derive advantages from this large-scale farming in the form of an increase in the labor productivity of the members of the collective farms, of a better utiliza- tion of the means of production which the collective farms had at their disposal, as a result of the collec- tivization of the means of production formerly belong- ing to the individual peasant, and as a result of the acquisition of means of production in conformity with modern technical standards. These advantages of large-scale production are evi- denced in an increase of yield, a lowering of the cost of production; an increase in profits, and likewise in the higher standard of living of the members of the collective farms. The collective farms have inaugurated a new pace of development in agriculture. Whereas up to recent years the total annual increase in the sown area had not exceeded 4 to 5 per cent, this year, with the state and collective farms as a basis, the sown area in the U. S. S. R. has increased more than 10 per cent. Thus, both from the point of view of the general progress and increased volume of agricultural produc- tion and from that of the interests of the small and very small producers themselves, collectivization sig- nifies a change bearing the greatest advantages. 206308800159