davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The morning call., 1892-07-24

finish of the best leather is as fine as that of
a portfolio or pocket-book. These boots
reach to the knees, and the best If them
shine like patent leather. The pantalOons
are always tucked inside of them, and there
is fancy section about six inches wide
above the ankle of every boot in which the
leather lies in wrinkles with the regularity
of n washboard. IL takes at least twice as
much leather to make a pair of Rus
sian boots as 1t does an American
pair, and the same may be said of the
Russian overcoat. The drosehky-drivers
wear more cloth than any other cabmen
the world over. IL takes more of good cloth
for the blue goods they wear seems to be
OF excellent material TO make a droschky
drivers coat than TO make lady's trained
ball dress, and this coat has TO he padded
and quilted. This coat has long skirts, and
II Is made very large so that the caOoy can
stuff his body out, and especially his back,
to give himself the appearance Of prosper
Gus fatness. Nine-tenths of these drivers
are padded in this way, and 10 well-t0-do
man would own q lean eOaehman. Lieu
tenant Allen, the military attache OF our
legation here, told me yesterday that his
cOachman appeared TO be of dime-museum
fatness when he engaged him and that he
supposed his great frame was that of ma
tuTe. until ono day he met him before he
put on his pads and he was as thin as a rail
and looked so different that it was some
time before he knew him.
The church is perhaps the richest OF all
Russian institutions, and the thousands
upon thousands Of priests who are supported
by the people are, as a class. the finest Look
ing men In the world. They never shave
nor cut their hair and their locks are as silky
as those Of a baby, and they stream down
their backs. reaching often almost to the
waist. Their faces are rosy and plump, ard
showing out under the high black caps
which they wear on the streets and over
their long black gowns they look wonder
fully handsome and noble. During their
The morning call., 1892-07-24
4 PECULIAR PEOPLE.
The Mennonite C0l0nistS in the United
States.
They Look Upon Al Frivolous Habits as
sinful-Their Picturesque Viii
lagos.
Written for THE MORNING CALL.

In Minnesota and Manitoba, near the
boundary line between Canada and the
United States, there are three or four settle
ments OF an industrious, thrifty people who
live apart from the other settlers, and have
language and a faith peculiar to Them
selves. These are the Mennonites, reli-
gious sect founded in the sixteenth century
by Menno, a Hollander, and a fellow
worker in the Reformation with Luther
and Melancthon, but who separated from
them on the doctrines OF infant baptism,
bearing arms and taking oaths. Gathering
few followers round him, Menno taught
that baptism should not be administered
until a change of heart had been experienced.
and that true believers should not swear but
affirm, should not bear arms nor go to law.
After Menno's death his followers moved
from Holland to Prussia, but as under the
law OF that country every man must bear
arms for certain time the MennOnites
found they must either break one of the
most stringent rules of their faith or move
elsewhere. Meanwhile they had attracted
the attention of Catherine. the Great En-
press of Russia. who thought them such de-
sIrable settlers that she invited them to move
TO Ekatherinoslaw, near Odessa, promis-
ing them at the same time immunity from
c0EscrlptI0n. She also permitted them to
govern themselves and to practice their reli-
gion, but they were not to make con-
vPrts or proselytize among the Russians.
For 120 years they enjoyed the conces-
siOns granted by Catherine, then the Rus
sian Government withdrew them and
resolved to reduce the Mennonites to the
same footing as other Russian subjects.
This time they decided to emigrate to Amer
lea. So they selected three of their number
to come to this continent and obtain all the
necessary information concerning the
climate, the conditions of life, and, above
all. to ascertain if they could practice their
religion and be allowed all the necessary
immunities.
Early in the seventies a band OF them
arrived and settled in Minnesota, and in
1874 and 1873 two more parties came out
and settled in Manitoba. establishing
two villages Of their own called Chortitz
pronounced GnrtiZ) and SchanZeufeld.
They lived together in these villages
or communities and not out on their
farms like the other settlers, with whom
they mixed but little, partly because few Of
them spoke English and partly because they
were not desrous of having any intercourse
their language was Dutch, but during a resi-
dence OF over century in Russia it under
went many notifications and changes, so
that to-day it is neither Russian nor Dutch,
but curious mixture of both. They have
books printed III their own tongue, but ln
their churches they use Luther's Bible.
The MenuOnlteS somewhat resemble Quak-
ers in their simple, quiet lives, and disap-
The morning call., 1892-07-24

