The Irish standard., 1892-05-28
RUSSIAN DEPRAVITY.
Priests Who Are in the Habit Of
Getting Drunk.
Curious Castles Among the People OF
the Cars Domains--A Religious
Sect That Dispenses But
Little Charity.

A Russian correspondent writes as
follows to the London Times: My
friend took me round the villages in his
district, and the impression left upon
my mind from this visit was that at
any rate the peasants of TamboH live
less like pigs than their brethren IN
Voronezh and Riasan. Their distress
seems, also, to be less acute. There
were, of course, individual cases OF
great suffering, but, Oh the whole, the
peasants seemed to be less destitute and
less abject. All the huts that | have
seen in this province present an appear
ance of cleanliness. which contrasts
pleasantly with the dirt and squalor of
the central provinces. In some OF the
huts we found stores Of stale crusts. on
which the family hoped to exist for a
week or SO.
LET us go to the village priest" said
my guide; s;he will interest you"
readily assented. The priesthood OF
Russia represents sort of caste, and
Is the only independent estate in the
country. Their attitude towards the
peasant leaves much to be desired.
The average village priest is often
drunkard-always uncult11red, unedu-
Gated, unrefned. From whom is the
unfortunate peasant to get his ideals?
The gentleman he dlstrusts, the priest
he hates, and neither the one nor the
other is capable Of exerting the proper
sort of influence over him.
We paid visit to the village priest.
He lived in a one~story house, furnished
very plainly. 1t was something better
than q peasants hut, and it was scru-
pulously clean. The priest himself was
a consumptive-looking young man with
restless, cunning eyes and a nervous
manner; his wife was stolid-loolzing
person, little above the level of a peas
ant woman. The priest received us
with marked courtesy. A visit from
the Zelnslxi Natchalnik was an honor
indeed We were offered tea and home
made biscuits and remained some time.
The priest came from Voronezh and
had but poor opinion of TanboH.
''They are q self-indulgent, vain and
foolish people here" he said. ''Some
OF them have nothing to eat; but they
will wear red shirts and leather boots,
and they keep their huts ridiculously
clean" This was quite new view OF
social ethics.
The Zemski Natcl1alnik, in the course
Of conversation: told us how he had
been implored by a peasant for help.
'1As usual he said. 1.-THE fellow had not
touched food for three days. / asked
LIN where he was going. ITO the
bazaar, he answered. What are you
going to do there?" I asked. 'Iwant to
buy bark to make shoes, the fellow re-
piled. And yet he had not tasted food
for three days! There is no relying
upon anything they say"
80! your honor said the priest. II
wanted to ask you about some corn
that I have. have q few hundred
Foods. Do you think the Zenstvo
would buy it of me?" Il will see about
it, said the Zamski NatchalnilS.
Here was a curious revelations! Be-
fore me stood the disciple of Christ,
with long hair. pale, cassock touching
the ground, looking like sacred
picture Round him was starving
people. And what was his dominant
idea? The succor of the afflicted? The
feeding of the hungry and the clothing
of the naked? Nothing of the kind.
His one concern was the price OF the
corn he had contrived to hoard. Yet
CHS priest, the Zemski Natchalnik told
me, was the best he had come across.
was even assured that many Of the
priests had no scruples against accept
ing their share of the Zenstvos allot-
ment of corn. In further conversation
about the famine the priest told us that
a reverend brother in a neighboring
parish had sent woeful story to the
bishop concerning peasant who had
murdered his children because he was
unable to feed them. The story proved
to be an invention, but it served it's pur-
pose The bishop was so Mortified that
he sent considerable sum from the
fund at his disposal for the relief OF
that particular village.