The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1892-08-14

the car or as the possessions OF the auto
crat of all the Russias, ana until this year
few people have looked upon it as much
else than an ordinary European country
filled with an oppressed and rather turbu-
lent people. 1t was supposed and largely
is supposed today to be filed with peasants
who are plotting against their government
and VINO are dissatisfied with their condi-
ton 1t is known as the land of Dihilism
and 1t is thought by many that the peas
ants are among the plhillsts. This Is
mistake Such nihilistic elements as exist
do not belong TO the peasantry OF all and
nihilists, the officials and the nobility,
form but drop in the bucket OF this great
Russian population. The town and the
city people number but few millions and
the great bulk of the people live in
little villages. These villages constitute
the real Russia and the Russia out
of which is 10 come the Russia
of the future. OF the 20,00O00O subjects
of the czer less than 20,OOO,OOO live IN
towns, and the towns OF Russia are num-
beret by hundreds. There are compare
lively only a few large cities. St PEERS
burg is as big as Philadelphia, Moscow is
about the size of Boston, Warsaw is as big
as St Louis and ODESSA is little bigger
Than Cleveland. In addition 10 these there
are few cities of 100, 600 each and then
about 800 cities ranging from 10000 up TO
1000 and about fifteen cities OF from
80, UOJ to 100000 IN size. There are, how
ever, more than half million peasant vii
| lagos, and the Sc vilapes contain the vast
I peasant population of Russia, which forms
nearly one-tenth of the population OF the
globe This immense number OF people
! impresses me more and more every day,
! and begin to realize what these numbers
may mean to US. If all the men, women
/ aud children on this big round earth could
be collected together one IN every
ten of them would be a Russian
peasant, and of all the lanu upon. the
earth they own and are scattered
| oner one seventh of It, Only small prs
portion of these many millions live sutside
of Russia aud the village system and
customs are very much the same the whole
empire over. Every Russian village is g
little Russia in itself, and by the study of
these people and by look at one Of their
villages you get fair idea OF the whole
empire and OF this great Russian people.
OF course there are Asiat1c tribes, and
some of the new territories, as Finland and
/ Poland, are TO 8 certain extent different
from the pure Russians. but the great
Russia is village, Russia and the Rus
SLAMS as nation are the peasants.
A RUSSIAN VILLAGE.
I was surprised during call which
made on ex-Aiinister to Russia Lothrop al
his home in Detroit, to hear him say thai
Russia was the most republican country in
the world, and that its people, to large
extent, governed themselves. | find this
to be true. Each of the 100000 villages
is a little republic. Its inhabitants
elect their own officers by vote, and its
courts, for all ordinary offenses, are man
aged by judges elected by it. Every village
has little assembly of its own made up Of
one member TO every five houses, anc
these men manage the affairs OF tue vii
lage. The village, you know, owns the
land and this assembly divides this from
time to time among the people, giving eact
family q certain number OF acres accord
ing to the number in it and according to it,
working power. After such division tn
lands are left with the families TO which
they are allotted until the next division
when they revert to the village to be givel
out to the came persons or TO others as tn
assembly may see fit. This assembly tixe
the dates OF harvesting, the time of SOWING
crops and it makes all arrangements as I
the collection of taxes. The governmen
of the car taxes the village lump sum
and this assembly apportions this ia.
among those who should pay it. No one ca
leave the village without the permission o
+ the assembly or without leaving behind hir