. jr' '
"V '
'Family Lifwt'ti, 'Mqssia. Mostly. ;Spenf Looking into the -Television Set
Too
- - r - - J
1 3 (Sec. lV-Statesznaa, Satan, Ore.. Suada Aug. 30. 1353 ' ,
I
(Editor's Note; When Eddy Gil-
iriore, long-time AP bureaa chief in
Moscow, returned to this country,
he was asked what a Russian fam
fly was like, what sort of teaching
the children have, how its life com
pares with that of an American
family. Here are his recollections,
graphic story of a single family
group, which spends a lot of time
looking at television J. . v:
.!' By EDDY GILMORJ5
: NEW YORK UP Life for the
tverage Russian family is getting
better but not much better.
L- 1 mean it is still very tough by
Western standards.-! ; '
- VTo be perfectly frank, I should
point out that my contact with av
erage or any other kind of
Rnssiap has not been exactly
Chummy for the last years. .
tost Russian Friends
' Not since the Soviet Union clamp
ed .on the security decrees and I
lost most of my Russian friends.
Or just stayed away because to
cee them would mean trouble.
Trouble for them. . ' .
However, you don't live U years
in a country without knowing quite
a bit about its people. That plus
the fact that" I have, a Russian
wife who, thank heavens, is in the
United States with me, has given
me some license, I suppose, to write
Cn this subject.
;: Let's take a family that I know
something about.
Two Sons in War
;The husband Is 62, the wife 51.
They have two sons and one daugh
ter. The two sons were in the war.
The father and the mother and
the daughter all work. Both sons
are married, the younger for the
third time. -
The eldest son has two children.
He- is a card-carrying Communist,
a foreman in a factory that makes
tin cans. He gets an overall salary
of 2,100 roubles a month.
Jhis would not mean much if
you translated it into dollars at the
official rate of four Soviet rou
bles to one U.S. dollar. It's better
to compare it against prices.
Foot Live Together
: -This son-has a wife and two chil
dren. The wife does not work. One
of the children is old enough to
go to school. The four of them
live in a two room apartment.
IThey have no automobile.. Not ev
en a bicycle. But they do have a
combination television-(radio-phon-o
graph.) They watch the television
a; lot of the . time. The set cost
2,500 roubles when it was new.
Sets are little cheaper now.
.No Telephone
: Rents on crowded old apartments
such as this are fantastically cheap.
So are utilities. But be needs all
the roubles he makes, because food,
clothing, and other essentials are
expensive. For those who can af
ford it, rents on new apartments
are much higher up to 500 roubles
a month,' I heard.
For the two-room apartment
this husband pays 48 roubles a
month. Electricity is about 20 rou
bles. Gas is about 6. He has no
telephone. He shares a bathroom
with, three 'other families and his
Lost Bomber .
Found; Entire
Crew Alive
CHURCHILL, Man. (J) A Can
adian Air Force Lancaster bomber
missing for a week was found Sat
urday by one of an armada of
search planes which had criss
vrossed 65,000 square miles of
desolate northern tundan First re
ports said all eight crew members
survived.
: The RCAF announced that the
downed plane was located at 3
p.m. 192 miles northwest of this
Hudson Bay port. Another Lancast
er made the discovery.
An Otter seaplane has left Chur
chill for the scene and may try to
evacuate survivors.
wife shares I a dtchen stove with
three other wives. - ; u i,
The daughter who goes to school
pays no tuition fee,, hut it costs
about eight roubles a week for a
hot lunch every day.- : "
When the wife had her children
she paid no doctor's fee or hospi
tal bill. When the' children are ill
she takes them to a clinic If they
were desperately jll she could 'tele
phone for a doctor. He would come
eventually but not necessarily
right away. The doctors have too
much to do' --'".s, ;;L"" i
Simply Shdws Vp ' '
The wife had no trouble giving
birth to the two children. She sim
ply showed up at the maternity
home, - was' put in a room with
three other waiting women.
When the pains got ' almost ; un
bearable she told one of the nurs
es. Then she walked into another
room. Three or four other women
were' also. there, all. having labor
pains. . ', . i i
They had their babies together
with kindness and sympathy from
the nurses and the doctors. But
with nothing to ease the pain or
help pass the time. . .
Much Homework
The girl who now is In school
goes six days a week. She shows
up at 8 in the morning for classes
that begin at 8:15. Three days a
week 'she remains until 1:30 p.m.
The other three dayj she leaves
at: 12:30. She has a lot of home
work. It takes. from two to three
hdirs to prepare this every day.
, I don't know what her course is
going to be like under the new gov
ernment of Georgi Malenkov-and-others.
But under Joseph Stalin's
regime she heard .a lot about Jo
seph Stalin, and the Communist
Party. -
She heard how the school she, was
attending (with-41 other girls in
the class) was better than any
school in any foreign country.
