groups of the Balkan countries, have
been Europeanized to a greater extent than the other peoples of Russia.
Kiev, their capital, was a cultural center long before the Czars
encouraged the arts and sciences in Moscow. The Ukrainians have a
marked feeling of superiority: one writer has described them Ps
Fische r,11 Texans in Fur Hats. The Ukrainians believe that they can fight,
1947
Chap II_drink, ride, sing, and make love better than anybody else in the world,
and if pressed will admit it.,, Although the Ukrainians have a long
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tradition of fighting for independence from the rest of the
Russians, history proves otherwise. "The Ukraine has stood as a
Turin, rock against foreign invasion, domination, and attempts to tear
1948*
p.65. apart the three inseparable and indivisible units of the mother
country." In order to discourage wishful thinking it might be
well to remember German experiences in the Ukraine in World VTas II
-- fanatic resistance, inspired guerilla tactics, and the scorched
earth policy, coupled with the rigorous winter conditions of the
region, sapped the strength of Hitler's armies.
A long history of fighting for their land, and the agri-
cultural and stock raising economy of the Ukrainians (from the
peasants of the eastern Black Earth region to the Cossacks of the
Don River) constitutes the foundation for their extreme nationalism
and love of homeland.
Although Stalin himself is a Georgian, from Tbilisi --
geographically and traditionally far re,noved from the Great, .';'hite,
and Little Russian groups -- nearly all of the powers that be in
the USSR are Slavs. There are between five and ten million members
in the Communist party; they are in top governmental positions,
they are the authorities in the government agencies and in the
lower progessional bureaucracy, and they are the dreaded secret
Fischer, police. First hand reporters agree in saying that "Most of the
7.947.
p.67. Party members are sincere and honest men -- idealists, many of them,
who are convinced that they are serving a sacred cause."
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The great mass of the people of the Soviet Union, the
Slav groups in particular, are more in favor of Communism than
against it, and with forceful direction from the Party members
they will remain docile and conper'ative. Either, they are too
impoverished to have other thoughts than those which pertain to
food, or -- indoctrinated in Communism and believing it synonymous
with democracy -- they do not know of or care much about other
forms of government.
There is a third group, which for one reason or another
is hostile to the "dictatorship of the proletariat" as the condi-
tioning period for the "classless society." How large this group
may be is a matter of conjecture. It includes the following varied
groups: a few old people who have dim memories of a cultured life
as Czarist nobility; individuals who have been mistreated or wronged
by the Soviet state; nationalistic groups which have been "absorbed"
by the expanding Russian Empire; and the gangsters or "Zhuliki"
who are believed to be well organized in the Soviet Union. Un-
doubtedly the natives of remote or peripheral areas make up the
greatest number of Russians who are dissatisfied or insufficiently
indoctrinated with the beliefs and practices of Communism. The
rest of this study will be devoted to subdivisions of the USSR.
where such native tribes comprise a large fraction or a majority
of the area population.
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PART II
NORTH RUSE. IA : FINI ID TO THE URALS
AND THE BALTIC STATES
The Leningrad-Karelian district and the northern Kray
(the Russian designation for lithe farthest end'' along the Arctic
coast) border Finland on the west and the northern Ural Mountains
on the east. Practically all of the area is north of Latitude 600
-- the same as Leningrad. The climate is wet and cold. The
vegetation is either tundra (Arctic moss and grass) or taiga
(spruce-fir forest). From north to south the population tends to
increase from one to about file individuals per square mile.
Several recent acquisitions -uo the USER are included in
this section; Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania (pares of the Russian
;empire until 191E3, and reappropriated in 1940) have a majority of
non-Russians in their populations. These countries contain forested
and agricultural land. 'T'hey experience a cold climate, rather like
that of Scandinavia.
The non-Russians are of two distinct stocks; Finno-Ugrians
and Baltic-Aryans. In addition, a few Swedes, Germans, and Jews
have settled along the east Baltic Sea.
1. FINNO-UGRIANS, This is a linguistic family which includes]
in the area under consideration, the Karelians (the Finns of Karelia),
the Esths of Estonia, the Lapps (Samelats) of the Arctic coast
east to the White Sea, and the Syryenians or East Finns who occupy
the Pechora River drainage.
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A. The Karelian Finns comprise 42% of the population
of the area between Finland and Archangel, and from Leningrad
north to the Barents Sea. Their country is rich in timber resources
which so far have remained comparatively undeveloped. The climate
of their range is too rigorous to permit much agriculture; they
tend herds of reindeer and other stock; they hunt, trap for furs,
and fish along the rivers and coasts. They are a backwoods people,
scattered and poorly educated, and their life is rigorous. They are
Greek Orthodox Christians.
Their dwellings are wood houses built on platforms over
stables in which they keep their bF;ter cattle and sheep during
the coldest periods of the winter.
The Kprelians are round-healed, have broad faces with
prominent cheekbones, concave nosc,s, fair complexions, hair that
ranges in color from ash blonde to medium brown, and blue or gray
eyes; they are of medium height and sturdy build. This description
applies in general to the physique of all of the Finno-Ugrian tribes
considered here.?
B. The 1,000,000 Esths comprise 88% of the population
of Estonia. Minorities in Estonia include 8-1/2% Russians, 1%
Germans, and-l% Swedes. The western Esths are Lutherans; the natives
near the R 3sian border belong to the Greek Orthodox Church.
The area contains about 50,000 square miles; forests cover
much of it, although large areas are suitable for stock raising, some
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agriculture (cereals and potatoes)., and dairy farming. While a
separate entity., between 1918 and 1940, the country was solvent
and prosperous.. The Esths have a warlike tradition and a very
nationalistic spirit..
C. The Lapps, or Samelats as they call themselves,
range the taiga and tundra adjacent to the Arctic coast from
Norway to the White Sea. All of their habitat lies within the
Arctic Zone. It is doubtful. whether more than 3,000 Lapps are
under Russian domination and most of them belong to the Greek Orthodox
Church (although a few, and all of the Scandinavian Lapps, are
Lutherans). They live by hunting, fishing, fur trapping, and tend-
ing reindeer herds. They are nomadic for most of the year; during
the colder parts of the winter they gather in small villages composed
of crude wooden cottages huddled around a church.. They are the
least blonde of the Finno-Ugrians and have the flattest noses..
D. The S,yryenians, or East Finns, occupy scattered
settlements from Archangel eastward to the Pechora River; their
headquarters and the major concentration of population is at the
junction of the Ishma River and the Pechora. They hunt, fish, and
trap furs, and care for a few reindeer. They are born traders,
not only among themselves but between the Russians to the south, the
Karelians to the west, and the Semoyedes or Nentsy to the east.
2. BALTIC-ARYANS. The two representatives of this linguistic
stock which are now within the Russian sphere are the inhabitants
of Lithuania and Latvia.. These people speak Lettish or variant
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dialects. They are of medium build, have alongated faces and fine
features, and are very blcnd., with blue eyes. Many of them are
Lutheran Christians.
A. The Lithuanians comprise over 80% of a population
of 4,800,000 scattered over 60,000 square miles. The rural groups
are concerned with agriculture -- cereals and potatoes, stock raising,
and dairy farming. Dairy products account for the major exports,
although industrial products from the famed tanneries, iron works,
and pulp and plywood plants are important. Four-fifths of the
population are Roman Catholics.
B. The Latvians make up 77% of the 2,000,000 popula-
tion which occupies an area of 25,390 square miles. Russians
number .about 12% of the population; Jews, Germans, and Poles respectivel;
account for 4%, 3%, and 2%. The economy is similar to that of the
Lithuanians, although more of tho population is concentrated in
urban centers. More than half are Protestants, a Quarter are Roman
Catholics.
Both the Lithuians and the Latvians were strongly
nationalistic and maintained self-supporting countries during the
years of self-government between 1918 and 1940.
3. PCMORTSI. The "Pomortsi't are an off-shoot of the
Russians concentrated around the great port of Leningrad on the Gulf
of Finland, which opens into the Baltic. This group pushed north
from Leningrad to the T; Jhite Sea at an early date; and they have
10
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prospered by fishing for herring and salmon. More recently, the
Russians have developed the port of Archangel and have taken over
the pert of Petsamo from the Finns. Russians are fairly numerous,
averaging between five and fifteen per square mile, in the areas
adjoining the east Baltic states.
Although emphasis has been placed upon the natives cf
north Russia, it should be remembered that nearly all of them are
civilized and literate people. The inhabitants of the east Baltic
states are true products of' western civilization. The Karelian
Finns are closely related to their independent Finland neighbors
who have been leaders in experimentation with the socialist agrarian
form of government; the Karelians revolted in 1921 but were unable
to secure independence from Russia,
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PART III
KAZAKHSTAN AND CENTRAL ASIA
There is a blind spot in most people's geographical
knowledge concerning the area north of India and Persia, east of
the Caspian Sea, west of the hazy western boundary of China, and
south of the thin line of the Trans-Siberian Railroad. The
northern two-thirds of this area is Kazakhstan, stretching
from the Ural River eastward to the Altai Mountains, and south
into the lofty Tien Shan Range. The southern third is composed
of the comparatively small Soviet Socialist Republics of (from
west to east) Turkmen, Uzbec, Tadjak, and Khirghiz, two desert
and two mountainous in the order named.
The 1,060,,000 square miles of Kazakhstan, home for approxi-
mately 6,150,000 people, include "extensive grasslands with
grazing herds, seas of ripening wheat, blooming cotton. . . arid
Davies and deserts where vegetation thirsts for water,, and for life . . mineral
Steiger,
1942. wealth that places Kazakhstan first in the USSR in the mining cf
pp.107--108.
copper, zinc, lead, and tungsten; second in gold, molybdenum, tin,
and fluorspar; and third in coal and petroleum," Brush aside the
poetic language and Kazakhstan still remains important tc the
Russian economy.
The total area of the four republics of central Asia is
about 450,-- square miles, inhabited by 11,000,000 people.
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The region contains strategic minerals (including uranium). Oasis
and valley bottom agriculture yields sugar beets, rice, oranges,
and -- at comparatively high altitudes in the east -- excellent
apples (they grow wild there); but the critical crop is cotton.
Central Asia is the cotton belt of the USSR and in 1942 the per acre
yield was the highest in the world and the total output exceeded
9,000,OCO bales.
Kazakhstan and the central Asia republics are and will con-
tinue to be scenes of strenuous exploitation and development.
Construction of the Turk-Sig Railroad in 19,30 eased the transportation
difficulty of getting cotton and livestock to the Russian markets.
