COMMUNISTS A FAN OF HENRY FORD'S FROM HIS OWN CRIMEAN ESTATE WITH 
ITS NOW-FAMED BADMINTON COURT AND GLASS-ENCLOSED SWIMMING POOL, NIKITA KHRUSHCHEV LAST 
WEEK TRAVELED TO MARSHAL TITO'S WONDERLAND IN YUGOSLAVIA . FROM A 
STATE DINNER AT BELGRADE'S WHITE PALACE, KHRUSHCHEV WENT ON AN ADRIATIC 
CRUISE ABOARD TITO'S YACHT GALEB (SEAGULL), SPENT THREE DAYS AT TITO'S 
ISLAND RETREAT OF BRIONI, THEN TO TITO'S 400-YEAR-OLD CASTLE IN THE 
DINARIC ALPS, NEXT TO TITO'S SUMMER RESIDENCE AT BRDA AND, FINALLY, 
TO TITO'S CROATIAN HUNTING LODGE AT BELJE . TO THE CHINESE, 
WHO HAVE LONG COMPLAINED THAT KHRUSHCHEV HAS GONE OVER TO THE 
ENEMY CAMP BOTH IDEOLOGICALLY AND IN HIS PERSONAL TASTES, ALL THIS 
MUST HAVE SEEMED INFURIATING PARTICULARLY SINCE HOST TITO IS THEIR IDEOLOGICAL 
ARCHENEMY, THE " REVISIONIST " WHO FIRST BROKE WITH STALIN AND 
ESTABLISHED A MORE OR LESS INDEPENDENT BRAND OF MARXISM . AT 
THE HEIGHT OF HIS QUARREL WITH PEKING, AND WITH A CERTAIN 
UNREST AMONG THE SOVIET SATELLITES, KHRUSHCHEV WAS CLEARLY DRAWING CLOSER TO 
TITO, EVEN HINTED THAT YUGOSLAVIA MIGHT BE ALLOWED TO PARTICIPATE IN 
COMECON, THE CREAKY EASTERN COMMON MARKET . TITO IN TURN SEEMED 
DETERMINED TO SUGGEST THAT, EVEN IF MOSCOW ACCEPTS HIM WHOLEHEARTEDLY AS 
A COMRADE, HE RETAIN HIS INDEPENDENCE ; IN DOING SO HE 
PRESUMABLY HAD AN EYE ON WASHINGTON, WHERE CONGRESS THIS WEEK CONSIDERS 
WHETHER TO RESTORE THE PREVIOUSLY CANCELED MOST-FAVORED-NATION RATING FOR YUGOSLAV EXPORTS 
TO THE U.S . CRACKED A YUGOSLAV OFFICIAL : / WE 
DIDN'T SIGN A TREATY WITH KHRUSHCHEV AS YOU AMERICANS DID . 
WE DIDN'T EVEN PLAY BADMINTON WITH HIM . " MAMA'S CHILDREN 
. THE TWO LEADERS DID JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING ELSE, AS THEY 
RANGED THE COUNTRY FROM QUAKE-SHATTERED SKOPLJE TO WILD MONTENEGRO, WHERE AFTER 
A PICNIC THE MOUNTAINFOLK BROKE INTO THE KOLO, A FIERY, FOOTSTAMPING 
CIRCLE DANCE . KHRUSHCHEV AND HIS STOLID WIFE NINA, AND TITO 
AND HIS STATUESQUE SPOUSE JOVANKA, BROKE INTO THE RING, LOCKING ARMS 
AND SWIRLING AROUND WITH THE PRETTY GIRLS AND PEASANTS . THE 
MOST INSTRUCTIVE PART OF THE VISIT CAME AT THE RAKOVICA AUTO 
PLANT OUTSIDE BELGRADE . IN A DISCUSSION WITH THE WORKERS, KHRUSHCHEV 
SEEMED FASCINATED BY THE YUGOSLAV FACTORY SYSTEM OF DECENTRALIZED, LOCALLY ADMINISTERED 
SOCIALISM THROUGH WORKERS' COUNCILS ELECTED BY THE EMPLOYEES AND EMPOWERED TO 