Just Rich Children
She was told and her mother
and father were told that six
million children her age were un
able to go to school in the United
States because the states and the
government did not provide for all
the children. Just the children of
rich Americans went to school.
They heard this over and over
again.
At school they were given what
wis described as an accurate pic
ture of race relations in the United
States. It was' described as a good
book on the subject It was called
'Uncle Tom's Cabin."
However, on this subject of schools
I believe that in fairness to a cer
tain Russian school teacher I
should relate , what happened when
our now 9-year-old daughter, Vicki,
went to a Russian school.
"Amerikana
It was located in the same neigh
borhood in which we lived. On the
second day several girls called her
ad "Amerikanxa." This means an
American, female variety, -
ipur daughter told ' us nothing
about it, but the teacher did. ! She
said she heard about it and prom
ised there would be no" repetition
of the incident The term, I should
add, was applied with derision" by
two girls who had heard how
American soldiers were "tortur
ing Korean children".
The incident was never repeated
and Vicki was never reminded
at school that she had a horrible,
beastly American for a father. For
this, I presume, she was thankful.
Very Nice Russian Children
I cite this case to point out that
there are some very nice Russian
children and very nice Russian
people. i
.
But' let's set back to that typical
Russian family. : .
-The daughter is about 22. She
Is not married and has no chil
dren. X make the distinction be
cause quite a few Russian women
have children who are not married.
Not Encouraged by State
The stote doesn't encourage this,
but it' treats the mother and the
child just the-same as it treats a
mother with a husband a child
with a" father. "If. the state can
prove the .identity of the father
and. it ususaUy. can . Jie has to
share the child's upkeep. . -
.But this young Russian -woman
bas.no child and has never had
one. For -this she pays a tax of
about 160 roubles. a year, I mean
for -not having a child. :
Had Three Children V
If she! had a -child and no hus
band she would not pay "the tax.
However,- I ckjubt if anyone wil
fully goes out -and has a child just
to escape the childless tax.
If she bad three children she
would rget a small payment of
money. j When . she had a fourth
she would get even more. The
more : children she had t the more
money she'd get for having them.
When she had .her tenth, she .could
glory in the title of "Mother Hero
ine." She'd be given a badge and
a hatful of roubles. ,
- The Russians, I believe, borrowed
this idea from Mussolini. In any
case, there is heavy emphasis on
building up big families and birth
control is frowned upon with the
samevCommunist severity as Am
erican capitalism. .
. Russian women, incidentally, try
to practice birth control. At least
a lot of them do. Life is difficult
in the U.S.S.R., and another child
makes it more difficult.
Wife Couldn't Help
I know of Russian women who
have appealed to my wife, and
other Russian women I know, to
assist them in this problem. For
obvious reasons, my wife could not
help them.
Now, as to the other son. He's
just out of prison. His term was
not a long one and. looking at it
from one angle, I suppose he
brought it on himself:
. He kept indulging in the national
fireworks, vodka, and every time
he did it he would sound off . on
the subject of Stalin Communism.
He didn't like it. He added that
when he was a soldier in the West
during the war and immediately
thereafter, - things looked - pretty
good to him.
Receives Three Tears
He received a three year sentence
at hard labor for this. Had he
not been drunk when he voiced
such sentiments bis sentence, un-
CURRENT
RATE ON
SAVINGS
Insured To
u?Wcil $10,000.0C
SAVE WHERE SAVINGS PAYS
First Federal Savings
1
0 Mil 111 "ill
EIop Pidsers Wanted!
j Picking now-early clusters-good picking
Transportation from Employment Office
4 mornings at 6:15.
EBQBSft- SffilEM
Phone SOverton 3-4784
i - r-nRn R)o i
Liu L3 Lb Lr o '
t- -y ri n ri n III
Bean Pichers Heeded
i
BHmperGrop --vo,od Pay
TRAIISPbllTATIOII ;F0DIIISIIED
CAIIPII7G ' FACILITIES AVAILABLE
-Trucks and; Busses Leaving Eriploynenl
Office Daily, 5 !o H :
' Drivebuis Uelconed ;
Apply-Oregon; Stale Employment Service
710 ferry Si., Salen or Picas 3-92C3 . ..'
questionably, would have been long
er. Russians are tolerant of drunks.
:.. He sot out of jail when the Mal-
ensor government ordered an
nesty shortly after it took over.
The mother of this family; as
have pointed out. Is now a cram
mother. She has been working at
the same textile factory since she
came - to Moscow 27 years ago
from a village in the' T Ob last.
Salary 800 Roubles r
Her salary is 800 roubles a month,
less certain taxes. She works about
eight hours a day, six days a week.
But if the factory lags In its month
ly plan then she often works a 10
or even 12 hour day toward .the
end of- the month,
v She did ; this under the Stalin
regime. Since Malenkov had been
in power her factory bad not had
to contribute extra hours to help
the director hit his production tar
get. There is considerable grumbling
among the workers, but there is
little they can do. They have
labor unions in Russia. But they
don't have strikes. Definitely not.