Its construction also. encouraged an increased influx o,f Russian
settlers. The policy of the Czarist government regarding the natives
was '"try keep them down and push them rout" from the attractive areas
into the wastelands. In all fairness, the present Russian policy
displays much more consideration; however, the adjustments to Russifi-
cation and increased specislizatiu_,n of economics will continue to be
accomplished more or less painfully.
The population of 'Kazakhstan and central Asia includes, in
each particular region, a majority of natives, a high minority of
Russian settlers, a few Armenians and Bokhara Jews, and representa-
tives from adjacent native groups. Thus Kazakhstan contains about
three and one-half' million Kazakhs -- 620' of the population; 33% are
Russians and most of the remaining 5% are Uzbecs and Khirghiz.
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The natives of each region speak Turkic dialects. (early all are
Mohammedans, Physically they are Mongolians and probably contain
a Caucasian (Persian) ingredient; however, they were additionally
Mongolized by the conquering hordes of Ghengis Khan and Tamerlane
in the 13th and 14th Centuries.
In general they are of medium stature, stockily built,
with brunette hair and small, black, slanting eyes; their noses are
flat and broad, cheekbones high, and hands and feet small; they are
round-headed and their complexion is swarthy to brown. There is a
noticeable increase in stature and nose prominence towards the
south (physique approaches Caucasoid as Persian admixture becomes
,pore pronounced).
1. KAZAKHS. The Kazakhs are primarily stockmen; they are
in the aggregate the best horsemen in the world (the Kazakh cavalry
units made an excellent record in World War II). Their animals,
in order of importance, are sheep, cattle, horses, goats, camels,
and pigs (probably for the Russian market, as pigs are cunsidered
unclean by most'Mohamrnedans).
Their diet consists of a wheat bread fried in deep fat,
butter, sour cheese, kummis (fermented mare's milk), and sparingly
used meat. The typical dwelling is a felt tent, circular with
perpendicular walls and a flat cone roof. Furniture is at a
minimum: bundles of skins and felt blankets, goatskin containers,
and a few cooking utensils serve domestic needs.
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Kazakhs still wear sheepskin and felt clothing, and the
women have concealing cotton headdresses which may or may not
include an enveloping veil. Warm clothing is an essential as the
area experiences extremes of temperature; the prevailing northeast
winds briar; sandstorms in summer and dry, stinging snow in winter.
This is particularly true in the south and west sections, respectively
the huge "famine steppe" and the barren Ust-Urt Plateau.
Agriculture --- fruits, cereals, and cotton -- is accomplished
in the irrigated valleys in the southeast. The extreme northwestern
portion of Kazakhstan includes a section of the Black Earth belt;
there some Kazakhs are interspersed with Russian cereal farmers.
2. UZB CS. The Uzbecs were urbanized to a greater extent
than other peoples of central Asia even before the present Russian
regime encouraged the establishment of a sedentary life. The
historic trade routes from Europe to China passed through Uzbec
territory and old market towns grew up along the route.
The Uzbecs comprise 74% of the population of their republic.
They are split into approximately eighty tribes; however these
divisions are unimportant as the Uzbecs appear to be an extremely
mixed group (they are diversified physically, and they have adopted
a number of foreign customs). The position of the women is improving;
until recently their position was a little lower than that of good
livestock.
host of the Uzbecs now live in oasis and river valley
settlements; a few are still pastoral nomads-but even these now
15
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tend to maintain two fixed abodes -- near winter and summer pastures.
The usual dwelling is a low hut made of sun-dried bricks,
The liquidation of the ""kulaks" was worldwide news some
twenty years ago. The movement was not restricted to the Uzbec
Republic, but many of the more prosperous Uzbec farmers were "kulaks,11
The term means "clenched fist" and it was applied to tight-fisted
farmers whose major interest was profit-making; they speculated in
grain, holding it for a high price, and they refused to increase
the output as scarcity brought them increased profits. Today Uzbecs
till small private field or are joined together on collective farms.
Cotton is the main crop but fruit and grain are also raised.
In addition to agriculture and stock raising, a number of
industries have been expanded or developed. These include: textiles
(cotton, wool, and silk), dried fruit, meat and hide processing;
harvesting machinery and fertilizers are made locally; mineral and
oil resources are being exploited,
3. TURKMELS. The Turkmens made up 70;ti of the population
of their republic. Excepting three large arable valleys, it is a
poor region, consisting mainly of the huge Kara-Kum Desert; it affords
few inducements to colonization by the Russians. However, the Uzbecs
and Russians each total about 10% of the population; the balance is
made up fo Armenians, Khirghiz, Persians, and Bokhara Jews,
Originally the Turkmens were nomadic horse-breekers. Recently
the horse has given way to goats, cattle, and sheep. The herdsmen
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live in felt tents; their diet and clothing are similar to those
of the Kazakh pastoral nomads.
Turkmens not engaged in stock raising produce silk or crops
of cotton, fruit, and cereals in the few valley bottoms that may
be irrigated. Some natives are employed in the salt industry along
the east shore of the Caspian; some fishing is practiced there as
well.
4. TADJAKS. The Tadjdks make up three-fourths of the
population of their republic; Uzbecs are the next highest increment
of the population; and the balance is made up of Russians, Arabs,
Jews, and natives from adjacent areas.
Most of the Tadjaks are pastoral nomads, or at least commute
between summer and winter pastures. They live either in circular
felt tents or in huts of sun-dried brick. The few agriculturists
grow cotton, fruit, and cereals along- suitable glacier-fed streams.
Coal and iron deposits have been exploited in recent years.
5. KHIRGHIZ. The Khirghiz occupy the best area in central
Asia, although they also are exposed to the continental climate which
is characterized by the greatest range between dey and night tempera-
tures in the world. The Khirghiz total 66% of the population,
Russian settlers 20% and Uzbecs 11%,
Lost of the country is mountainous and provides excellent
meadow pastureland. The natives raise fat-tailed sheep, cows,
yaks, goats, and the two-humped camel. As in much of Asia, "watch
dogs guard every encampment."
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The Khirghiz spend the summer in felt tents. Each family
or band winters in a particular valley in permanent huts of
sun-dried brick, each roofed with a haystack -- winter fodder for
their animals. In addition to the usual diet of fried bread, milk,
sour cheese, kummis, and a little meat, the Khirghiz rely on tea
and sugar (this is also true of the Uzbecs).
Aside from stock raising and agriculture, the principal
industries of the area include the manufacture of textiles and the
mining of coal.
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FART IV
SIBERIA
The general impression of Siberia has always been that
it is a cold country, covered with snow, unsuitable for agriculture
and human habitation -- a good place to send exiles. This is true
as far as the northern tundra and the southern, desert-like steppe
is concerned. But, taken as a whole, Siberia has a predominantly
continental climate; it offers opportunities for stock raising
and agriculture and for such industries as mining, lumbering,
fishing, and fur trapping.
Siberia has always been sparsely populated. Approximately
17' of the total Russian population inhabits Siberia; whereas its
territory represents nearly 75 of the area of the Soviet Union.
The over-all population of Siberia is estimated to be slightly over
33,000,000; about 80j are Russian colonists. About 25~ of the
population lives in cities with the greatest concentration along the
Tram;-Siberian Railroad, the f:rnur River, and sections of the south-
east coast. There are five cities of over 1CC,000, of which
Vladivostok (250,000) is the largest. Less than one individual per
two scauare miles occupies the Arctic taiga, tun:ira-i, and coast --
and most of' them are in settlements scattered along the b`!nks of the
larger rivers.
The population of :Siberia may he divided into three groups;
the Old :J,_ttlers, the New Settlers, and the Native, Tribes,
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1, CLD SET'I'LERS. The Old Settlers, belonging to Great
Russian and related stocks, are dominant politically and economically.
They are the descendents of exiles, soldiers who fought in the Russo-
Japanese 1-'ar, and enterprising colonists.
2. NE,' SETTLERS. The New Settlers, of Great Russian,
Ukrainian, and related stocks, are virtually indistinguishable in
appearance from the Old Settlers. They are settled around the cities,
in the mining and lumbering areas, where they form the bulk of the
industrial population. iu;ost of them have been transplanted more
or less willingly by the present regime.
The Old and New Settlers together -- about dO of the
entire population -- make up the collectivized farmers and f isher-
ren, the industrial workers, and the government officials and
employees. For practical purposes, they may be considered as
proven Communists. The status of any particular individual may be
correctly surmised by the newness of his clothing and the adequacy
of his diet. Physically the Old and New Settlers are Caucasians --
varying from the brunette southern Europeans to the blonde Daltic
stocks. In the course of several generations, a number of these
Caucasians have interbred with natives.
3. NATIVE TRIBES. The native tribes are of four distinct
stocks: Turkic, Jv.anchu, Finno-Ugrian, and Americanoid. Their culture
ranges from nomadic cattle-raising through reindeer breeding to
hunting and fishing. The difference between the types is rapidly
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disappearing.
Although varying somewhat in decree of Russificaticn
and easternization, they have all been affected by the Rus::ian
policy of making all people sedentary (in so far as their economy
permits), literate, and able to speak Russian.
The natives enjoy special consideration in that they are
permitted a degree of autonomy on local and cultural affairs. :_ost
of them are organized into collectives for fishing, cattle and
reindeer husbandry, and the tragping of fur-bearing animals; these
collectives are supervised by representatives of established
government agencies.
A. Turkic. Turkic speaking people include the Buryats
and Yakuts, respectively around Lake Baykal and in the lower Lena
River drainage, and Tatar tribes (Barba, Cholym, Abakam, etc) in
southwestern Liberia, in the Altai leountains, and on the headwaters
of the Ob and Yenisei Rivers. The last-mentioned Turkic sneakers
of southwestern Siberia are closely related to large groups along
the middle Volga River and in the Caucasus.
(1) Buryats
The Buryats number about one-third of a million, and the
population is increasing. They are the most advanced natives,
readily adapting themselves to urbanization -- about 3O,CCC of them
live in Ulan-Ude, where they constitute about. 2C` of the population.
They are predominantly horse and cattle breeders, occunving
the steppe areas east, west, and south of Lake laykal. they 'Lead
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a semi-nomadic life, changing abode twice a year (meeting the need
for seasonal pastures) and maintaining established dwellings in
both habitats. Under Russian direction, agriculture has been
encouraged but it remains of secondary importance.
The old octagonal wood huts and felt tents are giving way
to log cabins of standard Russian type. Their dress and household
accessories are gradually being replaced by clothing and utensils
of Russian manufacture. Their diet consists of cheese and fermented
milk, bread and tea, and small amounts of fish, meat, and vegetable.