harp heard from afar. 1t ceased. and was
followed by faint uneaTthly laugh that
uled out at the moment when q sudden
shiyering flap of the canvas UP in the dark
ness seemed like shudder passing through
the ship.
There's some one singing and laughing
away out ahead, sir!" shouted the man on
the iorecastle. in voice that made one
suspect he felt his loneliness at that mo-
ment.
what the dickens can 1t be. and where
does IL come fromY exclaimed the second
mate, stepping to the rail and looking over.
lie peered aud peered. but the night lay
dark upon the water, spite Of the starlight,
and no deeper shadow stood anywhere upon
the gloomlDg surface to Indicate the
presence OF vessel in the neighborhoOd.
Forward, there" he shouted. do you
see anything?"
Nothing, sir"
The watch on deck, aroused by this hail
ing and gathering its import clam bered on
the bulwarks to look around. and the cap
tain, hearing the second mates voice, came
up from the cabin.
What's the matter ?" he asked.
There's been a sound of singing and
kind of laughing following il, coming from
somewhere ahead. sir," responded the sec
Ond mate.
The captain went to the side and took a long
look. Pooh. poohi" he exclaimed; it must
have been your fancy, SIR Singing and
enough for us to hear such noises we should
be bound TO see her"
He was walking over to the compass.
There, sir, you have it now," cried the
second mate
Oaee again the same thin wailing singing,
o0ffowlng supernatural character from
the darkness, came faint. but clear, to the
ship. followed as before by the samer eedy,
croaking laugh.
by heaven, Mr.. Weeden. it's no fancy"
exclaimed N.ha
round. But is it human voice. think
y0uP IL SO, where in mcrcy's name can it
come from? | say, my lads" calling to the
men staring over the bulwarks, dye see
anythingY
Nothing at all, s:r; though the sounds
plain enough" was the answer delivered in
tone full of awe.
Suddenly dim. luminous. gray haze
hoated up into the eastern sky. 1t bright
ened into yellow, and then into q kind of
sullen faded red. and in u few moments the
upper limb OF the moon jutted up, a pale
crimson, with light that made an indigo
line OF the horizon under her, and as she
scared one saw the wake she left trembling
In dull gold along the wrlterng ebony OF
the swell, till shooting clear of the deep,
with a broadening OF delicate luster around
her that quenched the stars there. she shot
heT level crimson beam at the ship whose
sails took the tinge of feverish ra-
diance, and stood out In phantasmal
spaces of mystical light against the dark
ness ana the stars. But speedily transmit
Ing copper into silver the moon threw out a
lair radiance that, flowing 10 the wester-
most sea-line, showed the circle dark and
clear all round, and scarcely was her bland
ana beautiful Illumination fairly kindled,
when half dozen voices shouted, There's
boat out there on the starboard bewi'
"Hush!" cried the captain; and amid the
silence there stole down yet again 10 the
awed and astonished listeners the wild mys-
a
by peal Of laughter.
Well. whatever il may prove 1t must be
overhanlei." said the captain. "Mr. Wee
den, call some hands aft to lower away one
The morning call., 1892-07-24
INTERIOR OF A MENNONITE HOME

