New-York tribune., 1868-08-11
FOREIGN NEWS.
RUSSIA.
FAMINE. TyPIIUs AND PAUPERIsM-BRANDY THE
CAUSE APPALLING STATISTICS - SHORT
SIGHTED POLICY OF THE GOVERNMENT.
tvpoN ORR OWN CORRESPONDENCE


ST. PETERSBURG, July 20, 1863
Tho abolishment of serfdom, as was stated IN our
last letter has given Russia the possibility to become
European Power, but, nevertheless it is the prln-
cipal cause of the great calamity which has betaen
the Empire during the last Winter, and from which
we shall have to suffer many year more FAMINE
and typhus have welded their sceper in most lear
ful manner all over the country for all these mo'uS
and pauperiSm, famine, and typhus Is INC ohe u"'H
picture our despairing eyes look upon tor years "uu
years TO come. A bad crop was generally suppOScu
TO be the principal reason OF the almost lhcreui-
BILE distress which manifested itself everywhere
o,o, tb ,,rol nopulation as soon as the hard Win
Tor set in At the same time the Minister of the In
trior was severely blamed by public opinion for not
having foreseen the calamity so that he cOud nave
met the most urgent heceSsiueS' anu ~ iaSU II
almost seemed if his negligence and careessness
alone had TO account for all the deaths that were re-
corded by hundreds from the most afflicted prov
inceS Indignant at these unjust accusations the
Minister resigned his office, and the Cabinet i3St
one of its ablest and its most honorable
members. 1t was loss much to be re-
country derived q very valuable, though most pain,
full benefit from it. TO Justify the course he had
taken the Minister published long and elaborate Of
fetal report from which 1t became apparent beyond
any doubt that the root of the evil lay much deeper
than anybody had supposed, and that It was a per
nicOus folly TO charge the last crop or the reSSneSS
of any individual with IT. WIN ule Only eASeptou
of Finland and the province of Archangelsk the crop
had been quite good IN any average year ana
partly even better The export lists of the Southern
ports showed larger figures than IN any former year
And even at the time there was plenty OF every SOrI
of corn but those, who most IN need OF IT, had
not one faThnc left to provide for one days pro
vision. Many people, no doubt had to complain OF
an extremely scanty crop; but 1t was not Ih a5 "a
nature The estates of the manor owners had yeIueu
a more than sufficient harvest while the surIOIru-
ing fields of the freedmen looked almost ike 1aIlOW
ground Whose was the fault Since there was no
Feasibility TO compel the freedmen to work they did
not work any more. From the day OF t1e abolsnn-
ment of SerfdOm they did not MI their heids aI an
or they did it so carelessly and inSutciently that
tolerablc crop would have been real miracle lhelr
time was devoted TO pleasanter business thah
poughng and narrowing; brandy had been thelr
idol ever so long but now they did not str
from his affairs 10 this filthy god they sacrhced al
they had the barkcepers are the only bankers OF le
peasantry they receive good money and give IN eN-
change bad brandy; but nowadays money is
greater rarity with peasants than even temperance;
the baT-keepeTs, therefore, have recently become
brokers, and whole villages have sent thelr laSi
piece of furniture their last shirt IN the tavern:
That looks like ridiculous eXaggeIaIlon ana Att 1t
is nothing but the planest truth. We VIII give a
few figures taken from official sources 10 illustrate
this appalling picture, because figures, at all events
do not lie nor eXaggeTate and because they speak IOi
Themselves and we need not comment upon them
with single word. In the great Russian PROV
nces the excise yielded in 1749 "a clear income OF
q5 roubles; in lS49 8 94 rOubes and in 1859
7417l Ol5 rOubles; that is to say, IN ten years IL mas
been almost doubled. In Prussia the clear prOnt oil
the excise amounts to per cent OF the total revenue
of the States in France to 9per cent? IN Austria TO O
per cent; in England and IN Sweden,Norway to "A
Del
proportion in 1S49; DOW, most likely it is different;
for if III 1859 the clear income yielded by the excise
amounted to 7417l 015 ruobes, 1t was l56OOOO rOu-
bes in 1866; and for 1868 is estimated 70 be 1880
$50 roubes has more than tnpled within the last
20 years. ...,
from Yesterday, that has befallen the Empire FROM
the day of emancipation the condition OF the peas
ants grew worse and worse from year to year. The
more and the Longer they indulged i'm their ntem-
perae propensity for Intoxicating drinks the harder
they found it to make their minds mp to resume
II,oo o4oolo Of fbp ma ri n
tics large enough to make up for their sortcom
ings during the first years. EyeTyb body borrowed
as any private barn. and rats and mice began 10 emil
CRATE without knowing where 10 go to; then-well,
then began the famine, then the hunger-typhus be-
gan show his ghastly face III every village; tnen
agony and despair were put on the throne then the
poor ignorant wretches fell down on their knees,
kissed the feet of their former masters OF the nelgh
boring mill-owners, and cried for work then even
here and there the highways began to be lined with
cOrpses and King Brandy laughed as lie mas never
laughed before. ,..-.
