The Sunday morning news. [volume] (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1886-1891, 1889-09-22
THE FAMINE MUTINY.
russian Convicts' Queer Manner of
Securing Prison Reform.


Securing Prison Reform.
In the September part Of has Siberian
series George KEENAN, gives the following
account OF prison revolt among the ex-
lleS:-A few days later-about the middle
OF July-au the rest of the State criminals
We're brought beck to the political prison
at the Lower Diggiugs, where they were
| put into new and much smaller cells that
nad been mode by erecting partitions in
the original kameras in such a manner as
| TO divide each of them into thirds The
effect of this change was to crowd every
| group OF seven or eight men into cell
| that was so nearly filled by the sleeping
platform as to leave no room for locomo-
ton. Two men could not stand side by
side in the narraw space between the
edge of the platform and the wall. and
the occupants of the cell were therefore
compelled to sit or lie all day on the plank
mares without occupation for either minds
or bodies.
No other reply was made to their petit
lions and remonstrances than a threat
from Khalturin that if they did not keep
quiet they would be logged. With view
to 1ntimidating them Khalturin even sent
surgeon to make u physical examination
OF one political, for the avowed purpose of
ascertaining whether his state of health
was such that he could be fiogged without
endangering his life. This was the last
straw The wretched State criminals, de-
prlved OF exercise, living under dungeon
conditions" poisoned by air laden with
the stencil of excrement buckets, and
finally threatened with the whip when
they complained, could endure no more
They resolved to make that last desperate
protest against cruelty which is known in
RUSSIAN prisons as "golodofka" or "hun-
ger-striken
They sent a notification to Major Khal
turin that their life had finally became
uncomfortable, chat they preferred death
to such an existence and that they should
refuse to take food until they either per-
ished or forced the Government to treat
them with more humanity. No attention
was paid to their notification, but from
that moment not mouthful of the food
that was sent into their cells was touched.
AS day after day passed the stiffness of
death gradually settled down upon the
prison. The starving convicts, two weak
and apathetic even to talk to one another,
lay in rows, like dead men, upon the
plank sleeping platforms, and the only
sounds to be heard in the building were
the footsteps of the sentries and now and
then the incoherent mutterings Of the
insane.
On the fifth day of the "golodofka"
Major Khalturin, convinced that the
hunger-strike was serious, came to the
prison and asked the convicts to state
definitely upon what terms they would
discontinue their protest They replied
that the conditions of their life were I'M
bearable, and that they should continue
their self-starvation until the excrement
buckets were taken out OF their cells,
until they were permitted to have books
and to exercise daily in the open air, until
they were allowed to direct the expendi-
ture of their money for better food and
better clothing than were furnished by
the government, and until he (Khalturin)
gave them solemn assurance that none
of them should be f1ogged. The com
mandant told them that the talk about
logging was nonsense, that there had
never been any serious intention of re-
sorting to the whip, and that if they
would end their strike. he would see
what could be done to improve the ma
terial conditions of their life.
Not being able to get any positive assur-
ances that their demands would be COM
piled with, the prisoners continued the
"golodofka." On the tenth day the state
of affairs had become alarming All Of
the starving men were in the last stages
of physical prostration, and some of them
seemed to be near death. Count Dmitri
Tolstoi, the Minister of the Interior, who
had been appraised of the situation, tele-
graphed the commandant to keep O
"skorbni leest," or "hospital Sheet" set
ting forth the symptoms and conditions
of the strikers and to inform him promptly
of any marked change. Every day there
after a feldsher, or hospital steward
went through the cells taking the pulse
and temperature of the starving men.
On the thirteenth day of the "golodof-
ka" Major Khalturin sent word to the
wives of all political convicts living at the
Lower Diggings that they might have an
interview with their husbands-the first
in more than two months--if they would
try TO persuade them to begin taking
food. They gladly assented. of course, to
this condition and were admitted to the
prison. At the same time Khalturin
went himself to the starving men and
assured them, on his honor, that il they
would end the hunger strike he would do
everything in his power to satisfy their
demands The entreaties of the wretched
heart-broken women and the promises of
the commandant finally broke down the
resolution of the politicals, and on the
thirteenth day the first and most obstinate
hunger strike in the history of the Kara
political prison came to an end.-Cen
tllYy,