Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1880-01-25
NEW LIFE IN RUSSIA.

There Is village called Boutourlinov-
ka situated in the government Of Vo-
nonegh. 1t belonged before the eman-
cipation Of the serts to certain Count
Boutourline, one OF the greatest deJpots
that ever welded knout under the EN-
peror Nicholas. This village contained
at the time about 1900 serfs. The Count
ili-treated the serfs ID the most cruel
manner, and for the smallest ofense he
had his peasants brought to his stables
and fogged until they were half dead.
The poor people had to submit to his
cruel rule for several years without any
attempt being made by them to free
themselves.
But change was brought about in an
unexpected manner. The Count had a
small servant boy in his establishment
whom he used to fog every other day;
but once, when the came boy was brought
to the stable in the presence of score OF
two of peasants, he turned to them and
asked: chow is it that all of us always
submit to be fogged like brutes by the
order OF a single man2 Would it not be
better to fog him instead, and make him
fear us also!; These simple words fired
the long-dormant feelings of hate TOR the
Count, aud the peasants rose Ia mass
and gave their master such a beating
that he was obliged to keep his bed
| for week after.
But when he got better he went straight
to St. Petersburg, where he had q great
many powerful relations at court, who
interceded with the government to allow
him to send all those peasants he might
desire from among his own serfs to hard
labor in Siberia for life. At the time
when Boutourline made this appeal
there already existed in the high circles
of the capital the undercurrent lndica-
tive of the coming liberation OF the serfs
which was to be subsequently carried out
by the present Gear, and the request Of
| Count Boutourline was refused.
But, as he could no longer retain the
same footing among the serfs who hao
flogged him, it was proposed that hi
should pawn his village. Boutourllnovka
with all the peasants belonging to it, t.
the state bank, from which the govern
ment intended to purchase them anc
make use of the said village as a test Of
the regulations and rules which were ul
timately put upon the peasants and are
still in use among them In Russia. The
| Count Boutourline consented at last I'M
der the persuasion of the Emperor him
self; but when the peasants heard thai
their lord and master had pawned then
to the state bank. they declared theil
readiness to buy themselves off with
their own money.
The Government allowed them Ions
terms to redeem the land attached to thu
village, and they accomplished it b.
means of the richest peasants giving VI
all their savings tor public good of the
village, and this was afterward paid bacl
by the people peasants by installments
| This was, as far as understand, the frs
instance of large village belonging tt
the liberated peasants in the reign OF TIT
Emperor Nicholas.
The peasants of Boutoprlinovka be-
gan their new life by razing to the GROUND
the manor of their old proprietor, in or
der to have nothing which might remint
them of him and his race, and they at
once applied themselves wholly to thu
cultivation OF soil in summer, and tn
fabrication of boots and other leathe
materials IN winter. The money thu
produced was put at interest and formed
the foundation of local bank: the vii
lage was fully organized and all mattel
concerning tie local administration man
aged solely by the bailiffs elected by tn
peasants among themselves.
How far this system has been found
to pay is sufficiently shown by the pres
ent state Of the village. It has now abou
$4,000 inhabitants, divided into eighteel
parishes; it has nine schools, two loca
banks, and contains hundreds of verst
of paved thoroughfares and many libra