"Conservative" Dictator

Far more habitually silent than U. S. President Calvin Coolidge, is the Dictator of Soviet Russia, Josef Stalin. This onetime Georgian peasant does not receive the gentlemen of the press daily, weekly, monthly, or even once a year. At long intervals the Dictator simply releases a statement with instructions that it shall appear verbatim in such and such news organs. Last week M. Stalin sent out a pronouncement which filled twelve solid columns in leading Soviet newspapers.

Resume. Since the Opposition faction in the Communist party has bitterly opposed the Government's policy toward China, M. Stalin vigorously defended the course which he has taken, after declaring that it has been and is as follows: 1) to support any considerable Chinese faction the activities of which are such that they tend to hasten the coming of a true revolution by the entire Chinese proletariat; 2) to withdraw support from Chinese revolutionary groups if and when they develop bourgois tendencies and desert the cause of proletarian revolt; 3) to expect that the Chinese revolution, in its true and final aspect, will be slow in developing, and cannot be hastened by immediate and violent measures.

Although such a program may seem utterly "red" and "radical" to U. S. eyes, it is quite daringly "conservative" when viewed at Moscow from the standpoint of such fiery Opposition leaders as Messrs. Gregory Zinoviev and Leon Trotzky. These gentry proclaim with sincerity and zeal the necessity of at once throwing the whole might of Soviet Russia behind the Chinese revolution. Indeed M. Zinoviev goes even further and demands that every possible effort be made to launch "The World Revolution of the World Proletariat."

M. Stalin, who must battle constantly with such "pure" revolutinaries as these, is naturally in a very awkward position with respect to the world at large. Enough to say that the principal U. S. financial houses with large interests in Russia consider him far more "conservative" than he dares to be officially.

Having stated his Chinese policy and defended it with arguments that have weight, chiefly in Communist circles, M. Stalin discussed the "White Scare" which sprang up in Russia as a reaction to the

British "Red Scare" (TIME, May 23, et seq.). Few disinterested persons will deny that both of these "perils" are proving very useful to the governments concerned, and are being kept alive for reasons of internal politics. Naturally, then M. Stalin made a great many charges last week against the British Government which seemed to most Anglo-Saxons mere balderdash. For example, Dictator Stalin declared flatly: "The British Government is financing terrorist spies who commit arson and murder throughout the Soviet Union."

Since statements of this kind seem to be of value in keeping Dictator Stalin in power, and since he is the most "conservative" leader in Russia at present, this picturing of Britain as a frightful Boojum seemed unfortunate rather than alarming.