The Penn's Grove record., 1883-05-05
A DRUNKEN RUSSIAN BURIED ALIVE.

A Swiss, settled in Russia, sends TO the
Bano a strange story, taken from the We
donaosh a paper published at Samara, of a
man being buried alive, for the accuracy Of
which the writer says that he can personally
vouch. The story, besides the horror Of it,
shows how helpless the Russian system Of
government renders the people for whose
benefit it is DESTINED, and how utterly bureau
oracy has crushed in them all spirit of initia.
tive and Independence.
Tn other day, 80 runs the account, a man
was btried alive in Samara. His name was
Tichonoff, and he bad been employed as a
writer in a machine depot. On the fete day
Tichonof drank heavily, and had an e~pileptic
cit. For a long time thereafter he lay quite
still and showed no sign of life, which led his
wife and kinsfolk TO conclude that he was
dead. This happened on ST. Silvester's Day,
and to avoid keeping the supposed corpse in
the house three days for on a Saturday pre-
ceding a festival no body can be buried, it
was decided to lay him in the ground that
very night after vespers, and arrangements
we're made accordingly. The body was re-
moved to the cemetery church, where the
Pope (priest) read the services for the dead.
While this was going on (the coffin being un.
covered) some of the bystanders noticed what
seemed TO be drops of sweat on the dead
mans face; but this appearance being attri-
buted to a few snowfiakes which had fallen
during the passage from Tichonoff's house to
the cemetery he was laid in the grave with
cut more ado, and, the hour being late, very
Little earth was thrown over him.
When ne grave digger went early next
morning TO the cemetery to complete his work
he heard a sound as of groaning and strug-
Cling in Tichonoffs grave. Instead Of forth
with releasing the poor wretch, the man ran
to the priest to ask cave to disinter him.
This request the priest refused, on the ground
that he dare not touch a body once buried
without the permission of the police. On
this the sexton informed Tichonof's wife of
what had com to pass. and they went to-
gether to the chief of the local police. This
gentleman said it was quite out of his power
to give the required authorization, and re-
ferred them to the a~rchimandrite, and the
archimandrite, protesting to be equally wv
%erless, referred them to the procurator. In
the end the agonized wife procured the au-
thorization, without which nobody would act,
and returned to the cemetery. But it was
too late five hours had elapsed since the
grave digger first hear the groans, and Itch
onoff was now dead beyond the possibility of
doubt.
The poor fellow succumbed only after q
mortal struggle. He had turned quite round
in his coffin, and in his despair bitten his fin
gers, torn his flesh, and rent his clothing.
This fatality" says the Viedomosti, lis due
to no other cause than the s~enseless formali-
ties which prevail in every branch of Rus
sian administration. Mime. Tichonoff is
suing the priest who refused to let the grave
digger disinter her husband for damages on
the ground that he caused the latter's death
by too slayishly obeying the letter of his in
strrctiona London Tiimea