the field than do housework. and one
bOasted that she could plow q straightet
furrow than her brothers.
Cards. dancing and drinking are strictIy
forbidden. as Is also marriage with those
not members of the faith, Auy ona se
marrying must leave the community.
Some of their tastes are peculiar. TheT
are extravagantly fond Of eating poppy and
sunf1ower seeds; every woman and child
has poeketful, and they eat them as ws-
do sweetmeats. All the gardens have rows
and lows of these plants.
Boots and shoes are articles of luxury. ia
be worn only on state occasions when com-
ing to town. On the country roads on Sat
urdays wagon after wagon passes filled
with barefooted Mennontes, the boots of
the whole party dangling from the side OF
the conveyance. As they approach the
town the boots are drawn on and worn
until they are again on the home
ward road when off they come to once more
decorate the wagon side and rest undis-
turbed until the next visit TO town. In the
winter both men and women wear curious
socks of felt, somewhat like long boots with
thlckened SOLE When they go outside ia
the snow long boots are drawn over them
to prevent their getting wet Their rea.
sons for living in villages were first fos
the sake of the social life and second be.
cause they divided their land by system
of allotment intended to equalize the value
OF all the farms. If one field was better
adapted to wheat-growing, another to oat.
and third to pasture the fields would bt
divided into three strips and each man re-
ceive portion of each field. To the Men
MONTE mind this seemed to approach the
early Christian idea of sharing their earthly
possessions.
Latterly the Canadian and American
Governments are requiring the home
steaders to live on their farms, so the
villages are gradually being deserted
These people are nearly all engaged is
mixed farming. and are quite noted foI
their fine stock, although when they first
came TO this country they were cheated
and deceived into buying all the worthless
worked-Out animals in the neighborhood.
but few years of good feeding aud careful
breeding has worked wonderful change,
and Mennonite horses bear a'reputStion
The morning call., 1892-07-24

Consul-General. DR.. John NJ. Crawford, the
Interior DEPARTMENT has investigated our
system OF crop reports and has Just now
decided to adopt this system for Russia.
Secretary Rusk forwarded full information.
and from now on the same organized system
that we have constructed will be in force
here. Heretofore Russia has had no agri-
cultural statistics. and the peasants have
lived from hand to mouth. They are not
economical or thrifty nor accnmulaliye in
our sense of the word, and ii requires
study of their character and their condition
to understand the situation. Thirty years
ago they were in the condition TO great
extent of our slaves at the South. and II
to-day the negro and the planter had been
left to work out their salvation at the close
of the war without the aid of the money
and push of the North they would probably
be of somewhat the same character as these
people are here to-day. This statement
may. however, be misleading. The two
races are far different in character, aud
after my journey through the back districts
aud along regions of the Vulga | will give
letter describing the curious features of
their life and character, which are like
those OF no other reople in the world. My
idea Is not to write so much o. the Russian
famine as of the Russian people, and the
great Slavic race is one OF the strangest and
most peculiar on Gods green earth. They
are the baby race among the great races OF
the world. They are not yet out OK their
swaddling clothes and into even the knee
pants of the b"yhood of civilization. But
for all that, their limbs are muscular. their
features are strong and they have the lungs
and the staying power of the bull Of
BaShan.
You see the evidences OF the happy-go-
lucky character OF the people every where
yOu go. Their condition has been such that
they have never come TO understand the
value OF money, and this has been the case
with both rich and poor. The rich have
been 50 rich that they had all they could
The morning call., 1892-07-24
Q indieates a resi-, and tNo dots in paren.

