Passaic City record., 1896-10-10
RUSSIAN CENTENARlANS.

RUSSIAN CENTENARlANS.
Dwelling In the Caucasus Seems to Pre-,
long Life-Ages Run Up to $50.
Last year an old peasant named Ivan
Kouzmin was reported to have Travelled
from Moscow to Kief at the age OF 140.
He was said to be in good hea tn. He
nad formerly been coachman to Count
Sheremetief, but in 1910 was sent to ST.
IBERIA, where he spent "a years, return
ing in 1894. His is not the only instance
in which a Siberian exile has survived
to extreme old age. Two years ago
here was said to have died in Samara
cne Lavrentii Efmof, who had attained
the age of $50. According to the news
paper report of him he took part as a
boy in the famous Pugatchef rebellion
in the reign of Catherine the Great, and
subsequently spent 30 years of his life
in Siberia. Recently there was said to
be living in the village of Vank (Saratof
government an Armenian aged ITO,
the proud ancestor of 81 descendants,
Of whom II were still living. His name
was David Kazarian. Another Ar
menian, a priest named Ter-Mikaell-
anti, was reported not long ago to be
living at Gori in the Caucasus at the
age of 10S; he was still able to walk to
church. and once year performed the
liturgy. If recent history il the Turk
ish empire continues to repeat itself
such instances of longevity among Ar
menians seem likely to become rare.
Last December there died in the govern
ment of Kharkof an old man, Theodore
Liptzof, who was said to have reached
the age of lis. He well remembered
the Napoleonic invasion of 1912. 1t is
worth noting that he drank vodka free
ly, and that he took snuff and was an
inveterate smoker of tobacco, which he
not infrequently chewed as well. The
Caucasus would seem to be a region IA
vorable to length of days; in addition
to the instance of the Armenian priest
already quoted the following other in
stances have been reported from there:
Last year, in the town with the unpro-
1ouncable name of Mtzkhet, peasant
with the appropriate, but equally un-
pronounceable name of Adam Marto
lekishwili, died at the reputed age of
100. Unfortunately some doubt must
be thrown on the accuracy of this in
stance, for the newspaper (the Kavkaz)
from which it is quoted adds that Adam
left two sons, the eldest 60 and the
youngest 40 years of age. If this be
true, the youngest son must have been
born to his father at the great age of
90-an almost incredible feat in nom
patriarchial times. Adam is said to
have left a widow aged 100; and this
same town with the impossible name
is stated still to shelter several old men
and old women between 80 and 100.
Three years ago one of it's favored in
habitants, a woman, died at the age of
12O Happy Mtzhet. In Tifis, not long
ago. a woman named Urumsima Aru-
| tunova died at the supposed age of 1870;
and as recently as May last a brutal
murder was brought to light in the dis
trict of Tifis, in which the victim was
said to be 100 years old. The object of
this crime was not discovered. The case
of Nicolas de Savin. the old French SOL
lier who was taken prisoner by the
Russians in 1912 and died two years ago
| in Saratof at the age of 1926, was COM
mented upon at that time in the Eng
lish press. About the same time the
case of another old soldier was brought
forward. a Finn living in Wyborg,
whose age was said to be 122. This
summer there was said to be living a
still older Cossack soldier; this man,
named Solodof. residing in the village
of Jovnino Poltava government), is
reported to nave passed his 125th birth
day. Finally an old woman, aged 117,
is. it is stated, still living in Nikolaief.
She is Pole, and remembers well the
taking of Warsaw by the Russians in
1893. In closing the list it is well to add
that in many of the instances quoted
a closer investigation might materially
diminish the ages of the persons in
question. Only last year a paragraph
appeared in the papers relating to an
old man who had come from Siberia
and who had reached the age of 1873. A
later paragraph stated that on exam.
ining his passport his true age was
found to be only 99.-London Lancet.