The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1895-09-17
N "LITTLE RUSSIA s.
Becky Sharp Makes Visit to the
Russians
THEY ARE STRANGERS IN OUR MIDST

An All Pervading Fear OF the Police
HAunts the Women and Children OF
the Little Village
I've not turned explorer, suddenly,
though I've often thought / would like
to go to the north pole, but I have been
to Little Russia.
did not have passport, permit or
guide, but someway l felt that it would
not be a particularly dangerous under
taking to seek in their own home these
/ 'dang erously aggressive" people.
1t was on Saturday afternoon, which
must confess was not a sample of the
! days that usually make me yearn to do
| something, especially something daring,
! that L took car going north on Kansas
avenue and alighted on the railroad
| tracks just south of the Union Pacific
| depot After walking along the tracks
! distance of several blocks, l came to
| cluster of small houses on the right
| hand side of the track. In the shade of
| one of these sat two women sewing.
| They looked like my idea of "Little
Russians"
They were big and brawny with large
muscular arms; and flock of children
| played around them in the sand
Two of these. boys about twelve. were
on the ground.
i l was not sure of my bearings and de-
termined to ask, not for Little Russia"
| Il did not know they would like such
| reference) but for Mrs EtzeI
As l approached. the larger of the two
| boys dug his elbow into the sand and
resting his chin in his hand regarded me
curiously.
The women sewed on barely glancing
at me with expressions that had they
not been inscrutable, might have been
/ Indifferent
Addressing one of them l asked, "will
you please tell me where Mrs Etzel
lives?'
No response, and no evidence from the
woman that she knew l had spoken,
but the boy scrambled to his feet and
said: You just go down this yere track
till you come to that there depot and
just past it you'll see a lane. and she
lives right down that lane Wat you
want with Mis- Ezel?"
This was sufficiently young America
| certainly, but l ignored the questions
and said, "do you know Mrs. E zel?"
''Y essur, and l can speak English"
/ Thanking him, [ followed his direc-
tions. my shoes filling with sand and my
skirts becoming bordered with a fringe
of sand burrS as l walked that was
neither pretty to see nor nice to feel
When l got to "that there depot"
could not yet see the lane, and again l
sought directions. this time from the
station agent MIR. Charles Gerteisen,
who grew enthusiastic in his praise of
the thrifty people whose province l was
about to invade.
He said, "airs. Fieger, who lives OPP
posite the settlement there, can speak
English, and Will go with you"
Then | went on once more in search
of the lane, which l found and followed,
through the sand and high weeds, TO the
imminent peril OF the aforesaid citizens
clio hes.
Yes, Mrs Fieger spoke English
WE'LL but she was just starting up town
with her children, and the best she
could do for me was to tell me that there
was little ten year-old girl in the
settlement who would act as my inter
prefer.
My regret at the neglected part of
my education grew as drew
nearer and saw that my pres
ence had already attracted attention
which in spite of the uninterpretable ex-
preston on the faces of the five or six
women gathered around, l felt was not of
the most favorable nature
| The houses in Little Russia are built
in cluster, apparently without any re-
gard for surveyors lines, and the chick
en- coops and other outhouses seem to be
as close as they could we'll be.
Chained near every house is big dog,
not savage looking, however, but rather
| we'll fed and contented
These I easily made friends with, and
walked about in reach of the chains fear
lessly, feeling that they at least under
stood me; but not so the women. Most
of these are large and muscular.
TheiE arms barred to the elbow or far
ther, Indicate strength, and like their
faces and bare feet, are burned brown in
the sun.
There is one exception; Mrs. Burg
hart, the mother of the little girl Eva,
for whom / asked, is fair with a horid
skin and heavy hair of perfect Titan
shade.
Her hands and feet are small and her
ankles are remarkably so for SO large a
woman.
Her skin looks thin, and the neck is
broken out with the heat instead of being
tanned brown,
She wears black stockings and low
shoes, though the others are all barefoot,
as are the dozen children who have
hocked around to look at me-
Their inspection goes on quietly
Mrs. Etzel Is rather slender by COM
parison with her companions.
She has dark eyes, deep set in a swar-
thy slim face, and she regards me with
an expression that might be construed as
suspicious if it were not SO thoroughly
and entirely beyond my comprehension
She flashes me sidewise glance now
and then, and calmly goes on with her
occupation of dividing a piece of bread
evidently among her own brood of chill
dren, as she skips one now and then with
an air of knowing what she is about
though l wonder how she distinguishes
SO easily.