Many Buryats remained Lamas (a form of Buddhists) in spite
of past Russian intolerance. The majority are Greek Orthodox
Christians, although they still cherish many old shamanistic
practices.
They are stocky, of medium stature, with narrow shoulders
and short, often bowed legs. Their skin color ranges from yellow
to brownish. They have broad faces, flat noses, slanting, dark-brown
eyes, anTi straight, coarse black hair (sparse on the face).
(2) Yakuts
The Yakuts, numerically the second most important native
tribe in Siberia, occupy the vast area north of Lake Baykal.
In the Yakutsk autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic, which stretches
from the Yenisei River east to the Kolyma, and from the Arctic Ocean
almost to Lake Baykal, the Yakuts form 85% of the population.
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The non-natives (Russians 11%, Chinese, and Koreans) live in the
Aldan mining region and in the city of Yakutsh. This Yakutsh
Republic is almost equal in size to European Russia, totaling about
1,500,000 square miles.
Culturally and racially the Yakuts are similar to the
Buryats, Formerly they led a nomadic life, raising horses on
the steppes; at present horse raising is generally replaced by
cattle breeding. The chief means of livelihood is the fur industry;
with furs the Yakuts pay for imported grain and manufactured goods.
The great mineral deposits of the region have not as yet been
adequately developed, owing to the low density of population and
the absence of transport facilities. In the extreme north, some
groups depend upon herds of reindeer (this economy is supplemented
by hunting and fishing). In the south, as with the Buryats, some
have become agriculturists through Russian influence.
The Yakuts are of two physical types. Both groups closely
resemble the Buryats; however, one group has an incongruous and
unexplained prominent nose. The Yakuts are characterized by
remarkable vitality and adaptability to environment.
B. Manchu. The Manchu speaking people are further
subdivided into Tungusic tribes (Tungus, Lamuts, Orochoni, etc)
and Manchu groups (Golds, Ulchis, Orochis, Samaghirs, and Udehe).
All are characterized by yellowish or smoky skin; low,
broad, fre,_;uently slanting forehead; straight black hair; black
eyes; low stature; slender build; and short legs.
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(1) Tungus and Lamuts
The Tungus (Euyenki) and the closely related Lamut are
scattered in small groups north of the Trans-Siberian Railroad,
from the Yenisei River east to the Sea of Okhotsk (Tungus in the
west, Lamut near the coast).
In the 17th Century, when the Russians approached the head
of the Lena River, they encountered a number of indigenous peoples
and applied the name Tungus indiscriminately to all of them.
Regardless of their original tribal names (Orochoni, Luoravetlans,
etc), they are all nomadic; the majority are forest hunters. Some
in the north are reindeer herdsmen, using the animals for pack,
saddle, and draft purposes. The Tungus around Lake Baykal and the
Ohotsk coast Lamuts do rr,ore fishing than hunting.
The diet varies from the near-starvation meat rations of
Arctic groups to menus of fish, berries, and dairy products consumed
by the natives near Lake Baykal and along the Okhotsk coast. Rein-
deer milk is a staple, but the meat is rarely eaten.
The northern Tungus live in portable conical tents, of rein-
deer skins in winter and of bark in summer. Winter camping grounds
have permanent store houses built on stilts (protection from
foraging animals, and easy to locate., in deep snow). Currently,
square let- cabins are replacing the old style dwellings. The coastal
Lamuts live in villages composed of lop cabins; a small number in
the Kolyma river drainage are nomadic reindeer herdsmen and hunters.
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Cold weather outer parnents of deerskin are still worn.
Ready-made nussian clothing has replaced the old costume, which
showed a number of affinities with the Japanese style in cut and
ornamentation.
Lany of the Tungus peoples are Greek Orthodox Christians;
however, they cling to a number of shamanistic beliefs and cherish
many idols and amulets.
(2) Manchus
The kanchu tribes may be subdivided into hunters (Gold
and Udehe) and fishers (Samaghir, Orochi, and Ulchi), a_i_i.hough
they all rely primarily on agriculture and stock raising. They
occupy small and delimited ranges in extreme southeastern Siberia)
in and east of the Amur River drainage. Numerically, they are the
least important Siberian natives,
They live in villages; the old style grass and clay houses
have given way to log cabins; brush shelters (near permanent store
houses on stilts) serve as dwellings near summer pastures.
The diet consists of fish and begetables, some game, and
bread. Clothing is a combination of Chinese cotton-type garments
and Russian manufactured apparel.
C. Finno-Ugrian. Finno-Ugrian tribes in western' Siberia
include Ostiaks (and the Ket on the lower Yenisei River), Sainoyedes,
and such little known groups and the Voguls and Dolgans -- in the
northwest corner, and the Ta.tarized-Samoyedes along the headwaters
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of the Yenisei River (near Abakan in the Altai h':ountains). The
lower Yenisei River may be taken as the dividing line between the
Tungus people (to the east) and the Finno-Ugrian groups (to the
west); a few Yakuts persist north and east of the river mouth.
These Finno-Ugrians are medium to short; they have dark
hair and brown eyes; their noses are flat and broad; mouths are
large and lips full; and the facial hair of the men is scanty.
(1) Ostiak
The Ostiak occupy the lower OB River drainage and adjacent
taiga and tundra lands. The river dwellers are comparatively
settled -- and therefore Russianized. They depend on fishing.
The tundra Ostiaks, confusingly mixed with the Samoyedes, tend
herds of reindeer. All of these natives depend on winter fur-
trapping to trade for imported needs.
They are good hunters; it is reported that some continue
to use bows and arrows. Snowshoes are usual for winter travel;
dugout canoes facilitate summer transportation. Rude huts of
skins, sod, or stone furnish shelter in summer; semi-subterranean
earth lodges are the conventional winter dwellings, although log
cabins are increasingly used. Skin clothing still predominates.
(2) Samoyedes
The arctic Samoyedes or Nentsy, numbering less than 20,000
occupy the tundra and taiga of the lower Ob and Yenisei River
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drainages and coastal areas (westward to the White Sea). The
major tribes are (a) the Yuraks, who inhabit the coast of the Arctic
Ocean; (b) the Tavghi, from the Yenisei east to the Khatanga; and
(c) the Ostiak-Samoyede hybrids of the Tobolsk and Yenisei backwoods
and tundra.
These people live by hunting and fishing and reindeer herding.
They dwell in stone huts and flimsy, although easily transported,
summer tents. Their religion is primitive shamanism, although there
have been a few converts to the Greek Orthodox Church.
es
(3) Tatarized-Samoyed
The Tatarized-Samoyedes (such tribes as the Kaibals and
Beltirs) have almost completely blended with the Tatar groups on
the northern slopes of the Altai Mountains. They are a mixed lot
linguistically, physically, and culturally. Their economy is
based on agriculture and stock raising.
D. Americanoids. The Americanoid tribes are small and
widely scattered. They are related in language, culture, and
physique to the American Indians.
(1) Gilyaks
The Gilyaks are a sea-going, fishing people who live on
both sides of the mouth of the Amur. They number less than 5,000
persons. They are semi-nomadic, changing their dwelling place
several times during the summer -- moving up and down the coast
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in search of fish and sea mammals. They live in wooden frame huts,
lined with sleeping shelves which are warmed by long smoke vents.
A favorite winter dwelling is a semi-subterranean lodge, the upper
half of which is of wattle and daub construction. They still wear
sealskin boots; manufactured clothing has replaced their native garb
of animal skins. Their diet consists overwhelmingly of fish and
seal meat.
(2) Yukaghirs
The Yukaghirs are the most primitive of the Americanoid
tribes. They exist along the southern tributaries of the Kolyma
River. They are reindeer hunters; seasonally the individual bands
visit their own particular fishing grounds. They live in conical
tents of reindeer hide; a few bands living near the coast spend
the winter in villages composed of semi-subterranean lodges. The
clothing of men and women consists of a sack-like coat made of
reindeer hide or other animal fur, leggings, and boots. Winter
travel is accomplished by dog sleds; in the summer they use dugout
canoes.
(3) Kamchadals
The Kamchadals of the Kamchatka Peninsula were essentially
a fishing people, dependent on the reindeer (which they did not
domesticate) only secondarily. No pure Kamchadals remain; the
Russian native hybrids of Kamchatka and adjacent posts are often
described as hamchadals,
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(4) Koryaks
The Koryaks, who number about 5,000, are scattered
throughout the area immediately north of the Kamchatka Peninsula.
Most of them are nomadic reindeer people living in small encampments.
Each settlement consists of one or more large deerskin tents, each
housing twenty to forty people. The few.coastal Koryaks depend
on fishing and live in more permanent houses.
(5) Chukchis
The Chukchis are divided into groups. The Maritime
Chukchis number about 3,000 and live in about seventy small villages
along the Arctic coast. The Reindeer Chukchis, numbering about
9,,000, are more nomadic. Their herds are less domesticated than
those of the Tungus tribes; their reindeer are kept for food only;
salt is the bait used to attract the half-wild animals. Although
some manufactured clothing is now used, skin garments still pre-
dominate. The coastal Chukchis are impoverished and lead a very
unsatisfactory existence; visitors to their settlements speak of them
as diseased and dirty, untrustworthy and thieving, On the other
hand, the Reindeer Chukchis lead more secure lives and are more
upstanding people.
(6) Asiatic Eskimo
The Asiatic Eskimo number about 2,000. They live in small
settlements between Big Diomede Island in Bering Strait westward
along the coast of the Arctic Ocean. They are closely related to
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the Eskimo of north Alaska and are indistinguishable from them
in language, physique, and an economy dependent upon the hunting
of sea mammals, They are reported as being friendly and honest.
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PART V
OUTER MONGOLIA
Cuter Mongolia has been buffeted back and forth since the
Chinese revolution of 1911. Russia has definitely been of dominant
influence since 1917. In 1924, A Constitution (Fundamental Law) of
the Mongol Peoplets Republic was adopted and on June 30, 1940,
the constitution now in force was accepted. This states that "The
Mongol People's Republic is an independent state of workers who
have annihilated the imperialistic and feudal yoke, insuring a
non-capitalistic approach to the development of the country to
pave the way to socialism in the future." In other words, Outer
Iviongolia is definitely behind the Iron Curtain and has been for
so long that our knowledge of the changes in the area is very scanty.
The area known as Outer Mongolia has been largely the
territory of a single tribe, the Khalka Mongols. Chinese and
Russian merchants have always been prominent in the area, their
numbers varying with the ups and downs of Chinese and Russian
political influence. By far the largest immigrant group are
the Buryats from the adjacent Lake Baykal region of Siberia.
The Mongols are characterized by yellowish skin color.
