– This big building – school. School students here not only study, but also live in this building. And outdoor constructions are skilled hleva, pigsties, rooms for rabbits, for poultry. Our school students first of all practicians!
I decided to visit by all means school – this factory at which develop new socialist people. But having decided to sight-see at first the city “in general”, I was forced to go further.
– At us it is several such schools. They are evenly scattered across all territory of the city. There, you see two white stocky buildings in a garden? It is the insulator for children, suspicious on a disease. Nearby – hospital.
Having passed the dense park with two big ponds, we came out to the river bank. The sunlight after a penumbra of the park blinded me and when I opened eyes, saw the wide river dazzling with boats of all sizes and types. Here were also long narrow – on ten oarsmen, and small – on one person, with a cross over two-bladed oar, both motor, and sailing, and double pies, and water skis, and water bicycles, balsas, floating spheres, the spinning circles… All this moved, had cheerfully something in common, splashed water… There was an abundance of air, the sun and water. Here it was cheerful and noisy. Half-naked people rowed competing in speed, jumped out of boats water, dived, drove a big rubber sphere on water, competed in speed of swimming. And below – on the sandy beach sunbathed in the sun… From this city it is not necessary to come out to the dacha: it is the real “country city”, the resort town! There is no more separation of the city dweller by nature, from the sun, from fresh air. Having become the owner of life, the worker of the USSR first of all took care of destroying the capitalist cities – these nests of diseases and an infection, exhaustion and degeneration.
Also I do not know whether Nick guessed my thought or it was accident, but he told meditatively:
– Here people gain health and strength. And still diseases are not won up to the end. But they will be won! Undefeated there will be death. But it is necessary in circulation of life. Our medicine was reconstructed, having transferred the center of gravity to prevention. To warn diseases best of all and more economically, than to treat them – here our slogan. We have a weekly obligatory survey of all population. And survey not superficial. Besides, hygienic knowledge and even serious medical knowledge became property if not everything, then many. Clinics are available at each house commune. Out-patient clinics on each street, and hospitals… Let’s look at them!
We took seat on bicycles again and rushed off on a path which turned to the left. It was the city border, behind our path there was still an avenue for pedestrians, and further, leaving to the horizon, fields on which waves of speyushchy wheat in human height waved turned green.
Perhaps, suburbs of this city were most amazing. I remembered fetid, dirty, stuffy, close suburbs of our cities with shabby hovels and the collapsing houses where the working poor huddled. What can be more sad than the suburb of a big industrial capitalist yurod! And what contrast with the center where there live owners. And here on the suburb of the socialist city I see the same parks, grieve the greens, the same lamps placed at identical distance, at least, than in the center. The same houses scattered in greens of gardens and parks.
We went round nearly a half of a circle of the city when we uvidat several white buildings which were standing apart a little and separated from the city by the big park. From three sides of these white two-storeyed buildings there were also parks, and one party, with open verandahs on the South, came to the square set with a low English garden to give perhaps bigger access to sunshine.
– Hospitals! – Nick told, pressing pedals.
Some time we went well shossirovanny road among ears across the field. Ahead the green island the massif of densely dense pyramidal poplars rose. Between them the beautiful white building was seen.
“The island of death” – in the head reminiscence of Beklin’s picture for some reason flashed. I was not mistaken.
– A crematorium – Nick told.
I wanted to indulge in sad reflections about caducity of all terrestrial (alas! the German sensitivity still lives in me), but Nick did not allow me to make it. A nickname still the young man, but this young man notices for the years much. That it: result of communistic education, life by collective? The right, it represents for me a riddle.
So, Nick looked at me, grinned and cheerfully exclaimed:
– I do not want at all that you finished survey of the city by this place where the fulfilled human car returns the material borrowed from the nature. Let’s go to life sources, there, where circulation of substances is started anew!
– Where it? – I asked, having not absolutely understood.
– Well, in maternity hospital, of course! I will show you the little, krasnenky, just born Communards. You will see them through the glass wall separating newborns from visitors. You will see “The island of life” and will stop thinking about “The island of death”. Live has to think only about live, in particular if life is so fine and interesting!
And we turned the bicycles and drove in the opposite end of the city. There, where life is born…
My friend, I wrote you the whole message, but did not exhaust also the 100-th share of what saw and learned in only several hours of stay in the socialist city. Next time I will write to you how I moved from hotel to the house commune it is possible to learn more stoutly as there live new people of the new world. I will tell that I saw and learned new there.
Good-bye. Hi your lovely Marte.
Fit”.
