Sharp County record., 1888-08-30
TOLD BY AN EXILE.
Trying Experiences Of a Young
Russian.
Arrested on suspicion Escape and Re-
capture-Relensed Under Police
surveillance-HOw He Man
aged to Reach America.

Changes i'm life are often sudden and
unexpected and possibly in no coun-
try in the world is man so apt to find
his plans changed and his entire course
upset as in Russia. L. EfniO is q
young man, now residing at 22+ Turk
street, who less than a year ago lived
In st. Petersburg and studied law in
the hope Of helping to mete out JUS
tice. which from all accounts seems to
be but sparsely administered, in the
land of the MusCOvite. He was born
in KOvnO, a small village near the
German boundary, and attended school
at the Russian capital. 1t was just at
the close of his course Of three years
special study in the profession Of his
choice that the trouble came upon him
which necessitated his flight and re-
suited in his landing on American soil
some six weeks ago. During the
course Of short interview with the
young Russian the following facts were
learned relative to himself and to
student life in his native land:
The chief cause OF the conflicts Of
authority and constant friction be-
tween students and police is the system
of espionage which is maintained by
the latter over every movement of the
so fpT1N in
Russia for the poorer students to live
with the richer ones, giving intel
lectual help in return for bodily COM
forts, and this system the government
has seen fit to denOunce as calculated
TO afford the means of seditiOus meet
ings Polliakov, the Russian railroad
engineer, who only died few months
ago, gave $500 600 for the erection and
maintenance Of q sort of students
boarding-hOuse in st. Petersburg, in
which from 300 to 400 students should
find homes. The house has been built
and thoroughly equipped, but students
who live in it are obliged to submit to
a sort of police surveillance. They
are always under the watchful eyes of
government officials, and every un-
guarded word is noted and carefully
treasured up against the offender. At
Moscow a similar house has been built
by the wealthy OvsianikOv, who is
known to harbor particular friendly
feelings for political offenders, and
members of whose own family are ex-
lies in Siberia.
Efnio met one Demetri, a student of
medicine, at a gymnasium in st. Peters
burg and the two became friends and
went to live together, after the fashion
mentioned, Demetri being the needy
one. It was to this friendship that
the Young Russian owes all his misfOrt-
unes, for Demetri was q member Of q
revolutionary society, and on the theory
that birds Of feather flock together
Efnio was also taken for a member of
the society. Demetri had o. sister who
was student Of medicine, and who,
like the bulk Of Russian women, took
as great an interest in revolutionary
matters as the men. In order to prop
agate the revolutionary spirit, this
young woman went to q factory to
work. and there succeeded in enrolling
number of the women in the society.
The authorities were informed Of her
work and she was arrested. Her hus-
band, an architect, was also arrested.
and in resisting shot and wounded a
detective at KiOv Husband and wife
were, after the usual delays, sent to
Siberia-the wife to Berezov and the
husband to KrasnOvOiadsk, two thou
sand miles apart, and there they are
still.
In the possession Of the wife was
found list bearing DemetT's her
brothers name and his photograph,
and ne next was pounced upon and
Efnio was carried off with him. No
word was said why the arrest was made.
and for six months the young Russian
was cut off from all communication
with his friends, and was shut up in a
small, damp cell. This dungeon, only
few feet square, was lighted by
tiny glazed window, too high to be
looked through. EfnO's fare consist
ed of bread and tea and soup, and he
was allowed once a day the option Of
taking six cigarettes instead Of bread.
At the end of six months, under
promises to reveal who his companions
we're, he was taken to Odessa, and
there, during insurrection against the
Jews, he managed TO overpOwer his
guard, an old man, whilst being taken
in hack from one point to another,