The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-07-31
FAR WORSE THAN SIBERIA.
Is Russia's New Convict Colony,
Saghalin, the Island of Ice.
From the Pittsburg Dispatch.

From the Pittsburg Dispatch.
st. Petersburg, July 10.-Siberia too
good for convicts! That is the latest
declaration of the cars government.
The old convict colony, the very men,
ton of which leaves bad taste in the
mouth is to be turned into a paradise"
for agricultural settlers and mining
sharps by the aid OF the new Asiatic rail-
way crossing it, while Nihillsts and other
refractory mem ers of Russian society
will in the future be accommodated on
the Island of Saghalin, which, also, re-
1oices in the names of Karafto and
Taraika Its nature is a mystery, even to
many school books and encycloppdias,
and ethonologists differ as to the classif-
cation of the tribes of aborigines found
there. So horrible and revolving to civil
lied nations is Saghalin that the Car
consented to its adoption as an open air
prison only after the assassination of Car
not and the discovery of the recent plots
against his own life.
Another point that argued in its favor
with Alexander was that no George Ken
nan will be likely to penetrate into the
wllds of the North Pacific island, access
to which can be completely guard ed on
all sides. There will be no more investi-
cations and graphic descriptions of Rus
sian convict life hereafter, and, conse-
quently, no more petitions and remonstra-
tions by sentimeutalists for the allevia-
ton of convicts' sufferings.
GEOGRAPHICAL SITUATION OF sAGHALIN.
If Alexander hates anything it is to
have his authority questioned and his
humanity doubted. To further explain
matters, Saghalin is an island resem bling
in shape Long Island, n Y, off the coast
of Russian Manchuria, the eastern termi-
nus of the cars possessions, north of
Japan. The Gulf of Tartary separates it
from the mainland and its eastern coast
is washed by the Sea of Okhotsk. The
people and the convicts of Siberia never
speak of the island other than The He'll
OF Saghalin," and its climate is said to
be so much worse than that Of Siberia as
to rob this appellation of an exaggerated
character, even in the mouths of those
lost ones.
Heretofore Saghalin has been pressed
into service as an open-air prison only in
most extreme cases, where capital punish
ment, by degrees, of course, was intended,
Now, the exigencies of the great empire of
the north, demanding the publication of
Siberia, all sentenced to deportation are
carried off in the wilderness without pre-
ference to the length of sentence, the
nature of crimes or offenses they were
accused of without reference to sex or
former status in society.
ut is simply impossible for ahuman be-
ing not born OF the island to last there
more than year " This is the official
report by the governor of Manchuria
Very well; change the guards every
three months"
CAN'T ENDURE CONFINEMENT THERE.
This is somewhat of a concession IN
Russia-the care for life and health of
prison keepers.
Statistics prove that the number of
Brodiagans-tha is, would be fugitives
from Saghalin-eXceeds that tof Siberian
runaways by 100 per cent, in spite of the
limited number of persons at present held
captive there. Most of these poor
wretches try escape as the only means of
securing quick finale of their tortures,
for suicide is made impossible by the
eternal vigilance of the guards Usually
party of from three to ten seek saliva
ton In flight in order to be able to offer
resistance to the sentinels placed along
the coast and the savage aborigines in
habiting the wilderness they set out to
reach The country is sparsely inhab
by Oroks, a nomadic tribe employing the
reindeer; by the Amos race, and by
Gilyaks, all fishermen and hunters not
averSe to occasional nannibalism.
If they break through the chain of
guards in summer they first seek refuge
in the Taga, a still unexplored forest
teeming with wild beasts, reptiles and
poisonous insects. There is, also, much
game, by which they hope to live until
midwinter when the Gulf of Tartary
freezes over, offering a problematic means
of escape to Japanese territory. In win
ter they make direct for the coast, though
the nearest land across the gulf, which is
shallow water that easily freezes, is 100
miles distant.
SLIM CHANGES FOR ESCAPE