Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1883-12-21
THE RUSSIAN PRISONS.
A Sentence 10 Imprisonment Worse
Than Death.
The Life Which the Russian Political
offenders Lead,
With No Hope of Escape from lis
Horrors.

The civilized world has been horr-
fled during the past fortnight by the
tales of suffering of Russian prisoners
in Siberia and other parts of the en-
pire but TO those who have read much
of the literature concerning Russia
these stories contain nothing new. In
the treatment of her civil and political
criminals Russia is the most inhuman
government upon the face of the earth,
and her course is the more despicable
from the fact that she tries to deceive
the world into the belief that she eX-
hibits that consideration that is eX-
pected of nominally Christian nation
She claims to have abolished capital
punishment, for which hard labor in
the mines of Siberia has been substitu-
ted but to the helpless victims of what
is there termed Justice, "hRrd labor In
the mines of Siberia means death in
its most painful form. Tint there are
not desperate efforts made by convicts
10 escape from their guards while on
the road to Siberia can only he attrib-
uted 10 their ignorance OF the fate in
store for them, for IL is but few of
the Russian people, and they mainly
of the Travelled class, who know as
much of the horrors of siberian con-
Wet life as any American schoolboy
may know.
The prisons OF Russia proper are sup
posed 10 be palaces as compared with
some of those in Siberia. Bat what are
they? Take the peter.Paui fortress OF
st. Petersburg us an illustration
In one seetion of this prison, call
ed the Trubletsloi- Ravelin,
each prison Is condemned 10
solitary confinement. No books are
allowed, not even the bible. The cells
are musty, wet, iillod with an offensive
odor, and poorly lighted, The food is
never varied; the prisoners are permit
tod to breathe the pure air but few
minutes euch day, and for the slight
est offense they are deprived OF this
privilege. Many suffer from dysen-
terry, scurvy, ieeblencss aud sore eyes,
and rs no pains are taken to provide
them with clean beds, nor any care
taken of them, the percentage of
deaths is large. The women are treated
no better than are the men, and, in
fact, are often subjected to the vilest
abuses. A favorite treatment for bys-
terical women has been TO gag them
and then pour water upon them. In
one case, that of lady named Terout-
jews, the prisoner was first outraged
and then poisoned.
There is In this same prison q more
| horrible section still--the vaults of the
/ fortress, into which no ray of light
( ever generates, and where The rats
and yermin add to the ngonies of the
unfortunate prisoners. Professor Al.
/ phons Thur, in a book recently pub
lished IN Leipsic, says Of the Peter
( Paul Fortress This citadel is, for
/ political prisoners, place of horror.
The cells In which the condemned are
confined are dark, cold, and damp
like grave; the painted windows adj
nit so little light that the lamps can
be eNtinguishcd only u couple OF hours
in the day. The food consists of cab
bage soup and grit for
dinner and a piece of bread
for breakfast and supper Despite the
intense cold of Russian winter the
stoves are heated only every third day
and frequently less. Consequently
the walls arc damp and the floors are
literally covered with puddles. The
prisoners wear only their undergar-
ments and Il prison cloak. All the eX.
ereise they are permitted Is a quarter
oiun hour every other day. No other
diversion Is permitted. The guard
carries towel aud u handkerchief,
which articles the prisoners are per-
United to use according to their re-