IL is true the Russian is as yet only by necessity
an aQrculturist all his inclinatOns being yet those
of "a nOmad he is richly endowed by nature, but he
is as unsteady and shunS working as much as ever
an Indian OF azzarOni did This EVIL is TOO lnVeter
ate to root up in one nay in 10 or 20 years But 80
much the more it is to be regretted that the Govern
ment was too shOrtslghted TO effect another great
change III the condition OF the rural population
simultaneously with the emancipation which was
the only one that could have counteTDaanced IN
some measure these most pernlcl0us enecls OI lne
sudden enfranchisement. Before the adjustment OF
geTfdom individual or personal property was 10 be
found only i'm very limited extent among the rural
population. The private property OF the peasant
consisted in his house and garden the cattle horses,
utensils and all the other mOvables; but the whole
landmark of the village belonged TO the community,
every member of which had by nature an inalen-
able right to claim part OF IT. corresponding, gen
eray in size and value with the number OF lne
family members. Meadow and sture-ground, the
woods and paths remained undivided and were USED
in common without any sufficiently street rules as 70
the number of cattle every one should be allowed 10
raise the amount of wood he could hew, etc. Ihe
arabic fields however were divided ana assigheu 10
the patres families for limited NUMBER OF years
The village generally situated night III the MIDST
of the landmark. Preceding from here the WhOle
table ground was laid ont IN long, narrow
strips out of which asmany equal shares were formed
A. were requested at the time. The SIZE OF a snare
did not depend much upon the quality OF the SOIL
rs upon the distance from the center OF the village
Every seVen III other parts OF the empire eNeiy ho
years new distribution had to take place 10 ais
pose of the lots of those who died or LETT the Vage
md to provide for the new families ana those VINO
,ad settled in cities at the time OF the last dlSlDu
tion and had returned in the mean while To avoid
every partiallty and injustice the shares were dis
trbuted by lottery, those who had larger tamilles
being allowed to draw two, three or IOuf lots' oucn
were the primitive economical institutions among
the Russian peasantTy during the time OF SeIldOm'
and such they have remained almost everywhere. up
to this very day, with the only difference thatlh nye %
eghths of the empiTein ten or twenty years 1t VIII
be the same with the remaining three eghths-the
soil has really become the property of the community
while il was formerly owned by the master and held
in a kind of eternal enforced lease by the com
munity. 1t is true in the nclpatlon-ukase the
communities have been allowed TO divide their land,
marks and forever so as TO constitute personal
hereditary property in real estate but 1t was not
enough to allow it. The endearing power OF habit,
added to the free and easy" character
so enormously prevailing among the Rus
communism, originating as well in their originality
and socability as in their superfcalty and careless
made 1t certainty that tney woalG sonTLs 70
effect radical change. And it is evident that such