Free PDF

Author : Sutton Antony Cyril
Title : Western Technology and Soviet Economic Development 1917 to 1930
Year : 1968

Link download : Sutton_Antony_Cyril_-_Western_Technology_and_Soviet_Economic_Development_1917_to_1930.zip

Preface. By far the most significant factor in the development of the Soviet economy has been its absorption of Western tcchnology and skills. Previously this technological transfer has not been treated in detail; hence the data that comprise Part I of this study are thoroughly documented. without such documentation, the argument of Part II would appear less than credible. The rcader may, howcver, wish to pass on to Part II aftcr bricfly satisfying himsclf with the general content of Part I. Chapter two discussing Soviet ail, and chaptcr eleven, on electrical equipmcnt, arc representative of the empirical treatment of key sectors in Soviet industry. The primary sources for data are the U .S. State Department Decimal File and the German Foreign Ministry Archives, supplemcnted by journals in half a dozen languages from a dozen countries. Of these, the journals publishcd by Soviet trade representatives abroad wcrc of particular help. Grateful appreciation is due the Relm Foundation for funds to purchase scveral hundred thousand microfilmed documents. Acknowledgment is also due to California Statc Collegc at Los Angeles and to the Economie Opportunity Program for secretariat and research assistance. The National Archives, the Library of Congress, and the Hoover Institution library were unfailingly rcsponsivc and rcmarkably adcpt at interpreting rcqucsts for information. Without their sympathetic aid, this study could have been ncither attcmpted nor completed. In addition, Dr. Stefan Possony of the Hoover Institution was very helpful in making research suggestions which, in the final analysis, turned out ta be of fondamental importance. The Hoover Institution also accepted the considerable burden of preparing the manuscript for publication; particular thanks is due London G. Green for his capable and understanding work as editor. Finally, acknowledgmcnt is made ta F. W. B. Coleman, resident United States Minister in Riga, Lativa, du ring the 1920&. Riga was the main American 'listening post' of this time, and dispatches by Coleman to Washington, D.C., suggest a deep understanding of events in the Soviet Union. These detailed and accurate reports were of major hclp in this study. lt is especially important in a study which breaks substantially new ground in a controversial area to point out that any criticism concerning the interpretation of data must faU squarely on the shoulders of the writer, and not on his sources. Such criticism is, of course, to be welcomed. Pasadena, California April I, 1966 ...