They have the Mongoloid eyef old or "slant eyes," broad faces,
high cheekbones, and coarse black hair. They are medium to tall
in stature. The women look Chinese, primarily because of
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similarities of dress with their neighbors to the south, Until the
time of Russian domination, about 60% of the population of Outer
Mongolia practiced Lamaism, a form of Buddhism. Until 1924, the
Living Buddha in Urga (now Ulan Bator) was the head of Mongolian
Lamaism; he was lower in rank to the Living Buddha in Tibet.With
his death the Russians prevented the selection of a successor.
They also confiscated the herds and properties of the lamaseries
s.o that they lost their powerful economic control.
Now only a small
percentage of the men are lamas; they dress in red and yellow robes
and hats.
The Mongol's outer garment is a full length, loose fitting
gown belted at the waist -- it resembles a bathrobe. For ordinary
wear the robe is cotton, but the women often have them of beautiful
Chinese silk. In winter they wear full length sheepskin lined
overcoats.
Men and women wear high boots with turned up toes which
are no more intended for walking than the cowboy boots of Texas.
Non-lama men wear little skull caps with ear tabs. In
winter a fur cap is not only in style but a necessity. The women
arrange their black hair into two lateral prongs, and balance a
little cone-in-saucer hat or embroidered cap between the horns.
The people of Outer i~ongolia are herders and stock raisers.
ealth is figured in horses, sheep, camels, and cattle. Live
animals are the Longol's capital. Cash money is for throwing
about recklessly. It is no good until it is spent, but live stock
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are a Longol's "money in the bank," and only the interest is to
be used. That interest consists of milk and wool together with
the natural increase which may be sold to traders. They export
live animals, wool, and hides.
The Khalka Mongols have always moved from one grazing ground
to another. Therefore their dwellings are portable. In summer they ma;
use a blue cotton cloth tent of the A type. It is not showerproof
but it does provide shade. The yurt is a year-round dwelling.
It looks like a cheese box with a conical roof and is composed
of heavy felt over a collapsible wooden frame. The felt is tied
in place with goat hair rope. The door may be of wood or it may be
a loose flap of felt. A yurt can be taken down or erected in a
few minutes and makes about a camel load when moving.
Their food is mainly milk, butter, and cheese, which they
produce themselves, su,plemented with rice, tea, and some flour,
which is imported. They do eat mutton, beef, and camels, but
depend almost entirely on milk and cheese.
Each Mongol carries his own wooden bowl and his chop sticks.
These he licks clean before returning them to the folds of his
gown after eating.
He wipes his fingers on his gown so that it
is frequently as easy to smell the Mongol as it is to see him.
Travelers in Mongolia will find the routes marked by large
piles of stones, wood and stone in areas where wood is available.
Each is known as an '"obo,1' also is a combination light house for
caravans and religious monument for placating the spirits of the
area,
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On meeting you, a kongol will offer you his snuff box. The
offer is made with the box or both hands extended. One need not
actually take the snuff but the gesture must be acknowledged.
Another frequent greeting is the silk scarf presented on out-
stretched hands. This gift can be accepted on extended hands and
you are expected to reciprocate with something of value, a coin,
a trinket, or on occasion when nothing better is available, the
same scarf. Some individuals stick out their tongues as a friendly
gesture,
Until the 1930's Urga or Ulan Bator was the only city in Outer
iongolia and probably still is. There were log houses, felt yurts,
and masonry buildings. The Mongols are definitely plains dwellers
and their country probably is the only place in the world where the
population per square mile statistics really give a true picture.
idhile there might be a few score or even hundreds of lamas in a large
lamasery, the general population was, and probably still is, well
scattered in the area, averaging not over two per square mile.
This native of the plains is thoroughly at home on horseback.
One explorer said, "If you could arrange a kitchen to be operated
by a man on horseback, the Mongol would be an excellent cook."
The hiongoil does not like agriculture and has so far
resisted the Russian attempt to make a farmer of him. Chinese and
Russians in his country have been the farmers.
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Indications are that young Mongols have been trained to
operate motor vehicles, from tractors arid tanks to airplanes.
They have become teachers, veterinarians, and even government
bureaucrats. They operate haying stations, meat processing plants,
a tannery, and a :Toe factory in Ulan Bator.
However, when the Communists tried to collectivize their
herds, the Mongols effectively objected by slaughtering the animals.
The effort at collectivizing was abandoned in favor of cooperatives,
in the hope that the Mongols "will see the advantages of group
action on many of their problems."
Gay, light-hearted, friendly and hospitable, loving a good
joke, the Mongol is the sort of individual with whom an American
can get to be real friends. Russia is controlling him by taking
advantage of his needs and his abilities, by catching him young and
educating him in the "new freedom."
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Scale in Miles
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PART IV
THE CAUCASUS AND 7RAflS CAUCASIA
The Russians call the combined Caucasus and Trans
Caucasia regions UUKavkaz." It comprises 2% of the total territory
of the USaR (194,500 square miles). It is inhabited by more than
16,000,000 people, who portray a variety of religious faiths,
languages, and physical stocks.
Perhaps nowhere in the world is there such a confusion
of tongues, r eli?ions, and physiques. Since prehistoric times
the area has been a meeting point for Greeks and Romans from the
Mediterranean, Persians and Turks from the south, Mongols and
Tatars from the east, and Russians from the North. The isolated
mountain valleys in Trans Caucasia still serve as havens for
remnants of the historically vanquished. The shores of the Black
Sea and the few passes through the Caucasian Mountains have received
invasion after invasion from the east, south, arid west. The ethnic
picture of the region is extremely complicated and -- in brief
treatment -- it is better to focus attention on the major native
stocks, those composing an appreciable amount of the regional
population. At the same time it is well to remember that the refugees
in the remote areas undoubtedly possess customs and beliefs not in
complete accordance with the dictates of the Russian government.
The whole area, the Caucasus and Trans Caucasia, is defined
by the Black and Caspien,Seas on the west and east respectively, by
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northeastern Turkey and northwestern Iran at the south end of this
intersea isthmus, and by an east-west line running from slightly
south of the Volga River north to slightly south of the Sea of
Azov,
The Trans Caucasus contains the three republics of Georgia,
Armenia, and Azarbaijan. The republic of Daghestan comprises most
of the Caucasus itself.
The Trans Caucasus is a mountain and plauteau country; the
Black Sea coast has a mild, subtropical climate, cold weather is met
within a few miles inland and at higher altitudes. The Black Sea
coast is Russia's second "Riviera" (western Crimea is the primary
rest, resort, and spa region of the USSR). Good pastures have
encouraged stock raising. In addition, about 40% of the land is
arable and hard wheat (used especially in the making of such foods
as macaroni), barley, and corn are grown. Garden produce, vineyards,
tobacco fields, and citrus groves are of great importance economically.
In the last two decades, iron mining and the petroleum
industry have made the whole Trans Caucasus area for its size the
most valuable part of Russian territory.
The climate and vegetation of Daghestan are similar to
those of the southern steppes. On the whole the climate is moderate
although dry; dust storms are common and winters may be bitterly
cold. The main occupation is agriculture. Although most of the
arable land belonged to rich peasants and the size of individual
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estates was large, the Russians encountered less opposition in the
formation of collectivised farms in this area than in other sections
of the USSR. l"vheat, corn, sun flowers, and tobacco are the main
crops, Although some of the non-Russian inhabitants are agricultu-
rists, fishermen if the live along the coast, or workers in the
tobacco and leather industries, most of them are engaged in stock
raising; the more pleasant and lucrative pursuits are definitely in
Russian hands.
1. GEORGIANS. There are approximately 2,000,COO Georgians
concentrated in their own small republic, which is the western
half of the Trans Caucasus. They speak a Japhetic dialect which
they have further subdivided into three regional tongues. Most
Georgians are members of the Greek Orthodox Church.
The physical characteristics of the Georgians are pronounced
round-headedness, medium and stocky stature, dark eyes and hair,
and prominent, straight noses. One reporter describes them as
Maynard, "brave to a fault, large hearted, songful, cheerful; a little given
1949.
p.454o to the drinking of wine."
The Georgians have a proud and ancient history. They are
extremely nationalistic. Stalin himself is a Georgian and
undoubtedly his success and position contribute much to the keeping
in line of the Georgians. However, according to historic records,
they have been in constant strife with all of their neighbors and
given to internal schisms.
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2. ARMENIANS, The Armenians number over 2,0()0,000,
mostly occupying the intermountain plain of the eastern Trans
Caucasus. They speak a Japhotic dialect and have retained the old
forty-letter alphabet. Due to certain dominant physical characteris-
tics, they form a representatively uniform group of conspicuous
appearance. They have broad, round heads which appear extremely
high and very flattened at the back; they have very prominent noses
which would be termed "Jewish" although the Armenians are not Jews.
They have dark hair and eyes and a swarthy skin color.
The Armenians have had a tragic history. They have been
successively overrun by Persians, Turks) Mongols, and Russians.
The Turks killed off a large number of them during
and following world ~'~ar I. For most of the past fifty years the
excuses for oppression of the Armenians have been ethnic, linguistic,
or religious; in the preceding centuries the Armenians were simply
overrun with no reason.
3. AZERBAIJANS. Turkic-speaking Tatars, belonging to the
Shiite Mohammedan sect, occupy much of Azerbaijan and Daghestan.
A. Mountain Tatars. The fountain Tatars occupy the
foot-hills and high valleys in eastern Trans Caucasia, They are
nomads or agriculturists, depending on the nature of the environment
of their particular settlements. They are of an extremely mixed
origin. Although basically they are remnants of the Mongol invasion
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of the 13th Century, they present a variety of physical types and
cultural associations, 1vany writers (and the Russians themselves)
call all Trans Caucasus people Tatars if they are not obviously
Georgians., Armenians, or "
LL -
ussians, or members of an easily recog-
nizable adjacent ethnic group such as the Turks or Persians.
B. Nomad Tatars. The Nomad Tatars form a distinct
minority of the Daghestan Republic, in which Russians account for
83% of the population. Although they are Mohammedans, they have
mixed and exchanged culture trends with the Kalmucks to the
north (an ethnic group numbering about 135,000, who are Buddhists,
predominantly sheep herders, and occupants of the semi-arid land
on both sides of the lower Volga River), The Nomad Tatars tend
their herds of sheep, cattle, goats, and horses in the least
favorable northeastern part of the area. Regionally they are
energetic agriculturists and -- along the coasts -- fish-zzr~nen.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Cole, Toby, "A Library on the Soviet Union," Library Journal. 15 May 1945.
Cressey, George B., The Basis of Soviet Strength. New York: hittlesey
House, 1945.
