New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-11-15

is only too well.founded. Another well-informed
correspondent writes from Samara that the local
authorities seem completely 10 have lost their
heads. The Governor himself is worn out with
fatigue under the bombardment Of questions. pc
titions and reports with which he is assailed.
lie himself admits his inability to see how the
distress is to be met. The Xemstvos are all be-
hnd-hand, and the daily demands enormous.
The Director of Iemstvos is i'll with Overwork.
and the members are travelling about to try 10
buy food. This correspondent blames the mer-
chant classes and the kooaks, or village usurers,
most severely, He says ut is impossible TO
imagine what fends they are, beginning from the
millionaire merchants of Samara. down TO the
village koolaks." One of the Samara local papers
speaks thus: Believe me, all the Jews in Poland
taken together are host of angels compared with
the koolaks who Furthermore labor under none
of the liabilities which fetter the Jews. bnt are
free to skin the people under the aegis of the law.
They begin by taking the PEASANTS cattle and in
strnmcnts. and then seize his land, reducing him
absolutely to the condition of q serf."
Rich merchants from Moscow and ST. Peters
burg are busy. all through the suffering provinces.
trading on the needs of the starving people, buying
their goods for trife, and tempting them TO
spend the paltry proceeds in strong drink They
buy team Of three good horses for ten dollars.
and sledge or cart for dollar. They even buy
the clothes which the wretched people wear
ing But perhaps the worst Of all is their purchase
OF womens hair. Under any circumstances it
would be hard for women to have TO sell the
hair from their heads to buy food In Russia.
however. it is peculiarly degrading: for here for
" woman. especially young one. TO have her hair
cropped, is public announcement that she has
sacrificed her virtue Yet under the dire necessity
of starvation, thousands of young women are
accepting this mark of infamy, and thus subject
ing themselves to all the insults that naturally
follow AS already intjmated. the men who are
thus enrichng themselves from the poverty of
their fellows, 20 about with carts laden with
strong drink. As soon they have bought
mans cattle, or furniture. clothes or q woman'S
hair. they entice their victims to come and spend
the money for drink. "Vodki is good, they say;
it is made from grain. and lis food and drink
and fuel all in one"
The Governments action over the prohibition
of exports is altogether inexplicable The proh-
bition is to be extended TO millet and bucxwheat,
it is said Yet the total export Of these is less
than onehalf per cent of the total export of food
stuffs, while wheat, oats barley, and maize are
allowed TO go out of the country in enormous
quantities, THE Moscow Gazette" states that
from January 1 to September 81, this year, $685.
$4,000 pools of breadstuffS as against 49,
22S 900 pools for the same period of last year,
have been exported A report is also extant that
the Government will prohibit the export of oats,
barley and maize, but no definite decision has as
yet been taken by the Ministry. In the event
of such prohibition being put into force no notice
will be given. The twenty days warning given
of the embargo placed on the rye exports in
great measure nullifed the object of that measure
and the Government will not repeat the mistake
which it has very much regretted