Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-09-19
THE RUSSIAN FAMINE.
Dreadful Picture OF Distress Prevailing An
Many Parts Of the CIar'. Land


Many Parts Of the Csar'. Land.
ST. Petersburg Correspondents New Yors Tribune
Day by day the truth about the famine IA no.
coming known despite the efforts made bv the
government 70 prevent the press from publish
ing the worst facts. The situation Is more ter
rible than was anticipated. No language is too
strong TO tell Of the distress that prevails in
some provinces. A well-known clergyman who
has beeh travelling in kazsn gives this account
OF what he has personally seen: ''lou who
live IN towns" he says. can form no concep-
ton Of the distress among the rural population.
IL II is in itself horrible thing 60 witness
wholesale mortality, how much more d.eadful
is 1t to do so when Won are poverless TO afford
any assistsnceg l cannot describe ala have
seen. but will give you some examples: A few
days ago visited the village OF Naredey
within the first half hour I met sixteen poor
creatures at the last extremity Of woe Most
OF TIE m had not touched a morsel Of bread for
over week With distorted features and g!ar-
ing eyes they gazed at me. many of them only
Just able TO stretch out their hands for the
loou onered them few only had strength
enough 10 eat IT. They generally die before
help comes
The longer | remained in the village the
more misery discovered. Outside the houses.
IN 'front.' OF the church and other places. there
Wei Mere numbers OF pale, emaclated. sickly look
4
are seen only where famine rciens Some Of
thenl were quite apathetic. They seemed
utterly indifferent TO all that was going on
around them; they we're evidently resigned 70
their late Others rsved IN their despair
! moving about. gesticulating wildly and crying'
| Dread, bread; do not let US starve. Mothers
whose children have succumbed 10 hunger
Wander through the village weeping aloud Tor
, .helr lost little ones. Everything eatable has
| long since disappeared. While Segetables and
berries could be obtained the people managed
| 70 hNe- Al last even that resource Was ex-
| hausted The villagers then gathered lime tree
leaves which they dried. pounded in mortars
anu I.aue into pup. For whole fortnight
| they mad nothing else 20 eat. but Of course IL
could not serve as a substitute for bread.
| Little help was forthcoming and death began
to work havoc. Mortality has Increased I'M
sueh alarming proportions that in one locality.
hunger" ~
some strong words about the famine do nm
| pear now ana then IN the newspaper One
Journal declares that the peasants in the val
icy OF the Nolga are in a state Of the utmost
| restitution. They have neither clothes nor
Ioou anu are wandering about in rags on the
verge OF starvation. The district swarms with
| "hoie iamiiies who have been reduced TO beg
ging oy the road sides, and the situation of the
entlre population is most critical The
hn@dnth, a paper published IN Kieff con-
siders the condition of the peasantrv desperate
| -. next spring the writer anticipates the en-
ute hussian peasantry viii probably be bank
rupt. Reports from Warsaw tend 20 show that
inc peasants OF central Russia are emigrating
wholesale Already 500 men have abandoned
their families in order TO emigrate In the
meantime disturbances over the rye export
ProhlDltlon continue. There have been riots
IN orel, Dunaberg Grissa, Potook and yitebsk
several stoppages of large gram firms have
occurred Ii appears that a considerable
ue'eiopment IN the export Of rye is expected
10 take place at Archangel. as no reference was
made TO the ports Of the White sea in the en-
port interdict.