Czaplicka, K. A., Aboriginal Siberia, a Study in Social Anthro olo,yq
Oxford Press. 1914.
Davies, R. A., & Steiger, A. J., Soviet Asia: Democracyls First Line
of Defense. New York: The Dial Press. 1942,
Fischer, John, Why They Behave Like Russians, New York's Harpers
Publishing Company. 1947.
Huxley, J., Haddon, A. C., & Carr-Saunders, A. C., We Europeans. London:
Hazell, '-atson & Viney, Ltd. 1935.
Jochelson, W., Peoples of Asiatic Russia, Memoirs of American Museum
of Natural History, New York. 1928.
Johnson, H., The Soviet Power: The Socialist Sixth of the World.
New York: International Publishers 1941,
Mandel, W., The Soviet Far East and Central Asia. New York: The
Dial Press. 1944.
Pares, B., L History of Russia, New York: A. A. Knopf, Inc. 1937.
(Revised edition.
Taraconzio, H. A., Soviets in the Arctic. New York: The MacMillan Co.
1938.
Turin, S. P., The USSR: An Economic and Social Surv may. (3rd edition,
revised. London: Ivtethuen & Co, Ltd. 1948.
Weigert, H. W., and Stefansson) V. (eds), Compass of the World,
a Symposium on Political Geography. New York: The MacMillan
Co. 1944.
Welles, S., An Intelligent American's Guide to the Peace. New York:
The Dryden Press, 1945.
Southeastern Siberia, JANIS, Vol. 73 (2 vols), Washington, D, C.
February 1945.
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KORYAK
REINDEER BREEDERS IN NORTH- EAST S/BER/A
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TONG US
THESE ARE RE/AVEER BREEDERS LOCATED IN
rW OKHOTSK DISTRICT. HAVE SQUARE FACES
AND M-ON CHEEK BONES.
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K/ArsNIZ
BOTH MEN AND WOMEN ARE SKILLED
EQUESTRIANS
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ASIATIC ESKIMO OR INNUIT
THE ARWANAT GROUP IS LOCATED NEAR INDIAN PO/NT
ON THE BEHRING SEA COAST
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BASHKIR
i URK/C - SP#AK/PIG, MOHAMMEDAN PEOPLE LOCATED
BETWEEN THE VOLGA AND THE URAL RIVERS. THEY
ARE REALLY TARTARIZED FINNS.
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9URVAT (MONGOLIAN)
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! !
TURKMENJAN
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YA /W
BAS/DALLY I
MONGOL O/D, WITH FLAT FACES,
PROMINENT CHEEK BONES AND NARROW EYES.
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INTRODUCTION
Ever since the Bolshevik regime in Russia arose from the
debris of the Tsarist empire, the entire non-communist world
T. G, Tatsios, has been haunted by the spectre of Communism. The militant
The USSR and
World Revolu- aspect of the Marxian doctrine class struggle, world revolu-
tions.,.
7M, A. Essay) tion, and the dictatorship of the proletariat became known the
world. over and the Soviet government has lived up to these
teachings of Marxism by promoting and supporting revolutions
abroad. From the first moment it became clear that the Russian
revolution was not merely a replacement of one form of govern-
ment with another but an event of world-wide significance, par-
ticularly because the avowed aim of the new regime was world
revolution and the establishment of Communist dictatorships the
world over.
The Russian Communist Revolution of 1917 was the first suc-
cessful forcible seizure of a government by Communists. It set
the example for a wave of dictatorships, Communist, Fascist, or
Nazi, which plagued Europe and Asia since the end of World War
I. The Soviet dictatorship, however, is so nova, so revolu-
tionary, that it constitutes a type by itself. It differs from
the rest in another respect, in a certain ambiguity that has
led different authorities to give the most conflicting -reports
concerning its character and its institutions. When all is
said, however, it becomes evident that, because of its program
for world Communism, the Soviet dictatorship is a world-filling
threat to the slowly won liberties of man, to the creative
struggle in which his vision has been extended to ever new
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horizons, and to the initiative and enterprise of individuals
and groups by means of which they have fought their way upward
and brought advancement to their societies.
The Soviet system, the first of the modern dictatorship,
was not initially the expression of any mass-generated senti-
ment. It was the result of the breakdown of the traditional
Russian society in the stresses of the First World War, the
revelation of its incompetence, bureaucratic ineptitude, and
general decay, all of which contributed to the defeat of the
country. In the ensuing chaos the Tsar abdicated and the
Provisional government which took over was the first attempt
for the creation of a democratic form of government in Russia.
It did not last long, however, because the well organized and
iron disciplined Bolsheviks under the leadership of Lenin can-
italized on the mass discontent and succeeded in overthrowing
The Communist Party is not only the ruling party in the
Soviet government but it is also the only legal Party under the
Soviet system enjoying a monopoly of legality. As a result,
any study of the political structure of the Soviet Union must
rightly emphasize the structural aspects of the Communist
Party and its role in both, legislation and administration.
In other words, as will be shown later, the Communist Party is
the ruler of the Soviet Union.
THE COPM4UNIST PARTY
A One-Party Regime. As used in the United States and
other Western democracies, the term "political party" denotes
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Ogg, Zink some element or segment of the people (especially the voters)
Foreign
Governments drawn together in support of some more or less definite pro-
gram of public character. It carries the implication, too,
of a number of organized elements, existing side by side and
competing for offices, parliamentary seats, and other means
of power. With political democracy widely stifled or openly
repudiated during the period since World War I, the world has
seen many so-called one-party or monolithic regimes, based on
authoritarian refusal to permit any political party to exist
except only the one supporting the ruling dictatorship, In
two important countries--Germany and Italy--such regimes have
now disappeared as a result of defeat in war, followed by col-
lapse of the nazi and fascist systems. The one major country
in which the one-party plan is still rigidly maintained is
the U.S.S.R. There, from the Bolsheviks' original capture
of power in 1917, only the party once known as the Bolsheviki,
but now called the Conmiunist Party, has had any legal recogni-
tion, or for that matter any actual existence. There might
(or still may), it has been remarked, be other parties, but
"on the sole condition that one is in power and the others in
jail."
The Relation of Party and Government. Where the one-
party system prevails, one may be sure that the government
not only has been created and maintained as a going concern
by the controlling political group, but is closely interlocked
with the party structure in personnel and even in function.
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In the case of the Soviet Union, to be sure, government and
party are, on paper, separate and simply complementary. From
Moscow down through the constituent republics, the regions
and districts, and out into the remotest villages, the two
run parallel, each with its own headquarters, congresses, coun-
cils, officers, treasuries, newspapers, and what not; and of-
ficially it is the government, not the Party, that makes laws,
issues decrees, conducts foreign relations, carries on admin-
istration, controls the army and navy, and gives orders to the
police. Actually, however, it is the -party that rules. Higher
officials in the Government are picked by Party bureaus, and
Marshal Stalin has transcended them all, not so much because
of formal government connections that he has hail. (such as
chairman of the Council of Ministers) as from the vantage point
of the party positions that he has occupied. Whether it be a
five-year plan, a veto of a Security Council proposal, a pol-
icy affecting labor or the press, the Party in effect decides,
the government receives the decision and carries it out. "The
party openly admits," Stalin has said, "that it guides and
gives general direction to the government." In point of fact,
the Party is the government in all except form, and the Com-
munist dictatorship is the dictatorship of the Communist
Party--a party which has on its rolls approximately 6,300,000
members out of a total national population of 200,000,000,
and which, notwithstanding formal arrangement tending to give
a contrary impression, is organized and run on lines afford-
ing little scope for democracy. Any study of government in
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the U.S.S.R. today must, therefore, start with an ingv'ry in
to what the Communist Party is and how it works.
Communist Doctrine. Like most organizations of the kind,
the party is both a creed and a mechanism. It is a creed in
T. G. Tatsios the sense that it cherishes an elaborate body of economic and
The USSR and
World Revolu- political doctrine to which all of its members must unswerv-
tion
ingly adhere. It is a mechanism in the sense that it is
geared in all of its parts to highly centralized control by a
single compact group driving steadily toward an ultimate goal.
The party principles are derived largely from the teachings
of Marx and Lenin. Like Marx, the party sharply indicts the
whole structure and theory of modem capitalistic society.
The Communists claim that, Democracy, as it is operating in
countries like Great Britain and the United States, is not
popular rule, but bourgeois rule. Social justice therefore,
they say, requires that the type of state, and the instrumen-
talities of government, known to the Western world, be over-
thrown and dictatorship of the proletariat substituted; and
while Marx had the idea that this could come about only after
capitalism had wrought its own destruction in a highly in-
d.ustralized society, Lenin and his followers boldly planned--
in an agricultural country which according to the Marxian
hypothesis was least prepared of all for a socialist revo-
lution--to take a short cut and proceed to the revolution
forthwith. The Communist Party became the activating agency
in the program.
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The Party Line. In order to realize their objectives,
namely world domination, the Communists have developed. the
so-called "Party Line." It is an unswerved a.lle,-fiance and
blind obedience to the policy formulated by the Politbureau of
the Communist Party. At any given time, the party line is, of
course, binding upon all party members; and party "directives,"
i.e ? orders, on whatsoever subjects, must proceed from it.
Over a period. of years, however, the "line" is very flexible,
in the light of altered circumstances the Bolshevik leaders
may give it new twists and slants. In other words, while
the goal--world Communism-remains the same, the methods by
which the Communist leaders plan to achieve it change in ac-
cordance with the circumstances, and the party members must
follow these changes blindly.
The Communist Party insists on maintaining its monopoly
of legality and its unity at the command of its founder--
Lenin. Of all the Russian socialist parties of the pre-
revolutionary period, it alone accepts the principle of the
dictatorship of the proletariat as worked out under the Soviet
system. The Soviet leaders insist on absolute unity within
the ranks of the Party on the grounds that the revolution is
still in progress, and its aims have not yet been attained.
The Party and Legislation. The relationship between the
Party and the Government in respect to formal le islatiwe
procedure requires special emphasis; it is an illustration of
the ruling position of the Party in the Soviet system. It
seems to be the general principle that the initiative in
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S. Harper formulating policy even in its details is Dart of the role of
The Government
of the Soviet the Party; while formal enactment rests with the Governmental
Union
body. The Party passes resolutions and. the formal legisla-
tive enactment of the content of these resolutions always
follows. Thus Party congresses generally immediately pre-
ceded Soviet congresses. The five-yec.r plans have been pro-
grams of the Party and actually went into force before formal
enactment by the Soviet Congress or Central Executive Com-
mittee. Frequent departures from this practice, in the form
of actual legislation by the Party alone, have occurred, due
to the need of immediate action or of the desire to emphasize
the responsibiiity and authority of the Party.
