Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1891-01-03
RUSSIA AND THE JEWS.

A movement in this State, which has
already been capitalized, is to provide
lands for exiled Russian Jews, where they
can live until they can earn enough tc
buy the land occupied. The prominence
the movement has taken, and the money
put up to maintain it, revive interest in
the Russian Jewish question. We have
endeavored to look at it very coolly, tc
scan it in judicial attitude, to get all the
testimony possible on both sides, and on,
judgment is that the policy of Russia
towards her Jewish citizens or subjects is
inhuman, cruel, the intolerance of re.
ligious prejudice and of the order of per.
secutions that lead up to revolutions.
1t is difficult to combat the result OF
centuries of training in prejudice and
hatred of the Jew that the Russian peas.
ant has had; it is more difficult to contend
with the animosity of the aristocracy to.
wards the Jews; it likewise demands cour.
age to face the merchant, priest and stu
dent classes and tell them that the Jew is
a human being, entitled to fair chance in
his native land. But then the aristocracy
the learned, the merchant and the peasant
classes make up Russia, and upon them
the crown of the Gar depends. The
Government, then, if it is disposed to be
fair and humane, finds difficulty in the
doing, and, itself being the subject Of
prejudice, abandons the task and unslips
the dogs Of persecution and intolerance.
That is about the way the matter stands
now. The Government appears to have
been driven by its people, the public senti-
ment, and led by its own desires, to cease
holding the nefarious laws against the
Jews by the throat. The result is that
old dead-letter laws are revived, moldly
-edicts of dead Emperors resurrected, and
tyrannous orders of century ago are
given present cruel vitality. Thus, an
old ukase prohibited Jews from residing
within thirty miles of the frontier, but for
century it has been a dead letter. Now
hatred reviyes it, and half million Jews
are being driven from their homes; not
because they are immoral, disorderly, rev.
7olutionary, lawless, drunken, idle, disso-
lute-no; on the contrary, they are sober,
industrious, frugal, self-supporting, law
abiding, peaceful, and are heavy tax
payers.
In 1868, says the Allgemeine Zeitung des
Judenthuns, Alexander Ii. granted to Jews
the right to acquire and possess lands.
The next year the decree was revoked. In
sthe meantime Jew bought the estate of
Krewin, near Osting, but title was re-
fused him. The Governor General, how
lever, being an honest man, ordered deed
to issue TO him. Now the Government is
fighting the man in the Courts to break
down his title and acquire his acres on the
ground that the .Governor-Ge had no
authority to order the deeds made.
At one time Jews who were university
graduates, merchants of the first guild and
certain artisans, could live in any part of
Russia. Now the privilege is being with
drawn and series of Sew hunts" has be-
gun to search out Jews, drive them
through the streets and to the beggarly
districts within which they may lawfully
reside. These raids are most frequent and
cruel on Friday night, when the Jews are
s,,n,osad 70 h., r,afbarad x,;tb tLo;~ g.:
lies in observance of the Sabbath. Then
the streets are closed and the police tear
through the houses and drive out the
Jews into the snowy ways, men, women
and children. old and young, sick and
well. They reach Jewish Russia" of
course, utterly impoverished, and as nearly
ruined as men and women can be in ambi-
ton, hope and self-helpfulness.
A soldier may have served his country
well, for which she is glad enough to en-
list him, though a Jew. On being dis
charged he seeks his home and the en-
braces of aged parents. He finds them
gone, and he receives notice himself that
he has but twenty -four hours in which to
depart. General Kireef, an official of the
: Russian army, wrote to the Pal Mall Ga
setts recently, denying that there is any
religious persecution in Russia. There
upon foreigner long resident in Russia
writes to the Gazette:
I can testify TO having seen Jews turned out
of their houses by night, and driven like male
factors in gangs through the snowy streets, in
obedience 10 administrative" orders issued
aeairst them, for no other crime than that of
belonging to the Hebrew race and faith. have
seen hus band and wife declared to be living in
sin and their offspring branded with tuegih-
macy, for having been married By the pastor OF