The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1893-12-01
THEIR HALO GONE.
Mr.. Denbigh's Opinion of
the Refugees.
He Says They Were Sent to Saghalien
for the Commission of Crimi-
nal Offenses.

Somewhat of the halo of martyrdom has
been dispelled from the weather. beaten
brows of the ten Siberian refugees who
recently escaped 10 this port and are Low
performing as curios in dime museum.
They are not political prisoners it ap-
pears after all. but only convicts banished
to the penal colony on the island of Sag
halien for criminal offenses. At least thi $
is the account given of the matter by G.
P. Denbigh, who is one of the owners of
the big fishing industries at Saehalien, and
in whose employ at least two of the ten
curios were before they took to sea In a
stolen japanese boat and were picked up
by whaling bark and brought to San
francisco to get their names in the papers
and have nation al fuss made over them.
Thus endeth their little romance.
Mr.. Denbigh is an English gentleman
who has resided either at Vladivost ock or
on the island of Sagbalien for thirty years
he is now at the Palace Hotel, but Will
leave in day or two for his old home in
England.
1--WE employ from 200 to 300 convicts at
our fishing industries" said MIR. Denbigh
to CALL reporter last evening, land
though they are we'll paid for their work,
well housed and clothed and kindly treated
so long as they are well behaved, they
have very natural inclination for liberty
and will often suffer great hardships In
order to escape
They are not political prisoners. These
are all sent to Kara and TO Central Russia,
while the many thousand convicts on the
island of Saghalien are those who have
committed ordinary criminal offenses,
such as murder, arson and so forth.
You may be sure that the Russian Gov
eminent will never seek tn recover these
men. Russia is glad to get rid of them.
Many escape TO Japan each year. but the
japanese Government invariably sends
them back as soon as possible.
II looked these fellows up at the museum
last night just TO see il | could recognize
any Of them. Two of them knew at once
and spoke to them. They had been en-
ployed at my place before their escape in
an open boat. | asked them if il was true
that they ran away to escape harsh treat
ment and they replied unhesitatingly that
they had nothing to complain Of in that
line, but that they wanted to leave the
country.
1.-THE penal settlement of the island is at
KorsakOff, on ADiva Bay. We would pre-
fer not TO employ these convicts at the
fisheries. for though there are many steady
men among them there Is always a disso-
lutte and lawless element that gives our
free help endless trouble. We take them
mainly because the Russian Government
requests 1t, and. too. because labor is not
easy to get there. We employ chiefly jap
anese.
You can't believe a word these men
say as to their bad treatment. Not in
fifteen years has there been a convict pun
ished by the knout on the island, and
those who work for us are ticket-of-leave
men who receive regular wages for their
work. The Government officials would be
down on us at once for daring to strike
one of these men. The most we can do
when they misbehave Is to send them
back to KOrsakoff. Ii they behave them
selves for term Of years they get entirely
free. and the Government offers every in
ducement for these convicts to reform and
become respectable and honest citizens Of
the island.
There are enormous quantities of fish
in the Kara Sea. We catch herring and
salmon in large quantities and use them
chiefly to extract their oil and as fertl-
izers. They are boiled first. then run
through press, and afteward dried on
mats. When thoroughly dried they are
shipped to Japan TO be used as manure
We export large quantities of fish oil every
wear"