The role of the Party with respect to the formal legis-
lative procedure is also determined by the presence in all
grades of Soviets of the so-called "Party group," Even, where
in the lower units this Party group is a minority, it is the
only organized group permitted and its leadership is there-
fore effective, In the higher units the Party group always
has a majority. There is, therefore, no question that the
Party directives, which must be followed by all Party groups
in elective institutions, the Croup acting; as a unit will
prevail in the legislative activity of the Soviet assemblies
or executive committees, The sole right to "caucus" of the
Party members in any Soviet has been an effective sanction of
this ruling position of the Party in the field of legislation.
All "non-Party members" of a Soviet have been designated as
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such and could meet only as a General and not as an organized
Group. And. the provisions of the constitutions that Party
members shall form the "directonr?, nuclei" in all Soviet insti-
tutions implies that they will retain as their monopoly the im?-
portent right which they have enjoyed to date of forming; the
only organized "group" in the Soviet legislative bodies.
Party and Administration. The role of leadership assumed
by the Party in the Soviet system extends to administration.
In all except the village executive committees of Soviets,
Party members have a majority and generally the chairmanship.
In the local and central committees of labor unions the Party
S. Harper,
The Government members also predominate. Party predominance in the personnel
of the Soviet
Union of the administrative boards of the co-operative societies is
less general except for the highest co-ordinating organs; Com-
munists looked down on commercial or trade activities, and even
under Party discipline were directed. into this field only with
difficulty. In appointive commissions the same Party lea.der-
ship is found, Those appointed as directors of institutions
and managers of economic enterprises - particularly the man
new construction projects - are almost invariably Party mem-
bers, although of late this former practice is not followed
so rigidly. In a very concrete way, therefore, the ruling po-
sition of the Party expresses itself in the personnel of the
multiform apparatus of administration.
The provision for special training of those holding admin-
istrative positions has been generally supplied, practically
S
DESTDIr-TIM
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from the beginning, by the special Party-Soviet schools to train
not only Party organizers and. workers, but chairmen or secre-
taries in local Soviet institutions.
A special organ of the Party--the Commission of Party Con-
trol--exercises, as its name indicates, general supervision
over administration, constantly investigating; and reporting,
many of its findings being made public. For this function it
was decided to centralize the control over performance, in
order to free this function from the pressure of local interests.
Local "mass" control, formerly exercised by the organs of
Workman - Peasant Inspection, a Commission of Soviet Control,
appointed by and responsible to the Central Executive Com-
mittee, checks upon performance in Soviet administrative and
economic institutions. Organized like the Commission of Party
Control with centralized authority through local renresenta-
tives responsible only to it, the Soviet institution co-operates
closely with the Party institution, and both represent the ten-
dency toward decentralization in management and administration
and centralization in respect of checking up on performance.
It is through such a structure that the three basic rrin-
ciples of organization monolithic unity. democratic cen.-
tralism, and iron discipline ?? are enforced. Factional group-
ings of any kind are strictly forbid.den. A faction is any
grouping which organizes and meets outside the framework of
organization established by the statutes of the Party and which
elaborates its own platform of principles and introduces its
own internal discipline.
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AFFILIATED ORGANIZATIONS
1oun^, Co miunists. The founders of the Communist regime
were well aware that the ultimate success of their ambitious
experiment would not unlikely depencl upon the extent to which
they succeeded in indoctrinating with their views a younger
S. Harper, generation which had known nothing of the struggles against
Civic Training
in the USSR czardom. Upon boys and girls of even tender ages must be im-
posed a "proletarian morality," precisely as in Western coun-
tries the ruling elements are alleged to impose a "bourgeois
morality." Like the Italian Fascists, and later the German
Nazis, the founders therefore made special provision for the
political instruction of youth. The basic youth organiza-
tion is an All-Union Communist League of Youth (abbreviated in-
to Komsomol), organized on lines roughly similar to those of
the part's, embracin ; some 450,000 "cells," or branches, in
factories, secondary schools, universities, etc., and on col-
lective farms, and having a present membership of approximately
9,300,000. Membership is open to young peorle of both sexes,
between the ages of 15 and 26, and drawn from non-Communist
as well as from Communist families; although in the case of
youth of non-proletarian origin, an applicant must present
recommendations from two Party or Komsomol members of two years
standing and undergo a year's probation. Discipline is some-
what less rigorous than in the Party. Nevertheless, there are
plenty of rules that must be obeyed, under penalty of expul-
sion. As would be surmised, the prime object of the organization
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is the training of youth in Communist doctrine and practice;
and although it is not contemplated or desired that all
Komsomol "graduates" shall pass into the Party ranks, the day
is anticipated when the Party will be composed exclusive lr,
or nearly so, of people who have come up through the ancillary
organization.
Young Communist Activities. Although charged above all
else to "study, study, study," Komsomol members have served the
Communist cause in many practical ways - coaching illiterate
voters in the use of the ballot, training aviators, helping
round up and discipline homeless and incorrigible children
running wild in the streets of the great cities, and. providing
leadership for organizations of younger elements generally in
the population. The Komsomol also carries on an elaborate
sports program for its members and devotes a ;treat deal of en-
ergy to their general education, mai.ntainin-; numerous scholar-
ships in universities and technical schools for the most rrom-
ising. Its vocational training, projects have received consider-
able publicity.
Pioneers and Little Octobrists. The Komsomol is only the
inner circle of a scheme of youth organization planned even-
tually to embrace the whole of the 60,000,000 or more children
and youth in the Soviet Union, Next beyond it is the circle
represented. by the Pioneers, embracing over 12,000,000 children
between the ages of 10 and 16; and beyond this, the organiza-
tion of Little Octobrists, formed of children of from 8 to 11.
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Admission to these junior organizations is without reference
to origin or class; and emphasis is placed largely under
Komsomol tutelage, on indoctrination with Communist principles,
formation of habits of "socially useful labor;" and elementary
military training. As of October 29, 1948, the thirtieth an-
niversary of the founding of the Komsomol, the total member-
ship of all youth organizations exceeded 33,000,000.
Comintern and Cominform. In 1919, a world organization of
Communist parties was organized under the name of the Third In-
ternational, frequently referred to as the Comintern. While in
theory the policies of this world-wide :roue were decided by a
congress drawing representatives from more than 60 countries,
there was a good deal of evidence to indicate that the executive
committee and central headquarters in Moscow actually dominated.
Leaders of the Communist Party of the U.S.S.R., including
Stalin himself, occupied seats on the executive committee, and
indeed they bulked so large as a croup that their very number
suggested Russian domination. The main object of the Comintern
was proclaimed to be that of spreading Communism throughout the
world, and. in this connection it carried on activities widely
resented; indeed, its battle cry of "world revolution" and
its avowed objective of overthrowing the capitalistic sys-
tem were accompanied by underground operations carried out by
the Communist Parties in their respective countries. The
Soviet Union, as the parent body, gave the Comintern substantial
support until World War II, when (in 1943), as a gesture to the
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Western Allies, Stalin announced its liquidation. In some
quarters, this move was interpreted. as a relinquishment on the
part of the U.S.S.R. of all intention to push the spread of
Communism outside of its own borders. However, it proved. only
temporary; for shortly after the defeat of Germany and Japan,
the formation of a Cominform was announced. While less elab-
orate in formal scope than the Comintern--the Cominform is os-
tensibly a clearing house or central bureau of Communist organ-
izations--the new agency seems to have substantially the same
purposes as its predecessor. There are, however, certain dif-
ferences. The Comintern had its headquarters in Moscow, and
consequently was regarded as more or less as an offshoot of the
Communist Party of the U.S.S.R. In order to create the il-
lusion, at least, of some truly international character, the
central offices of the Cominform were located in Yugoslavia to
begin with, and. then after the Tito rebellion were moved to
Rumania. Such camouflage, however, did not prove very effec-
tive after it came to light that the moving figure in the
Cominform was none other than A. A. Zhdanov: one of the most
ambitious and energetic of the party's leaders, secretary of
the Partyts important Lenninerad district; and, most signifi-
cant of all, a member of the Politbureau. The fact that Zhdanov
had been very close to Stalin and that he had been used to
handle difficult tasks for the party added to the strong im-
pression that the Cominform was to play a far more important
role than that of mere clearing-house or information center.
Allegations made by high officials of the French government,
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involving the discovery of corresvondence between Zhdanov and
the Communist party in France in which orders were directed at
sabotaging the recovery program, strengthened the earlier view
of the organization as being actually an instrument for the
promotion of world. revolution.
PARTY ORGANIZATION
Hierarchical Aspect. The organization of the Communist
S. Harper
Civil Training Party is probably more elaborate than that of any other polit-
in the Soviet
Union ical group in the world at. the present time, although in this
respect the former National Socialist Party of Germany may
have surpassed it. Organization, too, follows the lines of
the purest type of hierarchy. Among Party rules are two which
stress an almost military aspect: (1) the acceptance of strict
Party discipline, and (2) unquestioning acquiescence of lower
echelons, and indeed of all Party members, in decisions reach-
ed at higher levels. In an address delivered prior to World
War II, Stalin gave some description of the general nature of
the Party set-up. At the top, he noted three or four thousand
"generals" who were responsible for the work of the central or-
ganizations. Below there were from thirty to forty thousand
"field officers" who carried on Party -programs at the level in-
termediate between the central organization and the local
Party units. And at the bottom, from one hundred thousand to
one hundred and fifty thousand "non-commissioned sergeants and
corporals" commanded the members in the ranks. There is the
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same "co=and" type of arrangement as is to be observed in mili-
tary formations, with responsibility running from the bottom up-
wards and orders originating from the top and proceeding down-
wards through the intermediate levels to the basic units. Some
observers have been led astray by another rule providinC;for
the election of Party officials and organs, and have viewed the
set-up as intrinsically democratic. But while lip-service is
given to such a rule and some leeway may actually be permitted
to local units in choosing their officers, a reasonably objective
analysis reveals that the emphasis is placed on the Party rules
prescribing strict discipline and. full responsibility of lower
echelons to higher ones. Important policies are established at
the center, and must be implemented by people at the regional
and local levels irrespective of personal preference.
