News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1885-05-14
PRISON LIFE In SIBERIA
pR1soNERs CONQUERING THEIR
KEEPERS BY STARVATION.
ThS Political Prisoners Prefer Denth TO
EIoRRiuRs

A terrible story Of the outrages pefpe'
trated on political prisoners IN tne
Siberian prison at Kara is related ID tne
San Francisco Chronicle:
"Not very long ago one OF the prison
ers escaped, and by way OF h1nderlng
future attempts of the same sort and
furnishing those who remained fof not
betraying their comrades, the Cossack
guard was let loose on them. They
we're dragged out of their cells in the
middle Of the night, rolled on the
ground, beaten with the butt ends Of
muskets and searched for concealed
weapons and tools. Then everything
was taken from them books, tables,
stools and nearly all their clothing.
Their friends who lived in the town were
not allowed to see them, and as a fir
ther indignity they were informed that
they would no longer enjoy immunity
from corporal punishment Among the
political prisoners was a certain Hyploy,
an ordinary criminal, who was further
accused of having been in secret rela-
lions with political exiles living IN
Siberia, This man was one day called
before the commandment of the prison,
and, for some trifing infraction of the
rules, ordered to be fogged in presence
of the other prisoners. This was done
to show to the latter what fate was i'll
store for them, and as q proof of his sin
cerity Zyploy was logged second time
and third. Now, on the continent of
Europe, and above all in Russia, cor
poral punishment is regarded by edu-
Gated people as the very worst of degra-
dalton. They resent it as the most
deadly of insults. When Vera Sassou-
Itch shot Trepof for striking Bovoliou-
boy she was acquitted by the jury on
the ground that the blow inflicted on
him, WHICH, being Bound, he wa>eess
to resist, fully justified her in shooting
his aggressor.
"Nearly all the Russian political pris-
oners belong to the class of mobiles ; a
high sense of personal dignity and the
threat of being publicly logged stung
those of Kara to madness. They re-
solved to strike. The commandant was
informed that unless the threat of pun
ishing them for any offence whatever
with the stick was Internationally with
drawn they would eat no more food.
The commandment refused, and the
struggle began. These men, though
enfeebled by long confinement and in
sufficient nourishment, had yet enough
strength of will to lie down on their
beds ard refuse to eat. For nine days
the strange contest lasted, and they
were all like to die when the command
ant owned himself beaten, and promised
that, if they would only consent to live,
he would undertake never to infict cor
poral Punishment on the prisoners
under their charge. But their health,
already impaired by confinement, was
ruined outright by their long fast. To
several it proved fatal, but the COM
mandant kept his word.
'This is not the first instance on REG
ord of death by starvation in Russian
prison. The example was set in the
prison of Novo Belgorod IN 1878, when
one of the political prisoners was terri
bly, ill-treated by brutal jailer called
Djebaderi, and they were denied the
privileges which were granted to the
commonest malefactors-that of working
in the workshops, Of being together dur
ing work, of getting food from outside,
of reading books permitted by the State
censorship and of commonly humane
treatment from jailers and wardens. AS
a protest against their treatment and as
a means of enforcing compliance with
their demands, they resolved to abstain
from food. At first the director made
light of the matter. Iet them alone
for day or two he said, and they will
eat fast enough But when three days
passed and they still tasted, he became
alarmed, dismissed all the obnoxious
jailers, and entreated the strikers to
break their fast. Not until all their de-
mands were complied with, they said :;
and the fast went on three days longer.
Then the director, beside himself with
fear---for what would Russia say-what
would Europe say-if hundred prison
ers should die of starvation !--tele-
graphed for instructions to the Gov
ernor of Kharkoff. The Governor sent
down a commissioner with pleuary pow
ers, accompanied by the chief doctor of
the province, who tried to force food
into the prisoners mouths, aud sought
by other means to defeat their designs :;
but all was in vain, and after a fight of
ten days the authorities gave in to their
demands. None but members of the
Sclav races are capable of selfsacrifice
80 supernatural, of endurance SO heroic,
as was displayed by these prisoners.
Men of English blood would have made
a combined attack on their jailers at all
hazards, and died fighting rather than
perish of hunger"