o indicates rest. and two dots in paren-
theses pause.
This system was invented many years
ago by ons of themselves In order to pre-
serve the old tunes sung by their fore
fathers. Secular songs they have none. and
most OF them regard all musical instru-
ments as frivolous, if not wicked. Out of
IA churches, only two have organs. One of
the young men told me privately. and evil
IDENTIFY with many doubts and misgivingS,
that his brother had an ACCORDION, aud ne
plainly indicated that he feared this was
the hrst step in the downward course of
this misguided young man. Vocal music.
so long as 1t is confined TO psalms and
chants, is both proper and praiseworthy
The baptiSmal rite as taught them by
Menno Is retained to this day and takes
place only once year. at PentecOst.
When all have assembled in the church the
converted" man comes forward and stands
in front of the Bishop, one of the deacOns
clasps the candidates hand and the Bishop
places his own over theirs. Then he takes
a curious antique kettle-shaped vessel and
pours water three times on the converts
head. saying: "In the name of the Father.
the Son and the Holy Ghost
There are three orders in the ministry
first the 'elderste" or Bishop, then the min-
lister and lastly the deacon. There is no
salary attached TO these offices nor is any
special training required. The deaeons are
selected by the people, they choose min
ister from among themselves and the min-
listers elect Bishop from among their own
ranks; but the Bishop alone has power to
baptZe. Besides the ordinary sacred duties,
the church settles all disputes, as it is for.
bidden to go TO law, though in Minnesota q
Few members, contaminated by contact with
the outer world, have sought legal redress
for their grievances.
The Mennonites are an extremely honest
and industrious people. They always pay
their debts TO the last farthng. and the
nelghboring merchants consider Mennonite
debts worth 80 cents on the dollar. Christ
mas Is their only holiday. and they cele-
brate II by a church service lasting three
days.
Their villages. or communities. present a
picturesque and thriving appearance, for
they have succeeded. where most of the
prairie settlers have failed, in growing trees.
ChortiiZ and SchanZenIeld, in Manitoba,
are like GASES in the the vast anu treeleSs
prairie. Each house stands in about a
quarter of an acre of garden, planted round
with poplars and ash-leaved naples; inside
these, which serve for a windbreak, are
plum and crabapple trees. and sort of
hedge of gooseberry and currant bushes
In the center of the garden are flower beds.
blazing with the scarlet poppy and fragrant
with mignonette. The beds are divided from
one another by little wicker-work fence
woven into fancifVl pattern.
The houses themselves are large, square
frame buildings, banked round with white
The morning call., 1892-07-24

,ountess who went from ST. Petersburg
was among those who took the smallpox.
Almost all of the great landed proprietors
In the famine districts are doing what they
can to help their people. l hear of men
who have been feeding and caring for FIVE.
ten and in some cases even twenty and
twenty-five thousand peasants, and Count
BObrinsky, who is at the head of the trans
p0rtation of famine relief here. is. in con-
nection with his family. supporting nearly
80, coo people out of his own means, and at
The same time aiding in the distribution
of the foreign and government relief
funds among the people outside Of his
estates.
The relief work is not done spasmodicalv
nor without system. There is thorough
organization. and as good brains as you
will find any here in the world are man.
aging 1t. The peasants themselves are like
children. and they require the advice and
the care of children These people Of Rus
sia Of the highest classes go and stay with
them. They visit them in their huts, take
care of the sick-ror there are but few
d"ctors-and nurse them. With them is the
Russian Red Cross, which has raised about
S35000.000 for the sufferers. and " hich
works, as do all outs de institutions, directly
under the Government.
The Government of Russia is planning g
great works to prevent The recurrence OF
such condition as now exists. A fund Of
sl0,0O0,O00 has been set aside TO build ele-
yaIors and places for the storage of grain in
ali of the various districts, and through our
The morning call., 1892-07-24

