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{
    "localId": "26465660",
    "label": "Colonel Haskell's First Confidential Report on Russia",
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    "id": "26465660",
    "sourceUrl": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/26465660",
    "contentType": "document",
    "title": "Colonel Haskell's First Confidential Report on Russia",
    "description": "This is William N. Haskell's report on political, economic, famine, and financial conditions in Russia at the beginning of relief efforts.",
    "citationUrl": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/26465660",
    "collections": [
        "American Relief Administration Records",
        "American Relief Administration Russian Operations Records"
    ],
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    "url": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/26465660",
    "naId": 26465660,
    "levelOfDescription": "item",
    "productionDates": [
        {
            "day": 18,
            "logicalDate": "1921-10-18",
            "month": 10,
            "year": 1921
        }
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    "seq": 4,
    "pageIndex": 0,
    "type": "document",
    "url": "https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/60/4656/26465660/content/presidential-libraries/hoover/gallery/31-ara-b17-f01-127.pdf",
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    "ocrText": "COLONEL HASKELL'S FIRST CONFIDENTIAL REPORT ON RUSSIA,\n18-20 October 1921\n(Secret - to be sent in Cipher)\nHoover Washington\nIn accordance your instructions following full report situation\nin Russia.\nParagraph One. POLITICAL SITUATION. Soviet Government has strangle hold\non Russia but lacks support and confidence of people. No opposition dares raise\nits head. Two factions in central government; Lenin moderate, Trotsky radical,\nformer apparently gaining ground. Rapid drifting from communistic ideals indicat-\ned by recent free trade, rent authorization, car fares, etcetera. No present\nprobability break between factions. Suspect Foreign Office intends worry us.\nApparent effort effect contact our State Department on any pretext. Government\nattitude in the main friendly and helpful but constant effort inject government\nmachinery into our relief operation under pretext more efficient and quicker;\npurpose create impression among simple peasants goverment operation. Every move\nwe make scrutinized by Chekks. Our telegrams vised. Our agents constantly\nwatched. Trusted Bolsheviks highly recommended to us for employment, others dis-\ncredited. Chekka all powerful, inclined to get out of hand but still controlled.\nLiberal group favor ARA and insure co-operation, hoping contact will lead trade\nagreement. Tchitcherin very hostile England. General bitter feeling against\nFrance. Bureaucracy functioning under dictation group Jewish opportunists as\nsevere as Imperial regime, Central Government shrewd but provincial and local\nSoviets hopelessly inefficient and composed ignorant representatives proletariat.\nGeneral order being maintained throughout Russia. Little evidence crime.\nParagraph TWO. ECONOMIC SITUATION. Complete economic breakdown.\nTotal absence all manufactured articles, viz., repair parts, clothing replace-\nments, household utensils, agricultural machinery, building materials, electrical\nand railroad equipment, paint, tools, drugs, in fact everything. All homes,\npublic buildings gutted; defaced; heating, plumbing and lighting destroyed\n127\nexcept rare cases. Everything in vicious circle, example: vaccine laboratory\nclosed because city water pumps only operate one hour daily, no fuel, labor re-\nfuses without food and government rations for workers prescribed not forthcoming.\nOfficials in provinces two to three months arrears in pay. Railroads hanging\ntogether, roadbeds unrepaired, derailed cars ditched. Thousands cars deteriorat-\ning on sidings where rails and ties have been removed from under them. Govern-\nment fails collect requisitions equitably in some cases forty-five poods requi-\nsitioned out of total yield fifty poods to dessiatine. All travelers speculat-\ning in foodstuffs. Wages so small people work three or four jobs few hours each.\nMain idea everywhere how obtain food. Dazed population accepts situation calmly.\nMany stores opening Moscow. Markets active but no apparent stocks simply a bar-\ntering of small articles principally clothes and foods.\nParagraph Three. FAMINE SITUATION. Unquestionably direct result Gov-\nernment requisitioning previous years. All attempts place responsibility on\ndrought or military operations ridiculous. Peasant having been bled so. thor-\noughly refused plant or lacked seed, sailed too close to wind, then drought\ncaught them with no reserves and government unable supply them. Government now\nrealize catastrophe but unable meet situation. Some seed furnished of which\npart received too late for planting. Reported transfers grain from Ukraine to\nVolga grossly exaggerated for propaganda. Famine widespread, estimate sixteen\nmillion affected; seventy-five per cent can be reached. Sitarvation present but\nnot yet general; peak will arrive December January and continue August. Clothing\nsecondary consideration. Over ninety-five per cent peasants warmly clad. Some\nclothing required abandoned children. Greatest need program adult feeding limited\nto cereals. Meat available as many cattle exist and must be slaughtered due lack\nfodder for winter. Estimate two thousand tons flour daily judiciously distribut-\ned, commencing January first would meet requirements Volga. In case adult pro-\ngram established, Black Sea ports would be required and A.A.A. personnel in-\ncreased along lines communication, Diseasesprevailing; typhoid, relapsing fever,\n128\nmalaria and dysentery due starvation and ingestion food substitutes. Typhus\nincreasing and most feared this winter. Cholera practically disappeared. Our\npresent medical program will meet situation. Newspaper stories exaggerate present\ngeneral condition and photographs are selected from worst cases. General con-\ndition adult population famine areagrowing steadily worse. Central Government\nmaking partially successful effort transport adults and children from stricken\nareas to regions where there is food. Also local governments collecting aban-\ndoned children in famine areas. Success of latter is variable, depending on\nefficiency of particular localities. All lack means.\nParagraph Four. FINANCIAL SITUATION. Exchange rapidly dropping\nhundred thousand roubles to dollar. Dollar at premium over pound. State Bank\nrecently opened Moscow having foreign exchange department eager obtain dollars\nand pounds, accepts personal checks* Government reluctant appropriate roubles\neven for payment salaries officials in arrears, our relief or other approved\nactivities. Question gold or platinum reserve available purchases breadstuffs\nabroad not raised here by me as Brown advised he would handle entirely London\nwith Trade Commission to which Moseow referred negotiations.\nHaskell.\n129"
}