‘AS a Soviet journalist, there
there is one question I
would like to ask my Can-
adian colleagues: What is
the explanation for the
amazing obstinacy with which
certain circles in Canada, some of
them closely connected with the
press, have been trying to adver-
tise a detestable creature who em-
bezzled government money and
was afraid to face responsibility,
who fled from his job, forsook his
country and decided to try his
luck in a foreign land by selling
himself to the highest bidder?

I know that this creature, one
Ignor Gouzenko, has proved a
Suitable acquisition to persons
who are always looking for a
pretext to worsen relations be-
tween our two countries. I know,
too, that on the basis of Gou-
Senko’s lying evidence, these ele-
ments were able to defame sev-
‘eral honest Canadians who are ac-
cused of atom spying for the
USSR, But was not the Royal
Commission, which went into this
little hoax, compelled to admit in
its report that “no one in Canada
could reveal the methods of man-
ufacturing atom bombs?” Yet,
just think of al] the nonsense
Gouzenko uttered on this score
and what an unholy clamor was
raised in the Canadian press
about his “disclosures”.

But that was only the first em-
barrassment. One would have ex-
Pected that after this the ill-
Starred liar, who had become a
nuisance to all the doormen at po-
lice headquarters, would be rele-
gated to the background never to
be heard of again, But, no, a
year passed and again we heard
of Igor Gouzenko,

This time he was made the
“hero” of a libellous anti-Soviet
film The Iron Curtain, hashed uP
in Hollywood along the lines of a
cheap murder story. It was hoped
that as soon as it hit the screen,
this film would astound the
World, just like the atom bomb.
But all that happened was that
Twentieth Century Fox, the pro-
ducers, were in for another po-
litical scandal and financial loss.
That was the second embarrass-
ment, .

.

Before me is a book of 324
Pages entitled This Was My
Choice—Gouzenko’s Story, pub-
_ lished by J. V, Dent and Sons. It
@ppears that this petty scoundrel,
exposed on two previous occa-
Sions, has now embarked in a
third career—that of would-be
author. The editor of this book,
Who had a very thankless job in-
deed, admits in the preface that
he had a hard time. He very
broadly hints that Gouzenko was
So ignorant he was incapable of
Putting into coherent terms what
Was wanted of him.

But we shall not deal with the
» details of the origin of the book.
Let us look into it and see what
Message Gouzenko and his,men-
tors, his co-authors and editors,
have for Canada.’

_ I will candidly admit that much
in the book made me laugh. Its
Pages provide graphic proof of
the fact that Gouzenko had not

even read many of the chaPters —

which, very significantly, are de-
Scribed in the preface as having
been “written in English”.

I refuse to believe that Gou-
enko, for all his rank ignorance,
does not know that the city of

er (renamed Kalinin many

Years ago) is not a “place of exile

or peasants”, as the book tells
Us, but is one of the largest re-
Sional capitals in the country and
n fact, one of the finest and most
Up-to-date cities in the Soviet
nion. What is more, it is not
Situated in the north, but on the
Volga, ’

Or what is one to make of the
ty tale about the “lishnetzy”
Page 14). Everyone who has ta-
€n even a passing interest in So-
Viet lite knows that “lishentsy”
‘and not “lishnetzy”) was the

name

~ seriously

given, prior to adoption of “scenes Prone:

By
YURI
_THUKOV

American cities.
Here a member of
the New York Com”

War
mittee
Propaganda PFO”
tests his arrest.

the 1936 Constitution, to persons
living on non-earned incomes, etc.,
who were deprived of the fran-
chise. The new. Constitution,
framed under the direction of J.
V. Stalin, extends the franchise
to all citizens of the country and
the term “lishentsy” disappeared
from the Soviet vocabulary.

But only to be resurrected in
“Gouzenko’s story,” and what is
more this is the explanation of-
fered: “‘Lishnetzy’ is the Rus-
sian word for the aged and ail-
ing who have become ‘the super-
fluous ones’... When one be-
comes a lishnetz . .. one should
be in duty bound to free the coun-
try of a useless consumer by hav-
ing the courage to commit sul-

‘cide.’ How's that?

A few pages later you come
across a new and equally fantas-
tic story, a variation of the usual
Hollywood: Frankenstein tales. It
is the story of how Bolshevik,
fiends compel priests “in non-
show-place spots of Russia” to re-
move the gold plating from the
icons by some poison acid. The
priests, we are told, die “a mine,
long slow death” and the “ggld
is later melted and ss ae

agents, to purchase .
einesa NS be used for building
of a ‘happy and joyful life’ in So-
viet Russia.” (Page 55).

There are in the USSR millions
of worshippers, free to worship
the various religions. The Soviet
law allows them complete liberty
to observe their religious rites,
maintain their churches and their
priesthood, And no one in the
USSR, and never in its history,
has persecuted anyone for re-
ligious beliefs. This is perfectly
well known to all honest people in

- Burope and America, Canada in-

cluded. : et 4
Literally every line of “Gou-
zenko’s story” exposes the ignor-

ance and stupidity of its authors.

e Re 5 eee -
I do not propose

“
4

sia” concocted according to the
rule of bad cooks: “Never mind
the test, make it spicy’, I am
equally confident that the third
attempt of Gouzenko and his men-
tors to slander Soviet diplomats

-and depict them as gangsters who

spend all their time hunting the
atom bomb, will end in-the same
failure as the two previous at-
temps. A lie repeated three times
is still a lie and does not become
any more convincing.