FIRE OR REVERSE THE DECISIONS OF THE PLANT MANAGER . THE 
SYSTEM HAS LONG BEEN DENOUNCED BY RED CHINESE IDEOLOGUES, AND BY 
RUSSIA SINCE YUGOSLAVIA WAS KICKED OUT OF THE COMINTERN IN 1948 
. EVEN KHRUSHCHEV ONCE SNEERED, " THE WORKERS' COUNCILS ARE ONLY 
GOOD WHEN THEY ARE PROPPED UP BY AMERICAN GRAIN AND MEAT 
. " REVERSING HIMSELF, KHRUSHCHEV CALLED THE COUNCILS A / PROGRESSIVE 
DEVELOPMENT " AND SAID RUSSIA WAS FACING THE QUESTION OF " 
WHETHER OR NOT CONDITIONS ARE RIPE FOR THE DEMOCRATIZATION OF MANAGEMENT 
. UNLESS THERE IS A FORCE OF PUBLIC OPINION OUR MANAGERS 
TEND TO BECOME AUTOCRATS . OF COURSE, YOUR SYSTEM MAY NOT 
BE TOTALLY IN LINE WITH THE LENINIST PRINCIPLE OF UNIFIED LEADERSHIP 
. DON'T YOU EVER HAVE TROUBLE BETWEEN WORKERS AND DIRECTORS ? 
" ASSURED THAT DISAGREEMENTS WERE ALWAYS WORKED OUT, KHRUSHCHEV SHOOK HIS 
HEAD SKEPTICALLY AND SAID, " YOU'RE A LITTLE BOASTFUL BUT, OF 
COURSE, MAMA ALWAYS SAYS HER CHILDREN ARE THE MOST BEAUTIFUL . 
YOU'VE GOT YOUR SHORTCOMINGS BUT THEN SO DO WE . " 
PLASTER BUST . WARMING UP, KHRUSHCHEV DEMANDED : " WHAT IS 
THE MOST IMPORTANT PROBLEM NOW ? IT IS TO BEAT CAPITALISM 
. THE ONE WHO CREATES THE MOST THROUGH MASS PRODUCTION WILL 
WIN . HENRY FORD HAS SHOWN US HOW TO DO IT 
. " HE ADDED, " AFTER THE REVOLUTION, WE SENT A 
DELEGATION TO HENRY FORD AND ASKED HIM TO HELP US BUILD 
A FACTORY THAT WOULD PRODUCE 30,000 CARS A YEAR . FORD 
TOLD US THAT A FACTORY MAKING ONLY 30,000 WOULD NOT WORK 
. THE CAR WOULD BE TOO EXPENSIVE . HE SAID WE 
SHOULD COME BACK WHEN WE WERE READY TO PRODUCE 120,000 A 
YEAR . " TO ILLUSTRATE THE LESSONS OF PRODUCTIVITY, KHRUSHCHEV EVEN 
RAMBLED OFF INTO BIBLICAL HISTORY, INACCURATELY RECALLING THAT CHRIST HAD FED 
40,000 PERSONS WITH A SINGLE LOAF OF BREAD . WITH HIS 
USUAL HEAVY-FOOTED HUMOR HE ADDED, " BUT NO ONE KNOWS IF 
ALL GOT ENOUGH TO EAT . IF THEY HAD, THEY WOULD 
NOT HAVE LEFT PALESTINE . " AS FOR THE CHINESE : 
" THEY SAY THAT THEIR COUNTRY HAS TO RELY ON ITS 
OWN RESOURCES . IT IS TRUE AND IT IS NOT TRUE 
. IF YOU LOCK YOURSELF WITHIN YOUR OWN FRONTIERS, YOU LOSE 
YOUR ECONOMIC POTENTIAL . THEY SAY THEY ARE GOING TO RELY 
ON THEIR OWN RESOURCES, AND THEN THEY WRITE TO US FOR 
CREDITS . " THE ENTRANCED WORKERS AT RAKOVICA RESPONDED TO ALL 
THIS BY HANDING KHRUSHCHEV A PRESENT HE MUST HAVE LONG WANTED 
AND NEEDED : A PLASTER BUST OF LENIN . PRESUMABLY NONE 
OF HENRY FORD WAS AVAILABLE . 