30 April 2020 Local 1941 Newspaper Reports in English The two articles below come from the local press published in Komi in September 1941. The first story is a report from a Communist party leader about the campaign of collecting warm clothes for the Red Army soldiers. The second news item tells about excellent performance of a tractor brigade of young girls as an example of local contribution to a common struggle in building a strong economy for the war needs.
The newspaper stories were translated by graduate students of the Institute of Foreign Languages of the Syktyvkar State University. Winter Clothes for Red Army SoldiersSheepskin Coats, Felt Boots, Fur Hats, Wool Socks, and Mittens for the Red Army Men
Za Noviy Sever, September 10, 1941
Translated by Daria Chuprova
I.Pimenov, Secretary of the Kortkeros Revolutionary Committee of All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, talks on the phone about the broad movement initiated by the workers of the Kortkeros district to provide the Red Army with warm clothes.
KORTKEROS, 9. Masses of the working people in the Kortkeros district have built a broad movement to provide the Red Army with warm clothes and footwear. Workers, collective farmers and Soviet intelligentsia bring and hand over felt boots, sheepskins, wool, socks, mittens, and warm underwear.
Everything for the front, everything for the victory over the brown plague! – This is the slogan of thousands of fiery Soviet patriots. Men and women, girls and boys show the greatest concern for the Red Army soldiers. Like their own sons, dear brothers, beloved husbands and fiancés, people are striving to provide the Red Army warriors with clothes and footwear. On the very first day female and male patriots handed over three pairs of felt boots, 13 dressed and 53 unfinished sheepskins, 8 large pieces of leather, more than 20 kg of wool, 8 pairs of warm socks, 25 pairs of mittens, 7 pairs of footcloths, a warm padded jacket, and a lot of other things.
Warm clothes are being collected in the Tractor Collective Farm with an exceptional enthusiasm. Right after the meeting, the members of this artel handed over to the agitprop leader 5 dressed and 36 unfinished sheepskins, 13.9 kg of wool, mittens, two warm hats, two pairs of footcloths and bonds for 1520 rubles. Mikhail Petrovich Sitkarev, a sixty-three-year-old collective farmer, took the lead. Having listened to the agitprop leader, he went home quickly and brought one sheepskin and a kilo of wool – Here, he says, that’s my contribution into the fight with the Nazis.
Former partisan Anna Pavlovna Kozlova brought a parcel full of presents ready to be sent to the front. She had packed some linen, a towel, a headkerchief, some footcloths, some spare soles, and a pair of warm socks.
“These are for the soldier, for the Red Army man, – she says. — Now I’m packing another parcel for my husband who is at the frontline as well. Let our men, brothers and sons fight bravely against our sworn enemy! We will help them to defeat the abhorrent Nazis through our hard work back at home and maternal care for the Red Army soldiers.
Anna Pavlovna was the first in the district center to have organized the gathering of warm clothes for the Red Army. Now she is in charge of getting the parcels for the soldiers ready to be shipped. There were a few proposals from the working people to organize the manufacturing of felt boots, mittens, socks, sheepskin coats, padded jackets, and underwear locally, in middle-size enterprises of Kustpromsoyuz and Narkommestprom, using the materials collected in the Red Army fund for warm clothes.
Reported by I.PIMENOV,
Secretary of the Kortkeros Revolutionary Committee of All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks. | The original text from Za Noviy Sever newspaper, September 10, 1941 |
Best in IndustryCommendable Initiative from Tractor Drivers in Vizinga
Za Noviy Sever, September 15, 1941
Translated by Alexey Pashnin
Comrade Pissarev’s tractor brigade from the Vizinga machinery and tractor station has shown excellent performance. By the 5th of September, they had completed the annual work plan by 167 per cent and saved more than 1,000 kg of fuel. The brigade was of great help to collective farms in crop harvesting. The grain-mowing plan is executed at 103.3 per cent with only 5 harvesters. At the moment, the tractors are used in autumn ploughing works.
Due to good maintenance, flawless performance of the machines is achieved. Young girls are constantly improving their skills as tractor drivers and demonstrate a good command of machine operations. They always conduct due servicing which helps avoid technical failures.
It is common practice to perform a careful technical inspection of the tractors early in the morning before putting them in operation. Fastening, lubrication, the engine condition and the ignition system are properly checked. The detected defects are immediately fixed. Maintenance that is more complex, such as bearing tightening, valve checking and valve adjustment, is conducted under the direct supervision of the brigade leader.
As there is no possibility to get supplies of replacement parts, the brigade members organized their manufacturing locally, on their own. The tractor drivers make bolts, nuts rollers and other necessary parts for tractors and trailer-type machines in the collective farm smith shop during their off-duty hours. As a result, there is no lack of spare parts. This is a commendable initiative that every tractor brigade must follow.
Reported by A. Zontova | The original article from Za Noviy Sever newspaper, September 15, 1941 |
ABOUT THE PROJECT:
Graduate students of the the Syktyvkar State University undertook to translate articles from the local newspapers of the World War II period in a partnership project with the National Library of the Komi Republic. The project is dedicated to the 75th victory anniversary of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945.
The students' translations will be posted every day from 30 April to 9 May 2020.
Find all translations using #mytranslation2020 | 