The All-Union Congress. Ultimate authority in the Party
is supposedly lodged in a large body known as the All-Union Con--
S. Harper, gress, which in a sense antedates the revolution of 1917; the
The Government
of the Soviet first Party congress assembled at about the turn of the century
Union
as a Social Democratic Part, conference and. a number of other
meetings were held before the Communist Party as we now know
it emerged. According to the rules, the All.-Union Congress
convenes at least every three years. For a, decade covering the
period of World War II and its aftermath, however, no meetings
whatever were held.; and the fact that the affairs of the Party
could be handled during so critical a time without the Congress
ever once being called into session indicates the body's
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essentially formal nature and the superiority of other. Party
agencies as the actual formulators of policy. All-Union Con-
gresses are made up of approximately 2,000 delegates and
"candidates" (alternates) representing the Party organizations
of the constituent republics, the autonomous republics, and the
other regional areas; and meetings arp held in Moscow: with
manifestations of much popular interest and color. Ton leaders
are ordinarily present in full force, adding luster to the nro-
ceedings by making speeches and lending themselves to more or
less informal associations with the lees important delegates.
Reports are made on various phases of the work of the Party;
programs of future action are presented.; and formal approval
is given by the assembled delegates to what has been done or
is antici-nated. All this can be completed in from one to two
weeks, and consequently the Congresses are not long drawn-out
affairs. Sessions, furthermore, are not open to the public.
The Central Committee. In order to make some provision
for the lone periods between meetings of the All-Union Congress,
a Central Committee has been set up; and this is a fairly
sizable body of. 71 members and 68 candidates or alternates, all
chosen, at least in form, by secret ballot of the Congress it-
self. The Committee meets anywhere from three or four dozen
times each year in executive session and carries out the de-
cisions of the All-Union Congress, occasionally taking action
also on its own initiative, although major policies are sun-
posed to be laid down by the parent body. With the Congress
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sometimes not meeting for several years at a stretch, it is ob-
vious that the Central Committee, on the whole, does not receive
any large amount of guidance from that source; in any event,
Committee decisions rank with those of the Congress itself and
are not subject to question after a final pronouncement has
been made. Although meetings of the Committee are executive in
nature, reports are given out as to at least some matters dis-
cussed, with formal announcement also made of important decisions
reached.
The Central Committee is rather large for really efficient
action, and consequently it delegates its authority in large
measure to its offi+ccrs and subcommittees. It has a president,
a secretary-general, several assistant secretaries, and two sub-
committees, one of which, the Politbureau, is of the greatest
importance and in reality overshadows the Central Committee it-
self.
The Party Conference. Before passing on to a consideration
of the Politbureau, Orgbureau, and central headquarters, notice
should be taken of the Party Conference, which in recent years
has to some extent been a substitute for the All-Union Congress.
Ogg, Zink, Starting in 1919, this Conference was held at frequent intervals
Foreign
Government for several years, but afterwards less often until in 193+ it
was officially abandoned.. In 1939, however, the Congress re-
established it, specifying that thereafter it meet at least
once a year. Varying in size from 118 to 911 (in 1941, a total
of 595), and made up of the Party leaders from the regional
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organizations, the Conference serves the purpose of keeping;
the central headquarters familiar with what is going on in the
field and of making it possible for regional leaders to make
their ideas known to the top-level people in Moscow. Confer-
ences give their attention primarily to the domestic economy and.
to problems involving the operations of the Party.
The?Politbureau. Composition and Organization. The Polit-
bureau, or Political Bureau, is a small body made up of the top
leaders. Inasmuch as the exact number of dominant personalities
in the Party varies somewhat from time to time, as some pass
from the scene as a result of death or loss of status and others
force themselves to the front, the size of this inner council
is not entirely constant. At the same time, it should not be
assumed that there is any rapid or sensational expansion or
contraction, for additions or other chan;es are not lightly made.
Starting out as a permanent agency of the Party as a result of
action taken by the Eighth Party Congress in 1919, the Polit-
bureau had five members. By 1923, it consisted of seven full
members and four candidates or alternates. Since then, the num-
ber of full members has ranged as high as ten and the number
of candidates from two to eight. Inasmuch as membership in-
volves along drawn-out process of the survival of the fittest
in the service of the Party, the average age of the croup is
fairly high, des,.Ate the recognition commonly given to younger
people in Soviet procedures; indeed the average age has gone
up rather sharply c1uring the most recent period, as the
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revolution of 1917 has receded into the past. The Politbureau
is headed by a chairman whose exact status is a subject of un-
certainty and even controversy among foreign observers. Stalin
has occupied the position for many years, and it is difficult
to separate his personality from the office. Some writers
ascribe to the chairman virtually dictatorial powers, while
others go quite far in the other direction rend refer to him as
a "prisoner" of the Politbureau. It is probable that the truth
lies seomewhere between, but just where is the question. Perhaps
a good deal depends upon the exact time. The fact that the
Politbureau meets several times each week during much of the
year, and that it frequently does not adjourn until the early
hours of the morning, after long hours of debate, would seem
to indicate that the members do not defer to the chairman with-
out expressing themselves in some detail. That the chairman
wields greater influence than any other sinle member may cer-
tainly be taken for granted.
Functions. As a matter of theory, the Politbureau is, of
Ogg, Zink, course, a subcommittee of the Party Congress. In reality, it is no-
Foreign
Governments exaggeration to say that the Politburcau is the keystone of the
entire Party structure, and indeed of the U.S.S.R. Exactly
what decisions are made by the Politbureau and what ones stem
from some other source, it is not always easy to ascertain,
but there can be little doubt that the policies which determine
the general course of the Party and of the Soviet Union origin-
ate with this com?)aratively small body. Furthermore, while the
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title of the little group suggests that the main concern is
with political matters, it would be a mistake to construe this
too narrowly. In the last analysis, almost everything of over-
all significance - economic. social, international, or domestic
has political implications and is therefore likely to receive
the Political Bureau's attention at some time or other. The
various ministries of the central government report to the
Politbureau, as do such agencies as the State Planning Com-
mission. The single major exception is the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs; but in this case the relationship of the Politbureau
to the field is so intimate that the two are more or less fused
together. Anyone who attempts even a casual understanding of
the Soviet Union must therefore give careful attention to the
Politbureau, despite the fact that it is enshrouded in a veil
of secrecy not easy to penetrate.
The Orgbureau. A second, but distinctly less important,
subcommittee set up by the Central Committee, and closely re-
lated to the secretariat and central Party headquarters, is
known as the Orgbureau, or Organization Bureau - an agency au-
thorized along with the Politbureau by resolution of the Eighth
Congress of the Party in 1919. Like that of the Politbureau,
its membership has varied from time to time, rangin;_; from five
to 13 members and from no candidates to seven. Like the Polit-
bureau, it is made up of influential members of the Party, in
some cases the same men who hold seats in the more powerful
body, although its general standing is considerably inferior.
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Its jurisdiction extends to most matters relating to the organ-
ization and operations of the Party, and accordingly it has an
important role to play in Party affairs, Much of its work ms.'r
be rather routine, but it also has to do with matters which
sometimes turn out to involve issues needing to be transferred
to the Politbureau for decision; and thus the dividing line be-
tween the two committees becomes somewhat vague. Over the years,
the secretariat has tended to assume more and more of the Org
bureau's work, with the result that the committee is probably
less active at present than during an earlier period.
Central Party Headquarters. The control headquarters of
the Communist Party in Moscow are so elaborate in organization
and so completely staffed that a student of government from the
United States or Great Britain-finds nothing in his own country
which is comparable. For more than a quarter of a century, the
Party headquarters were managed by a single energetic official,
Joseph Stalin, in his capacity as secretary-general. Employing
several thousand persons in Moscow alone, and occupying a large
amount of office space, the central headquarters of the Party
are now organized in numerous sections and bureaus which super-
vise Party activities and interests throughout the U.S.S.R. and
to some extent throughout the entire world. Parallelin17 the ad-
ministrative structure of the government, the Party maintains
subdivisions which deal with industry, agriculture. finance,
transportation, schools, political affairs, and other major
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activities; and these, of course, are intended to check on the
corresponding government agencies and in large measure to deter-
mine their policies. Their heads frequently occupy commanding
positions in the government departments. In addition to sub-
divisions giving their attention to government operations, the
central headquarters naturally maintain offices, responsible
for the operations of the Party as such in all of its ramifica-
tions. One such subdivision handles the administration of
cadres; another gives attention to instruction-indoctrination.
One of the most active has charge of propaganda and a,itation
projects; and some idea of the elaborateness of the organization
may be derived. from noting that this section of propaganda and
agitation, divided into various branches, has responsibility
for the press and publishing houses, scientific inventions and
discoveries, Party propaganda and agitation, and the promotion
of Communist programs through clubs, the radio, libraries, the-
atres, and related media.
The Auditing Committee and the Commissi.Qn of Party Control.
Under reorganization measures adopted at the seventeenth meeting
of the Party Congress in 1934, the Congress elects not only the
Central Committee, but also (1) an Auditing Committee, of 22
members, charged with checking up on the finances of all Cen-
tral Party organs, and, more important, (2) a Commission of
Party Control, of 61 members, sometimes described as the "col-
lective keeper of the party conscience." In the last-mentioned
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Ogg, Zink,
Foreign
Governments
agency, we encounter the disciplinary arm of the Party - the
authority which keeps the Party membership lists, inspects
(through observers) the meetings of committees and other organs
to see that the "Party line" is not departed from, calls before
it for questioning Party members suspected or accused of dis-
loyalty, serves as final court of appeal in cases of expulsion,
and directs the carrying out of all general purgings and. cleans-
ings. Since 1934, the Commission of Party Control has been as-
sociated, in the supervision of all institutions and activities
of the state, with a Commission of Soviet Control - later trans-
formed into a Ministry of State Control; and this relationship,
combined with the fact that the latter; although an organ of
government, is dominated by the Party Central Committee, il-
lustrates how the government is subordinated to the Party - even
though this point is the only one at which, officially, govern-
ment and Party are connected.
THE ROLE OF THE STATE IN THE SOVIET REGIME
Wide Scone of Governmental Activity in Russia. Although its
basic philosophy is supposedly different from that of Fascism
and National Socialism, Russian Communism is singularly like
both the former Fascist regime in Italy and the old system of
National Socialism In Germany in that it has given to the govern-
ment a very extensive mandate in almost every field of humar.?
activity. In Russia, the dictatorship is designated a "dictator-
ship of the proletariat," and the state as such is not openly
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glorified; for under the Marxian philosophy the state in itself
is evil. However, the most that can be said is that in prac-
tice the dictatorship is "for the proletariat" and. that the
glory has been seized by the Communist Party. There are few if
any fields of human interest which the Government and the Com-
munist Party have not penetrated, and in many of these areas
the government has exercised exceedingly vigorous activity. The
family, the social structure, the economic system, education,
science, and the arts are all actively subject to government and
Party control.
