The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1893-08-26
3. A RUSSIAN CAPTAIN.
Me-sIless Brutality in the Land of shd
ID, Great White. Gear.

- Great White Gear.
e One fire winters morning Sleigh
bells jingled in our Russian village.
A police captain and his lieutenant
made their appearance, wrapped up
in furs. Behind them was a mysteri-
GUS bundle covered with cloth. This
all happened before I settled here,
but the impression is fresh still. The
peasants gathered quickly about the
strangers, anticipating nothing good
from the appearance of police off,
Ger in their midst says the Contem-
porary Review. The captain alighted
slowly from the sleigh, eyed his au-
dience sharply while he calculated
the amount he could wiring from
them, then said sternly:
where is your village elder?"
''Here, your Grace answered q
white-haired, venerable peasant,
bowing abjectly.
"Your name?" continued the po-
lice captain
tIvan lvanovitch, your Grace"
answered the old man, bowling again
almost to the earth.
"Ivan Ivanovitch," said the cap.
tain impressive4y, addressing the
congregation of trembling peasants,
"a terrible crime has been COM
mitted close to this village on your
land"
I'm Gods name, WHAT" asked ths
old man, turning pale.
''See, then, for YOURSELF. said the
police captain, and with that he
threw off the cover and revealed to
the panic-stricken gaze of the simple
villagers the mutilated body of a
dead man. This is a frightful
crime, - continued the captain, ''and
there must be dreadful retribution.
Your community is responsible for
this murder and must bear the con-
sequences. There must be commits
sion sent here; the matter must be
investigated.
''Arything but that!' begged the
village elder, piteously, stroking and
kissing the captains coat. He knew
too we'll that such a commission
meant ruinous fines, to say nothing
Of hoggings for every witness. The
peasants with one voice joined in
the appeal:
''Anything but a judicial inquiry"
''But the matter is very serious"
said the captain. ''An inquiry must
be held"
''But perhaps you can help US out
OF the trouble" said the elder per-
suaslVefy 81 u + 4 ---
"Perhaps,'. mused the captain,
''but it will cost me lot of money"
What do you. want US to pay?"
asked the elder. -~ -
Gone hundred roubles may do it"
said the captain.
"One hundred roubles!' screamed
the desperate peasants. eve haven't
got SO much in the whole place. You
want to ruin US.
''Take fifty?" pleaded the venerable
elder
'What, you rascals! Do you take
me for beggar that you seek to
dicker with me? However, you seem
to be poor; shall insist only on
seventy"
The peasants agreed sadly to the
bargain; the money was paid;
the captain and his lieutenant
climbed into the sleigh once more
and drove away with the corpse to
the next village. Here they repeated
the same performance and as long as
the cold weather lasted that corpse
represented at least fifty roubles out
of every village community it visited
OF course that particular trick will
not be repeated in our lifetime, but
others just as brutal will take its
place, for the peasants are always
ready to be fooled and feeced by
anyone who comes along dressed
either as policeman or priest.