CORRESPONDENCE ENGINEER
(story)
One river in Kazakhstan ran away. It is necessary to tell you that these Asian rivers crazy. Directly, one may say, mentally ill people. Where yesterday there was a bank, on that place a whirlpool today. The river flowed to the right, look – turned to the left. In one day of meters twenty otgryzt coast together with kishlaks. Shalit, in a word. There are also such rivers: goodness knows where from begins and not particularly where vanishes. Not dries, not in sand buries, from the sun hides – and flows to itself under sand, known to nobody. And people on sands go and are parched with thirst. No cards will keep up with these rivers. On the card – one, and in practice absolutely another. Though every day redraw the card.
There are also absolutely funny stories. The river flows to itself, irrigates edge, gives to drink to people and animals and herbs steppe, and then suddenly as will break loose: towards it threw. The river dug the new course and to other river connected, and that flows into the lake. And the river was gone. Ran away. And the edge perishes from a drought. Here we should have caught such run-away river – to return it to the old course. Interesting it is piece, but only now the conversation will be not about the run-away river. About how we caught it, I somehow another time will tell.
And I began about the river because it brought together me with the old acquaintance Mishka Sinitsyn. It is necessary to tell you that Sinitsyn was an inventor. But person unstable. Threw it here and there as the Central Asian river. Terminated a semiletka in Moscow, arrived on knitting factory the carrier of wool. Then got to All-Union electrotechnical institute and there invented something like that. Simplified an attachment of neon lamps to a socle, so, it seems. Then threw it on speedboats. I received the letter from it from Nizhny Novgorod – participated in a glisserny run. Assured, as brought some improvement in a speedboat. And then and absolutely I for a while lost it. And here was brought to meet in Kazakhstan, near Balkhash, on copper mines of Kounrad. It is necessary to tell that near Kounrad and there was this incident to the river. And waters of this river just supplied the mine. Up to One Balkhash farther. On camels of water you will not be brought in. The whole company the river – all young people of hydraulic engineering, and I went to catch us including. We drive up on cars to Kounrad in the evening. For us the sun sits down. Before us already the mine is seen. Also we see, on a hillock something shines is dazzling as a beacon. What could it be? Began to guess. One speaks: aero beacon. But why to it to shine when still the sun did not set? Yes at the sun beacon light will also not be such bright. Another speaks: this sun from something is reflected. As if from a mirror. Perhaps, the solar station was established? Them a little in Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan was under construction. Perhaps, and so.
We approach closer, we see that “mirror” has the rhombus form. On a brilliant background some black point. As if moves. “Solar spot!” – someone from our company jokes. “A mirage in the desert!” – picks up another. Truly, a mirage in the desert!
– Yes the person on a roof climbs! – my neighbor Trofimov told. – And the roof burns as Isaakiya’s dome on sunset.
– Oh, you look. Departed! Fell! From a roof fell…
And really, “the solar spot” slid off down and crashed down on the earth. And house two-storeyed. Below people began to move, noise, laughter, voices, shouts are heard. We approach.
– What at you happened here? – I ask. – Whether long ago gold roofs on houses began to do?
– The correspondence engineer from a roof fell!
– Roof not gold, but copper! – I hear in reply.
What else such correspondence engineer? I look at the person who sits on the earth and the knee rubs. Near it the bucket and a brush roll. Young man, snub-nosed such. Screws up the face and smiles. Yes it is Mishka!
– Bear! – I shout. – Hey, Sinitsyn! Hi!
And he answers:
– I should become attached a rope. Hi, Kolya!
Rose, greeted. Turned back to young companions that stood near it, and speaks:
– Well, children, for today representation is ended. It is necessary to welcome the guest.
And again to me:
– We go, Kolya. At me you will stop.
Limping, he started wandering forward, and I with the small suitcase behind it. He lived in the same house “with a gold roof”, only the entrance was on the other hand.
We entered its small room. All it was filled up with stuff: on tables wire hanks, fittings of an electrical wiring, tisochka, screw-drivers, keys, hammers – the tool different. Ware is chemical, papers with drawings, on a wall – regiments with books. At once it is visible that the inventor. Over a small desk – a radio loud-hailer. On a table – a commonplace book and a pencil. Until we were washed and Mishka lit a kerosene stove that after the journey to treat me with tea, already the sun set. Darkened. From under a table the lamp without lamp shade appeared.
– Here, admire – Mishka told, lighting a lamp. – It is necessary to use kerosene lighting. It is a shame in our century of electrification!
– Unless at the mine there is no power plant?
– Are going to build – Mishka answered – yes hard this business. From where here to take energy? There is no local fuel, and the river? There was nearby one and that ran away. And if did not run away, I pound from it a little. What bias of falling of water in it, you know?
– One ten-thousand – I answered.