OF the quarter-boats, and 60 and see who 1t
Is tnats singing and laughing away outhere
In the middle of the ocean,"
In few minutes the boat was pulling
away Tor the dark object to the left of the
moons reflection. The watch below had
turned out and crowd Of seamen awaited
with burning curiosity the issue of this SIN
gular encounter.
=. It'll be no mans voice as raised that
there chantey," said one of the oldest,
and presumably one of the most ignorant
among them, as they overhung the rail.
III I'd been in the old mans place ye
might ha' turned to and boiled me afore
you could ha' got me TO send boat to it,"
why. dye think it is, Bill?" inquired
another.
think! don't think at ali. 'Tain't nv
business to think. But dye s'pose.' re-
piled the old seaman, that any mortal
being with hintellects inside him, such as
you and mes got, 'ud tarn to and sing songs
and desssy comic songs, for what should
set him laughing-in hopen boat at this
here hour of tue night, two or three
thousand miles away from land? You bet,
old Bill knows what he's talkin' when he
says that ii what's come across in that there
boat turns out mortal he'll swaller the
biggest pair OF seabOots knocking about the
forecastle."
Awed by the old sailors prophetic croak-
Ing, to which years of rum and hard
weather had communicated a forbidding,
sepuichral note, the others fell into deep
silence, ,straining their eyes in the direction Of
the boats. A half hour passed before they
approached the ship, during which the sea-
men had been startled by many hoarse and
dreadful cries proceeding from the advanc-
ing boats. intermixcd with shrll and savage
laughter and wild shouts delivered In ac-
cents the mariners could not make head nor
tail If.
WELL" cried the captain, when the
The morning call., 1892-07-24

The women wear no jeweIry though now
and again wedding ring may be seen on
the finger of woman Of more frivolous
mind than her sisters. Their dress consists
OF plain, short. dark skirt of heavy ma.
terial with a waist of the same and sleeves
reaching only TO the elbow. On their
heads they wear bright eolored checked on
spotted bandkerchiefs tied in knnt undes
the chin aud with the point hanging down the
back. Once or twice we met a child or
woman wearing large straw hat, but il
was an addition, not substitute, and the
loose ends of the handkerchief underneath
made it a rather remarkable headgear.
Short and thickset, with broad hips and
shoulders, strong and squarely built Mem
monte women are more noticeable for
strength then beauty.
Their cheek bones are high and their com.
pleXiUns sallOw and muddy, their hair dark
and coarse and their eyes either light blue
or gray. But though not by any means
beauties. they are not repulSive- looking, as
their expression is honest and good. The
women work in the field with their fathers
and husbands, and in the harvest season il
is no uncommon sight to see whole family
working side by side-father, mother,
brothers aud sisters. There is no compul-
sion in the matter. Some of the girls told
me frankly that they would rather work in
The morning call., 1892-07-24

throbDing stars. Not above four miles had
peen measured since the darkness came
down, and now that the night was breath
less, with threat of cafspaws. on no ac-
around. the captain gave instructions for the
stunsalls to be taken In and slowed away
out OF the road of such box-hauliDg of the
yards as might be necessary. This made
the snip lively for while, with the running
about and racing aloft of the naked-footed
mariners, but presently all was silence
again; the captain below taking glass Of
grog, the second mate quietly pacing the
ueck all, The watch cOlled up everywhere
ior snooze, single figure erect on the
forecastie. and the sea Ikea mirror full of
starlight. yet so dark that it was like looking
through haze at the iuminaries over the
waterline.
Three bells were struck, and scarcely had
the last vibration died when the second
mate hailed the forecastle: Forward there!
Is there anybody singing belOw?"
. Nobody singing here, sir" came back
the answer promptly.
Nonsense. man! There's some singing
somewhere below forward. tell you. Put
your head into the scuttle and listen"
There was pause, and presently came
back the reply, "AlPs still in the forecastie,
sir. There's 10 singing in this part of the
ship"
The second mate walked to the fellow at
the wheel. did you hear mans voice
singing. just now before the bell was
struck ?"
"Yes, sir"
Didn't the sound come from forward ?'
1t seemed Ike 1t" answered the helms
man.
Hush. there it Is again." cried the second
mate. raising his hand and stretching his
head forward with his ear bent toward the
forecaStin. The sound was distinct enough
III was that OF a husky voice singing-but
at distance that made the notes as thin
and vibTat0ry as the twanging of jews