Organization of the Soviet State. The government of the
Soviet Union consists of five major Subdivisions: (1) the
Supreme Soviet (Council); (2) the Presidium; (3) the Council of
Ministers; (4) the Supreme Court; and. (5) the Prosecutor General.
The last two are merely the upholders of Soviet justice and will
not be discussed here. The best known prosecutor of the Soviet
Union is Andrei Vishinsky who, because of the ruthless end thor-
ough prosecution in the purges of the 1930's;, was elevated to
the position of Commissar of Foreign Affairs.
The Supreme Council. It is not a simple matter for a for-
eigner to assess the place of the Supreme Council in the Soviet
Union. Under the Soviet system the role of almost every
agency of government differs from that of any corresponding
Dart of the government of the United States. The highly im-
portant position occupied by the Communist Party and the almost
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invisible division between government and Party add to the
difficulty of arriving at anything like satisfactory under-
standing of the place of the Supreme Council.
The principal function of the Supreme Council of 1,100
members is to give the appearance of approval of Party policies
and to pass on legislation initiated by other government agen-
cies. But in a country as large and complicate' as the Soviet.
Union there are matters which, because of their non-political
or routine character, do not interest the Politbureau; and here
the role of the Supreme Council becomes more impressive. With
sessions covering only ten days or sometimes less twice each
year, it is obvious that the Council does not spend the time on
introduction of bills, consideration by committees; debate,
amendments, and voting that is spent in the Congress of the
United States and many other legislative bodies. Legislation
in general is initiated in the Soviet Union by the Council of
Ministers or the Communist Party or some other agency. But
there seems little ground for doubt that decisions in regard to
important matters are made by the Politbureau, to challenge or
even amend. Rather, what may be expected to happen is that the
Council will merely, receive recommendations made, perhaps
engage in a bit of general debate, and end by obediently giving
its approval.
The Presidium. In a joint meeting of its two chambers, the
Supreme Council elects a Presidium made up of a chairman (who
is sometimes regarded as the President of the Soviet Union.), a
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vice-chairman for each constituent republic, 15 ordinary mem-
bers, and a secretary. This comparatively small group repre-
sents the Supreme Council when it is not in session and also
has something to do with planning and organizing the work of the
body when in session. It may also, at least in theory, grant
pardons, appoint commissions for the consideration of special
problems, name the heads of the army and navy, provide for the
mobilization of the armed forces, ratify treaties, and inter-
pret the laws enacted by the Supreme Council. If the Council
is not in session, the presidium may appoint and remove ministers,
subject to subsequent confirmation by its parent body, and de-
clare war in case of armed attack on the U.S.S.R. or need for
fulfilling international treaty obligations of mutual defense
against a?;ression. Thus it may be seen that the Presidium is
both a legislative and an administrative agency, and that it
a
combines some of the functions performed in othe.. countries by
cabinet with those usually associated with an unner chamber or
executive council.
Actual Role of the Presidium. The records show that the
Presidium has taken a more active role in handling the work of
government than has its parent body, the Supreme Council. But
the same situation exists here that was noted in the case of the
Council; most matters of any considerable consequence are can-
vassed and decided by the Politbureau. Consequently, it is im-
possible for the Presidium to exercise real authority in foreign
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relations, national defense, or d.omesti.c policies. Its job is,
rather, a more or less perfunctory one involving, routine mat-
ters and formalities incident to carrying out policies already
determined. by the Politbureau. Of course, the fact that the
members of the Presidium are for the most part active in the
Communist Party relieves the strain to some extent. Neverthe-
less, with the tradition of having the Party rather than the
agencies of the government decide important policies, it will
be extremely difficult to infuse much real vigor into the Pres-
idium. On the other hand one ought not to lose sight of the
amount of routine work involved in any government, particularly
in a police state, and which in the Soviet Union is handled to
an important degree by the Presidium.
The Council of Ministers.
Under the 1936 constitution, a
Council of Ministers, once known as Council of People's Com-
missars: or Sovnarkom, bears some similarity to the cabinets
of certain other countries. Described by the constitution as
"the highest executive and administrative organ of state power,"
and. declared "responsible and accountable" to the Supreme
Council for its acts, the group is nominally designated by the
two houses of the latter body meeting in joint session. But
despite the apparently clear position conferred by the consti-
tution, the body's actual status is somewhat difficult to deter-
mine. At times, the Council probably does little more than con-
firm the decisions already made by the Communist Party through
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the Politbureau. Certainly it is hardly the supreme executive
authority in more than a formal sense; the Politbureau would
leave it no room for such a role. On the other hand, inas-
much as some of the ministers are members of the more power-
ful body, there is actually a certain identity between the two;
and it is not always easy to differentiate between the role of
a minister and the work of a me;nber of the Politbureau.
Chairman and Vice-Charmen. The chairman of the Council of
Ministers is frequently referred to as the "premier," and in
so far as the Soviet Union has an official corresponding to
the Prime Minister of Britain or the Premier of France, it is
doubtless this officer. Two prominent members of the Polit-
bureau have served as Chairman of the Council of Ministers
during recent years - Molotov and Stalin. Stalin took over
in 1941, held it throughout World War II, and continued in of-
fice after the war years. By employing a member of the Polit-
bureau as chairman of the Council of Ministers, it is obvious
that a link has been provided between the Communist Party and
the government which is of the utmost importance in achieving
a working relationship. Even when Molotov held the chairman-
ship of the Council of Ministers, there was a considerable
fusion of the two bodies. With Stalin as both Chairman of the
Politbureau and Chairman of the Council of Ministers, the cor-
relation became even more complete.
All-Union Ministers. The Soviet Union is perhaps the only
government in the world which maintains two types of ministers,
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although in Britain and France there are, of course, ministers
who head departments and ministers without portfolio. The
situation is accounted for by the fact that the U.S.S.R. is
nominally a federal rather than a unitary state. Certain func-
tions are formally assigned to the central government while
others are given primarily to the constituent republics and
other regional governments. In so far as the central govern-
ment has exclusive jurisdiction, All-Union ministries are main-
tained, But in fields in which the constituent republics are
given responsibility a different type of ministry is provided.
Inasmuch, however, as the federal system seems to operate more
in theory than in practice, the dividing line between All-Union
ministries and Union-Republic ministries is frequently rather
tenuous. Certain of the All-Union ministries correspond quite
closely to the major administrative departments found in other
countries. On the other hand, there are also ministries which
grow out of the peculiar role of the state in Soviet economic
affairs. Not all of the latter are All-Union ministries, but
those relating to heavy .industries, defense industries, and
the production of power are such.
CONCLUSION
The Marxian doctrine of the "temporary dictatorship" is
Mc Iver, contradicted in the Soviet Union and the "stateless" society
The Webb
of Government becomes an empty myth. The doctrine of the "peoples rule" is
flatly rejected by the rigorous insistence on the Party line.
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The thoroughly democratic constitution of 1936 proclaimed that
all political power vested in "the working people of town and
country." There is an impressive framework of electoral sys-
tems stretching all the way from the local soviets to the Su-
preme Soviet of the U.S.S.R. There are everywhere People's
Courts and People's Commissars. But the voting at elections
is practically unanimous, and the one party retains complete
control. The doctrine of the abolition of class has been
negated by the occupational gradings, but far more thoroughly
by the pyramid of power, which rises as steeply as, and per-
haps more rigidly than, it did under the the Czarist regime.
The principle, "to each according to his need" has been re-
written, "to each according to his work," with important im-
plications for the social system. Two types of functionaries
regulate the everyday life; first the functionaries of the Party,
the officials, and next the closely allied managers of indus-
trial and other enterprises.
Soviet Russia did not and could not abolish social class.
Instead it set up a new elite and there is in effect a new
class system; in which classes are distinguished. not by wealth
nor by birth but by nearness to or remoteness from the seat of
political power. The elite is the Party membership, itself a
pyramidal elite. With greater power goes greater prestige,
greater opportunity, and greater privilege. The Party, local,
regional, or central, exercises general supervision over every
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aspect of the economic and social life of the community. Those
who are outside the Party must be content on the whole, with a
lower status. In short, there is a new class system. Those
who deny this conclusion either refuse, in the face of evidence
to admit that a class system can exist except on an economic
basis, or else they plainly believe that the inveterate expres-
sions of human nature no longer manifest themselves under a
collectivistic regime.
Under the Democratic system, government becomes an agent
and the people the principal who holds it to account. The com-
munity establishes its formal superiority over the state. There
are difficulties in the actual assertion of this superiority.
Some areas, and particularly the area of foreign relations, are
hard to bring under control. But always the community sets
determinate limits to the power of government, Always even
if belatedly, the community exerts its authority over its
government.
While any kind of government, whether it be oligarchy or
dictatorship or monarchy, can claim to rest on "the will of
the people," only Democracy rests on the constitutional exer-
cise of the will of the people. Every other kind prevents
the minority - or majority - from freely expressing onion con-
cerning the policies of Government, or at least from making
that opinion the determinant of Government. Quite possibly in
Russia today the majority of the people approves and supports
its government as do the peoples of Democratic Governments,
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But that fact is quite irrelevant to the question of Democracy.
In the Soviet Union, under these conditions there is no free
exercise of opinion on matters of policy, nor any constitutional
means by which the changing currents of opinion can find. po-
litical expression. It would therefore be the sheerest con-
fusion to classify the Soviet system as democratic.
It is clear that there is fundamental conflict here be-
tween the ideology and the whole scheme of government. No
dictatorship can promote or even tolerate the cultural liberty
professed by the Soviet Union. Modern dictatorship is in the
first instance a control of the mind by power. Tc this end it
employs all the monopolized agencies of propaganda, making in-
sistent appeal to mass emotions. It is a peculiarity of this
appeal that it professes to Give the people precisely the
thing it takes away from them - cultural liberty. Discerning
students of dictatorship pointed out this fact long ago. Thus
in the time of Napoleon, Benjamin Constant, who used the term
"usurpation" to denote what we name dictatorship, wrote that
dictatorship has need of the form of liberty to achieve its
ends and therefore offers men a counterfeit of liberty. It
even compels people to pretend they are free and. bribes writers
to convince them. Despotism, says Constant, "allows men the
right to be silent" but dictatorship compels them "to lie to
their conscience, depriving them of the only consolation re-
maining to the oppressed." So long as only one "party" is
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permitted to function in the state, so long as policy is de-
termined by the program of the exclusive party, according to
the party line enunciated from the top, there can be no cul-
tural liberty. The numerous electoral exhibits, cited by un-
critical partisans as evidences of democracy in being, are
merely, with their near-unanimous polls, an additional revela-
tion of its absence.
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