as our sympathies go out to the oppressed of all lands no matter who or what the oppressor may be. …
The evidence was cumulative and conclusive that the military dictatorship of Russia, calling itself the Soviet Government, was appropriating large sums of money to stir up insurrection by force of arms against the United States Government. It is a novel principle in international law and one that is not likely to be generally accepted, that a newly established military dictatorship in one country may capitalize the traditional friendship of another country for its people by making a pretense of wanting to establish friendly relations with the government at the same time that it is seeking to destroy it by stirring up insurrection.
Finally we may quote a few words from Mr. Herbert Hoover, Secretary of Commerce, the world's highest authority on European relief. Mr. Hoover believes that nothing of any consequence can be done for the Russian people as long as the Bolshevists remain on their necks and these are the reasons he gives for this position (in his letter of March 21st, 1921):
So long as Russia is controlled by the Bolsheviki. … the question of trade is far more political than economic.
There are no export commodities in Russia worth consideration except gold, platinum and jewelry in the hands of the Bolsheviki Government. The people are starving, cold, under-clad. If they had any consumable commodities they would have used them long since.
There has been no prohibition on trade. The real blockade has been the failure of the Russians to produce anything to trade with.
Trading for this parcel of gold would not effect this remedy—nor would the goods obtained by the Bolsheviki restore their production. That requires the abandonment of the present economic system.