Father Has Trouble
And now for the father of this
family. His name is. let's say, Ser
gei, because it isn't Sergei. Ser
gei, in common with a lot of other
people, has serious objections to
male labor in any form. He's had
some trouble with his factory over
the year because of this, :
. He's been docked pay. He'i been
denounced and he's been threaten
ed with ia jail sentence for dogging
on the Job showing up late, cut
ting corners, and sometimes sneak
ing home a little early.
But Sergei, is a 'wily operator.
He can pail very close to the windH
the party-state discipline wind
and never lose, his job. Like
so many Russians he has tremen
dous charm, is a marvelous drink
ing companion land can tell and
enjoy a good story. ;,; '
Shakes illea i : ' .
When Shis son got that prison sen
tence for denouncing Stalin Com
munism; Sergei shook his head.
"That) would never happened to
me," he sighed, j.
1 .might have said that Stalin
was a bastard. But I'd have said
be was ;a wonderful one."
PRESCRIPTIONS
FREE DELIVERY
CHAPMAirSvDnUG
s 10 Candalaria Blvd.
! Phone 4-6224
Just before I left Moscow. I ran
Into the old rascal on the street.
After, a quick exchange of pleas
antries, I . asked him what he
thought all the new gestures from
If they -give little, -they may
be forced into giving a lot.",
I almost didn't ask the next ques
tion? -vy-.y
There may be another revolu
tion?" I asked.
the new rezime meant.
"1 don't know yet." he whisper-j - "Not the kind voui mean.w ne
one thing. If they said. "But the people are tired.' We
ed, ?ut IH say
start giving a little away, they bet
ter watch out. The people have
gone too long without many things.
want to rest. Rest frxm a lot of
things. There are all sorts of revo
lutions." '-.-. . , ..I; i
, FREE ESTIMATES .
On Kitchen Remodeling
' . . ' STORE
Ul K High 1
Ph. 4-5131
Ottr
fmk
o 0 0
Continued Conscientious, Dignified Service'
At A Price Anyone Can Afford
j
Eftsvell
Phone S-472
Edwards
FUNERAL HOME
! 545 N. Capitol Across from Sears
Uston W. Howell j
HUda E. Howell
Harry (AI) Voflt:
Charles C Edwards
Frances M. Edwards j
Donald yfaggoner. j
. 1
5
i
&
(a)
- -
IS
V :
i
t -
1 1
-:.; ' j 3y - A ' ! i . V.
' - ' ? .? E5B55V
IIOIIDAY IIIGHT, AUGUST 31, 9 P. II.
ty.j' . ' . .
P j
W J
IFi
un
IAJ
! '
MM
iuc ihu aaauioia
. oi nhyllm"
S this aenacmonal negro song and danc team'; obsoluiely FREE on Hie Capitol Shopping
Center parking lot! Coming directly from New York City, Ford & Harris Hare performed in all
the famous spots of the East, hare appeared on national TV networks, and are nailed as having
the fastest footwork In the dancing world today I Comedy singing and snugging . dancing
like you're nerer seen before 1 -l ll . 1
iP
I
0 -
, '"
IV".
DRAWING FOLLOWING ENTERTAINMENT
FOR THESE WdNDERFUL FREE PRIZES
O Fonr 600x16 Tires
And Car Radio
O English Brognes
O Boys or Girl's
. Wardrobe
O Kitchen Clock
O Table Ilodel
i .
Dadio
O Slean Iron
O Eleciric Pop
.Corn
PRIZES TO
O Ivy
Popper
Susan
BE AWARDED SEPTEIIBER 8 ON DISPLAY AT THE T0UNE SHOP
GRAM IPBIIZE TO BE' :.6IVEM M17M .': SEPT. ISJli .
HILLMAN MlN)C
- Jjt(z . - - -
The new.Htttmait Minx "California
gives you the style and all around vis
ibility of a convertible, j ' plus heavy
exclusive color . combinations, famous
gauge steel over your head. Smart and
Hillman economyl
i
Purchased af BROWN-FOX,
, 1230, Broadway
Weekly prize winners ineligible
thereafter except for grand
drawing. Employees and their
families not eligible for prizes.
YOUR FREE TICKETS AVAILABLE NOW AT ANY OF
THESE FRIENDLY CAPITOL SHOPPING tENTER STORES
Ace Classic Barber Shop
Bergs Super Market . ;
Dana's Bootery
Haley's - Beauty: Center
Hughes Apparel i
I Shoe Repair
Jary'i Flowers & Fine Candies Shryock's Men's . Vear
Kennedy's Cleaning Works . i,The Towne VShop r
S, H. Kress & CoiAl- S; V 1 Sears-RoefciUckand Co. f
Margwen'a Children's! Shop Salem Record Shop ,
.. Owl Drug Company
' Shaw Furniture Co.
The Music Center
1
"'4.