V. I.

Lenin

“Spare Cash” [2]

The government newspapers, headed by the sycophantic Novoye Vremya , are
extolling our government for the splendid results achieved by the national
economy. Just think:
450 million rubles of “spare cash”! Bringing money into the house and not
taking it out—that, please note, is how “we” manage our household.

And Novoye Vremya , newspaper of the Black-Hundred landlords and
Octobrist merchants, comes to the conclusion that there is no risk at all even
in waging war when you have such a nest-egg as 450 million rubles.

Let us, however, lock at the explanatory note of the Minister of Finance to the
Budget for 1913. Perhaps we can find in it, besides self-praise (of which the
note is chock-full!), exact data on the origin of the vaunted
“spare cash”?

We open the Minister’s explanatory note and read (Part I, p. 15) that in
the five years from 1908 to 1912 loans brought the Treasury 339,500,000
rubles. During the same period, loans were paid off to the value of 252,100,000
rubles.

Hence loans have increased by a total of 87,400,000 rubles . There you have the first “source” of the “spare
cash”. It is a simple one, as you see.

But to proceed. It is known that on October 1, 1908 , the
price of state-monopoly vodka was raised to the limit, that is, from
8 rubles to 8.40 per vedro [1] (meaning the standard vedro, for the price per table
vedro went up from 11 to 12 rubles).

As a result of this “financial measure”, the price of state-monopoly
vodka in the five-year period 1908–12 averaged 8.48 rubles per vedro,
i.e., exactly 42 kopeks more than in the previous four years (in
1904–07 it was 8.06 per vedro).

Altogether the Treasury sold 440,500,000 vedros of 40% vodka in five
years (1908–12). The 42-kopek increase in profit per vedro added up to
185 million rubles .

There you have the second source of the “spare cash”!

The third source—the state railways—yielded in four years
(1908–11) 53 million rubles of “net profit”, if one leaves out of account payment of interest and amortisation of Treasury
capital expenditure, which totalled 2,250 million rubles!! Let us assume
that in 1912 this “profit” was as high as in 1911, i.e., 105 million
rubles. We get a “profit” of 158 million rubles during the five
years. Obviously, a national “economy” in which interest and amortisation
on thousands of millions spent are not taken into account is more like
national juggling. Let us note that it was not some “Left wing
journalist” (God forbid!) but the State Control itself that
estimated at 397,600,000 rubles in four years (1908–11) the
interest and amortisation on the investments made by the Treasury in the
railway system. In terms of the five years from 1908 to 1912, it adds up to
500 million rubles ! This is a specimen of predatory economy .

We shall now sum up the three sources of the “spare cash”:

| (1) Loans | 87,400,000 rubles |
| --- | --- |
| (2) Increased price of state-monop- oly vodka | 185,000,000 ” |
| (3) State railways ( leaving out of account 500 million
rubles inter- est and amortisation on capital expenditure ) | 158,000,000 ” |
| Total | 430,400,000 rubles |

This would seem to he enough. No need to indicate the less important
“sources”.

Is it not clear that our feudal-minded landlords are the greatest
financial geniuses? Borrowing money, raising the price of vodka, “leaving
out of account” interest and amortisation on thousands of millions spent
(on the “economy”)—are not these indications of genius?

Are not they proof of the “stability” of our Budget?