Manager’s Column

From Fourth International, vol.5 No.5, May 1944, p.130.
Transcribed, marked up & formatted by Ted Crawford & David Walters in 2008 for ETOL.

It is not only the sentiment expressed in letters from our readers and agents concerning the high standard of Fourth International but the constant increase in monthly sales that attests to the growing popularity of our magazine. As usual a portion of the correspondence received this month requests increases in monthly bundle orders, as can be seen from the following excerpts:

Minneapolis: “Please increase our monthly bundle 10 copies. We have sold out almost all the last two months and expect to be able to continue. This is due, of course, to the unusual quality of the material in these issues.”
Toledo: “Please increase the FI bundle order by 15 copies.”
San Francisco: “We should like to have our monthly FI bundle order increased by 5 copies, beginning with April. By the way, if it is at all possible, we should like to have you send us 5 copies each of the January and February issues of the 1944 FI and we want at this time to order 2 bound volumes of the FI for 1943. As soon as they are ready, you can send them out and bill us for them.”
Los Angeles: “Newsstands just sold 48 FI’s. More placed. You will get the final report when the May issue is placed. Please increase our FI bundle by 20.

“Fourth International sold extremely well at the Los Angeles School of Social Science and was favorably commented on by several of the students. Especially liked was the series of articles on Marxism and the Military question by Leon Trotsky. Several students, being introduced to the magazine for the first time through the school, have indicated their intention of becoming steady readers. This, together with the continuous expansion of newsstand sales, should lead to another Increase In our bundle order in the near future.”

* * * *

The monthly delay in delivery of subscriber copies, caused by a “withhold-until-OK’d” order to the New York City post-office from Washington, is resulting in considerable and understandable irritation among our readers. For instance, our Minneapolis agent writes that he has “been having persistent and quite general complaints from the FI subscribers that their copies arrive late.”

A reader in Long Beach also complains: “I have not received my April issue of Fourth International. Being ‘unusual’ times I don’t expect everything delivered on the dot, but if it is possible, please send me my copy.”

Another reader, knowing of the arbitrary action of the postal authorities in delaying delivery of Fourth International each mouth, asks: “Has any new development occurred in your case? I am very much interested in your magazine and inasmuch as it is unobtainable in Baltimore, I am wondering if you have ceased publication.” (To all our friends who are constantly moving about from one place to another and cannot receive Fourth International regularly through a subscription, we suggest that you ask for our magazine at the public libraries.)

Again we ask our subscribers to bear with us and for our part we will continue the practice of prodding Washington each month in an attempt to get the current issue released promptly.

* * * *

There have been many letters of general interest, excerpts from which we quote:

Cleveland: “Greetings from a subscriber and sympathizer. Am looking forward to the publication of Cannon’s History of American Trotskyism. Please send me a copy when available. Being somewhat new to the movement, the March FI article Dog Days of the Left Opposition answered many of the questions troubling me. I find many of your FI articles excellent. I don’t agree with all the articles and interpretations, but I do agree practically 100 percent with your program. Hence, good luck and keep it up!”
Plentywood: “I am sending a one dollar bill for April FI From the looks of it, all in all you are doing a good job.”
Cuba: “These are hard times we are going through, but we hope to surmount the difficulties ... Your publications are splendid in form and content. I have enjoyed its reading to the last bit.”
England: “To hand is the December issue of the monthly ... I would very much like a copy of the book In Defense of Marxism. None has come my way up to now; all I know about it is the announcement in the magazine. One feels helpless nowadays with the restrictions preventing one buying those works which are important contributions to our ideas.

“My grateful thanks for the papers and magazines. They mean much at the present time, in a world so topsy-turvy. My sympathy goes out to our friends in their enforced idleness and all that that means.”

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Last updated on 12.9.2008