In answer to questions Comrade Vittol stated that the Russo-Asiatic Bank here had been nationalized and that the government had profited to the extent of a good building, and: money and valuables in the safe deposit boxes. He stated that the valuables and money in the current accounts would be returned to the owners after due and proper investigation- Should any of the depositors owe the government arrears of taxes, etc. the arrears would first be deducted and the remainder, if any, would then be returned. We imagine thas both the speaker and the hearers had their tongues im their cheeks when this statement was made. The nationalizing of the Siberian Commercial and Mutual -Credit Banks was not profitable, as the former had only a few goods and the latter nothing at all. It was stated that the State Bank of Soviet Russia would also open up here. The chief objects of this bank would be to assist the rouble te squeeze out the ven. This is to he done by demanding payment of government rates in bank notes of the Soviet government, and the payment for goods imported from Russia in the same currency. At the same time, ghe local government has ordered many goods from Russia im order to squeeze out foreign goods. The Customs duties have also been made prohibitive in order to curtail import.
The result has been that everything has taken a sharp rise in
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