Cultural Relations

The Anglo-American correspondents in Moscow were invited to spend a literary evening at VOKS, the Russian society for the promotion of cultural relations with foreign countries. The guests were to meet and hear some of Russia's foremost correspondents. There would be refreshments and great good-fellowship.

After two hour-long speeches in Russian, by Author-Correspondents Konstantin Simonov and Vsevolod Vishnevsky, beaming VOKS officials relinquished the floor to the Anglo-Americans.

Up jumped the Philadelphia's Inquirer's huge, clarion-voiced Al Kendrick. "I have listened with great interest for two hours to the accounts of our distinguished Soviet colleagues of their life at the Russian war fronts," he roared. "I should like to take about two minutes of their time to tell how we cover the war in Russia. It may surprise them to learn that . . . the way we cover the great patriotic war of Russia is to sit in our rooms at the Hotel Metropole, read what our Russian colleagues write in the Russian papers, and cable this to our papers. Every effort we have made to get really near the front has been blocked. . . ."

There was an embarrassed silence, and then the London News Chronicle's Paul Winterton got up slowly. "I should like to add to Mr. Kendrick's remarks," said he. "Not only is our only source of news about the Russian fronts what we read in the papers from your correspondents, but furthermore we consider that a poor source. . . . We think we could do much better work if we were allowed to go to the front."

The New York Herald Tribune's veteran, witty Ed Angly fired a barb: "It is possible that the British and American Governments should be grateful to the Russian foreign office for making sure that there will be no casualties among correspondents. . . ."

The chairman of VOKS, nervously trying to turn the tide, declared that VOKS was powerless to help the correspondents, and that they should appeal to the foreign office. The correspondents retorted that they had already appealed to the foreign office. Said famed Soviet children's poet Simeon Marshak: "We are only writers here; we are just a gathering of poets; we cannot help you. ..."

Taking issue with his colleagues, Reuters' dry, Scottish John Gibbons declared: "I disagree very sharply with what Mr. Winterton said. I definitely do not feel that the work of Soviet war correspondents has been bad. . . . They have been to Leningrad and Stalingrad. . . . Even if they were the most incompetent nincompoops in the world they would write stirring articles about those things. . . ."

The perspiring president of VOKS rapped hesitantly. "We wanted to have you meet some Russian writers," he said plaintively. "We did not expect this. Perhaps we had better have some refreshments."

The meeting finally broke up. Next morning, most of the Russian correspondents who were there flew to the Yugoslav front to witness the junction of the Russians with Tito. The Anglo-American correspondents, as usual, read the Russian papers.

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