equality of woman with man in all spheres, services, and fields — economic, cultural, scientific, political, and others...

And Mrs. Najla adds:

— To show you the woman's share in these fields, let me cite you some statistics: women who enjoy higher education make up 37 percent, and there are 77,500 women working in the scientific fields,

and more than 400 thousand women engineers or specialists in all manner of scientific and technical fields. The body of the Soviet Academy of Sciences includes 5,795 women, or the equivalent of 42.03 percent of the total membership, and 32 percent of the total members of the teaching body are women teaching the sciences in the Soviet colleges and universities... And there are 846 women writers and poets out of the 3,800 members of the Union of Soviet Writers...

As for the political field, the Russian woman shows marked activity there, and half a million women have been able to hold membership in the Soviet parliament from the rise of the Revolution up to the present... And there are many women members in the Supreme Council of the Soviet Union...

— And what of social life there?

Mrs. Laure answers:

— Social life is practically nonexistent... The neighbor speaks to his neighbor only rarely, and does not consult him in any of his affairs... Speed, decision, and severity are the general stamp of Russian life... Everyone is hurrying to his work... and everyone is absorbed in it...

And Mrs. Najla qualifies this, saying:

— In any case... we did not speak with the individual

members of the people directly, so as to see for ourselves how much social spirit and readiness to mix they possess... By the circumstance in which we found ourselves, we spoke only to the important personalities, and through an interpreter, since no one there understands a foreign language... and if he under-stands it, he does not speak it...

— Is there in the Soviet Union a family life in the familiar sense?...

Mrs. Najla hastens to answer:

— Family life in Russia does not differ from family life in the other foreign countries... The old and the pensioned stay at home and look after its affairs... and the members of the family gather at the hours of rest, of meals, and of the evening...

And Mrs. Laure adds:

— Every person there has the right to a small dwelling, which he rents from the State, or builds for himself if he has the means, provided the plot of land — its area is usually thirty square meters — remains the property of the State...

— Are there places of amuse-ment in the Soviet Union?

— Of course... There are the cinemas, the theaters, and the clubs... Furthermore, every individual in the Soviet Union is obliged to go to the theater at least once a month... and it is the trade unions that secure the tickets for their members... for the theater is regarded as a means of cultivation and not merely of amusement... As for the clubs, every union has its club, where its members gather for recreation and rest and to while away their hours of leisure...

And Mrs. Najla adds:

— We should note here that the individuals of the people in the Soviet Union enjoy, and are distinguished by, a very

high character; they never lose their composure, whether at entertainments or in the streets or in the public services or in the places of amusement...

And Mrs. Laure adds:

— But their seriousness reaches its peak... Gloom and dejection reign over individuals and groups alike... From living among them for this short spell, I felt that they are directed, not free to choose, in all that they do... They go like a machine to their work, they go like a machine to their homes, and they go like a machine to the places of amusement and recre-ation... I did not see a single cheerful face... except only the shining faces of the children... And by the way, I would like to tell you that we admired the children in the Soviet Union very much... We saw them in the day nurseries and children's gardens and primary schools, frolicking and playing, without feeling any want or embarrassment or any of those contradictory, anxious, troubled feelings that children in our country feel...

And Mrs. Najla observes:

— I cannot affirm that gloom is the general stamp of Russian life... because, as I noted earlier, I did not come into contact with the individuals of the people... and saw them only in particular circumstances and on official or semi-offi-cial occasions...

— What are your gen-eral impressions of the Soviet Union??

— What we saw in the Soviet Union is the highest manifes-tation of progress, refinement, and civilization, and they use for it the most modern means.

— Am I to understand from what I have heard that you admired the system of govern-ment prevailing there?