Gouzenko regards everything
that happened to him’ purely as a
business deal of which he was
the commodity bought and sold.
He wasn’t badly rewarded, and
the whole deal suits him perfectly,
though as a result of it, he has

By TED TINSLEY

can think of no public issue

on which my position is
more neutral than the current
divorce proceedings between
bandmaster Artie Shaw, and
Kathleen Winsor, author of
Forever Amber,

I read the charges and coun-
ter-charges with profound in-

“i

er the Shaws shared their bed
and board, or hummed crock-
ery.

But my indifference disap-
peared when Kathleen Winsor
chose to get political. She ap-
parently accused Artie “of be-
ing a Communist Party mem-
ber and threatening her with
violence because she refused to
$ join.” *

No, no, Kathie! Stick to the
crockery This Communist busi-
ness is all right, but it’s no use
riding a good thing to death.
Think, some day you might
want to use the charge in more
important circumstances, such
as terrorizing a loan library
which doesn’t carry your book.

In fact, this whole Commun-
ist charge is being overdone.
Last week a man broke into a

difference, little caring wheth-

lost his freedom and is virtually
a prisoner of his masters: the
preface informs us that Gouzen-
ko lives “under close and con-
stant Royal Canadian Mounted
Police Guard.” ;
~
Gouzenko renounced his coun-
“try. He abandoned his mother.
He is condemned by his fellow
countrymen. But what are coun-
try, mother and fellow country-
men to Igor Gouzenko? i
On his own admission his sole
concern from the very start of
his misearble career was his ma-
terial well-being—“My whole aim,
at that time, was to improve my
station at headquarters so that
higher rank would bring more ra-

This communist business——

house, stole all the silverware,
broke the windows and then

started a fire in the cellar. Two
‘old women and a young child
burned to death, but when the
burglar - arsonist testified in
_court that the house belonged
to a second cousin of a form-

er Communist Party member,
he was acquitted and received
a government pension. He is
now running for Congress.

But the climax came a few
.days ago when a fellow I know
got a hot tip on a horse named
Small Change, a seven-to-one
shot, He put everything he had
on Small Change’s nose. So
far, so good, but another beast |
by the name of Fade Me romp-"
ed in first.

My friend was heading for
the poor house when an idea
struck him, He ran over to the
judgés’ stand, and immediate-
ly put in a protest. “I demand
that Fade Me be disqualified!”
he shouted.

“Why?” asked one of the of
ficials. :

“That horse is a member of
the Communist Party! He has
been in a _ special sub-clite

American Activities subpoen- —

tions.” (Page 176). Let me recall
that these lines refer to a period
when the Nazis were trampling
our soil and when the entire peo-
ple were shedding their blood in
a life-and-death duel which de-
cided the fate of mankind. And it
was in those eventful days that
Gouzenko, entrenched in the rear,
tried to make a career and was
cut for “more rations.”

Careerists and seekers after
soft jobs are not popular in the
‘Soviet Union, So Gouzenko decid-
ed to sell himself for dollars.

Again and again he sits down
to count his thirty silver pieces,
the price of his treachery. “A
prominent Ottawa business man
provided me with an annuity for
life. An American magazine paid
handsomely for a partial story of
my disclosures . .. Hollywood has
seen fit to make a movie involv-
ing Anna and me, for which
rights they paid handsomely.
There will be revenue from the
sale of this book.” (Page321).

These few-lines expose Gou-
zenko for what he is, a contempt-
ible Judas from head to foot, No-
thing will surprise one after read-
ing this frank admission, which
brings Gouzenko down to the low-
est rung of depravity. Having,
after endless lying about the
“horrors” of life in the Soviet Un--
ion, admitted that there is no
hope of ever overthrowing the So-
viet power, Gouzenko appeals for
new military intervention against
the country in which he was born
and grew up.

This sort of appeal is of little
concern -to us, Soviet people. In
our lifetime we have twice re--
Pelled the forces of intervention,
and it will take more than a Gou-
zenko to frighten us. On the
other hand, I do not believe that
abroad, and in Canada, there will
be people who will respond to the
foul importuning of a provoca-
teur,

Let me repeat my question:
Why, for what purpose, is this
twice exposed and twice scandal-
ized Gouzenko being dragged out
into the Canadian limelight? = ~—
' Is it not clear that his debut in
_ Canadian letters will end in the
same inglorious manner as his de-
but in Canadian justice and in
American moving pictures?
Things must be very bad indeed
with Gouzenko’s obstinate spon-
sors if, like losing gamblers, they _
put up the same beaten card for —
the third year. Their obstinacy
will only multiply their losses.
The money invested in this dubi-
cus uhdertaking is lost beyond
repair, and the moral defeat of

Gouzenko’s sponsors is clear for
all to see, : ‘ ‘

group headed by Whittaker
Chambers. I know, because I
once- collected his dues. He
always gives 10 percent of his
winnings to the Communist
Party!”

The judges conferred a mo- Z
ment, and then disqualified
Fade Me. Small Change was
adjudged the winner and my
friend made a fortune, (They
all do, don’t they?)

The story does not end here. _
The House Committee on Un-

aed Fade Me. When the horse
appeared, Miss Bentley threw
& number of accusations at
him and tried her best to pro-
voke the poor beast. But he
held his ground. ~

“You can’t ride me, Miss
Bentley,” he said. “You can’t ~
make the weight.” ne

At this point, Mundt jump-
ed up and shouted, “Are you
or have you ever been a mem-
ber of the Communist Party?”

Fade Me surprised the press
and gallery by answering the
question. He said, “Neigh.”

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—AUGUST 27, 1948—PAGE 5