– There now you see. On kilometer ten centimeters. You will not construct hydroelectric power station. To put power plant on coal – it is expensive energy will manage. Try to deliver here. Unless oil will be found.
– Where here oil? – with doubt I told.
– Well, do not tell. At the desert, the brother you mine, are a lot of riddles which to solve for our century will last. Recently I had to hear. Cattle-farmers sent a caravan to Khiva on the main caravan road Ashgabat – Khiva. On this road hundreds of years moved caravans. Each piece is studied. And wells – and could not be spoken. Here behind a water drop tens of kilometers not a hook. And here found the well thrown and semi-brought by sand in bush thickets. Began to dig – water black. All dressing gowns in dark oil splashes. Whether oil? Lit a bunch of a dry grass, threw into a well – as will fall a cropper. Hardly sand threw. Oil! Why well? Why oil? Filtered, perhaps. Myurrek Telkiyev is a brother of the chairman of an aulsovet – itself in a caravan was, “the fiery well” saw and can show a way to it. You never know such finds and nearby it can appear? But only time presses…
– Wait, children, give only term. Will be to you and the doll, will be also a whistle – Mishka recited, pumping up a kerosene stove. – Here at least and a kerosene stove to take. Again game. Primitive, one may say, tool. Rustles, hoots and cuts the cheese. What a difference electric kettle… You speak, solar installations. I read that abroad thought up absolutely new principle. Imagine at the foot of the mountain something like a big hotbed. The sun heats air in a hotbed. And from a hotbed on the mountain the pipe is laid. Hot air goes up where more cold. Put above the turbine which would rotate from this stream of hot air. Here to you and ready solar wind-driven electric generator. For such piece I know the suitable town: northern and northwest borders of Mirzacho’l. Steppe this plateau. It rolls down from the North a wall, sixty-meter, crimson from an exit of granite breeds. Here where to arrange such car. I already was there, nasmotret the town and I think to be engaged in this business as soon as I finish the copper roof here.
– What the roof is?
The bear rubbed the hurt knee.
– Great расшибся – he told – only showed no sign. Swelled up. It will be necessary to make a compress. And you have tea. I still will be in time.
And, having been engaged in the leg, it continued:
– At me too if you want, solar installation. Only other. Direct transformation of solar energy into electric. Photo cell. Heard?
– Own invention? – I asked.
The bear shrugged shoulders and modestly answered:
– Not my idea. I on radio heard the speech of companion Ioffe. Academician. About the new plan of electrification. Sixty million kilowatts. This is not a bug of a mosquito caught! That such to the settlement to collect, it is necessary from everywhere where it is only possible, energy to scoop. He spoke and about photo cells. And still said that the youth, Komsomol members first of all, has to put pressure that such task to execute. Here I also solved: what do I am not youth? Than not the Komsomol member? Why not to undertake this business without postponing? Photo so photo. Element so element. Began to get acquainted with literature, to do experiences. You know, I the inventor a bit.
– As, I know. Forgive, Mishka and why you when you fell, called the correspondence engineer?
– So, joke. In the questionnaire I somehow wrote that I have the highest self-education. Made a fun of me. I say that there is nothing ridiculous here, as most it is possible to overcome the highest sciences and the equipment to study. I supposedly on radio took the whole course of electrophysics. Correspondence course. Well, someone also let: “Correspondence engineer!” Only they so laugh, without sting. Children love me and helped me. You only listen that here with a copper roof was.
I was engaged, so in experiences over photo cells… Yes you, maybe, do not know what is photo cells? You see conductivity of some metals in connection with other chemicals increases from effect of light. Take an iron leaf and cover it with selenium. Take out it on a sunlight – here to you and a ready element. There will be current. Scientists knew it long ago, only current turned out very weak – in some thousand shares of percent from Energy of the sun, light. Well, and now this business quickly uphill went. And now photo cells rotate small motors. I thought to arrange such element. Only with selenium things look bad. It is got in a small amount on Hawaiian, the Lipari Islands. There you will not jump. Not Soviet they still meanwhile. After I learned that selenium can be extracted from a deposit in lead chambers when receiving sulfuric acid. But on radio about it I was not told in time. Also I stopped on another – on a copper photo cell. The leaf has to be from copper and is covered with a copper oxide. All this near at hand.
– And what force of such element?
– Wait, there will be a speech and about it. I began to do small photo cells. Long nothing at me left. But, as they say, constant dropping will wear away a stone. Several children became interested in my invention. Came to me, together worked. And what you think? Eventually the small bulb of a pocket lamp lit up from my element. You also cannot present yourself what joy at us was. As if we the first invented electric lighting. Burned down this bulb, did not fuse yet. And another was not. Also it is impossible to get soon. So. Well, after all it’s done. On ointment, it is possible to tell.