Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1879-10-22
IMPERIAL INFAMY.
How Women Are Tortured for Teaching
Russian Peasant Children to Read.

Another terrible narrative of the
atrocities perpetrated by the Russian
police authorities under cover of the
state Of siege has just reached us
trom Geneva, where a journal is pub
lished in the Russian language called
the Obschtscheje Djelo, and edited by
Dragomanow, an professor
Of the Kew University. This paper,
although inscribed in.the Russian Ex-
finds its way across the
frontier in spite of that circumstance
with the utmost regularity. In its
issue of the 24th ult. it prints a
lengthy statement made by 0limplada
Kahero, formerly provincial school
in Russia, detailing the man
ner of her treatment at the hands of
the Third Section" Early in the
year 1877 Mile Kahero opened
school in the district of Wyschnyi
WOlotschok, belonging to the Twer
government, and taught the peasant
children for two consecutive years
without exacting any school fees from
their parents. On the 10th of last
June she was arrested without any
previous warning and thrown into
prison. Her narrative from this date
may be best recounted in her own
words. She writes as follows:
After | had lain for few days in
the Jail Of Wyschnyi- Wolotschok the
governor Of Twer, Sorrow, entered my
cell one morning and acquainted me
with the cause of my arrest and i'm
prisonmeut. According to his state
ment my oHenses consisted in having
impaired instruction to peasant chill
dren, which is only permitted to male
teachers, and in having fifteen years
ago been seen in a boat with several
students. For having committed these
crimes it was the intention of the
authorities to send me across the
frontier. From Wyschnyi- Wolotschok
| was conveyed to st. Petersburg.
where / remained for whole week in
Jail. Thence / was transported by
rail with fifty other prisoners to Will
ma. From the wilma railway station
we were all marched late at night to
the prison, where, admission being re
fused to us on account of the lateness
OF the hour, We were compelled to
stand all night long in an open court
yard under torrents of rain. Next
day we we're led into a totally dark
corridor and subjected to an examina.
ton of our clothes and persons. The
women, Of whom | was one. were
searched and stripped by gendarmes.
who committed the vilest atrocities
upon us. When any one of us ven.
tured to protest against their abomin-
able outrages, she was struck and
kicked with such brutal violence that
blood followed the blows and kicks.
This so-ealled visitation of the wo-
men lasted several hours, amid the
laughter and mockery of the soldiers.
| fell into a deep swoon under their
atr0ciOus cruelties, and when | came
to my senses | found myself lying on
the stone floor, between two fallen
women imprisoned for theft, who were
doing their best to revive and comfort
me in my affliction. Shortly after
ward We were handcuifed and carried
off to Kowno, where we were received
ut the female penitentiary by the
Jail matron, Payloyna, whose first
greeting to us was furious threat to
smash all our teeth in should we ven
ture to attempt either to read or write
a word while in her prison. There
remained a whole week long, among
convicts, murdresses and thieves. We
got scarcely anything to eat. At last
| fell ill from the sheer exhaustion of
hunger Seeing my miserable condi-
ton, one Of my fellow prisoners gave
me a morsel of bread, but was espied
in the act of so doing by the matron.
who rushed at me and abused me in
such language as you would scarcely
expect to hear from a drunken and
infuriate moujik. At the expiration
Of this horrible week we were again
handcuffed and marched off from
Kowno on foot. A three days march
IN frightfully bad weather brought us
to Marianpol. My feet we're covered
with wounds, my shoes full of blood
During the journey | had repeatedly
complained of my sufferings to our
escort, and piteously begged to be
allowed to rest, as could go no fur
ther. Their only answer was, Then
we must drive you, you up At
Marianpol | was taken to the station
master, as | could hardly stand, that
he might decide whether | should
proceed on foot or be sent on by rail
| showed him my bleeding feet and
lmplored his mercy. All he said was.
You have managed to walk for three
days, aud you will have to hold out
for the fourth"
"0n the fourth day we reached
Wolkowyski, more dead than alive.
whence we were to be conveyed across
the frontier into Prussia. Meanwhile
they locked us up in a guard house,
men and women, all in one room.
There was neither bench nor stool
no, not even a wisp of straw to lie
down upon. We had to stretch our
selves out, all together, as best we
might, on the damp and filthy clay
floor. The stencil and yermin were
intolerable, quite beyond description.
During the night they turned in among
us all the prostitutes picked up by the
police in the public streets, as well as
drunkards, thieves, and a stark-naked
madman. Some Of the prisoners at
once commenced worrying and irritat.
ing this unfortunate lunatic, who
began to foam at the mouth, and
struck out in every direction, knock
ing us about with the most savage
fury. From this den of inconceivable
horrors | oontrived to get letter
conveyed to General Gourko, who
promptly sent an order to the prison
inspector that | was to be forthwith