When a Russian needs more food or clothing than his ration card entitles him to buy, he can go to the special Torgsin stores which sell only for valuta (foreign money), if he has any valutaa difficult thing for a Russian to obtain. Last week the bars went down a little. To increase the State's stock of silver, Torgsin was authorized to accept silver plate and old jewelry as valuta. Next day Torgsin stores were jammed with hungry, ill-clad natives, eager to swap silver for rough clothing and such luxuries, dear to...
To continue reading:
or
Log-In
