The daily morning journal and courier., 1898-08-17
RUSSIAN HAY CONFESSIONS"


 It is a curious fact in the social de- Velopment of our own country that while more than ever before Is being , done to alleviate every imaginable form
 of distress, physical and moral, among the working classes, so little should
 hitherto have been done by those who chiefly support these charities Tor the relief of corresponding phases or suffer ing among the poorer class of society.
 Institutions founded with the object Of
 rendering financial assistance in vari- ous ways to distressed" members Of
 the families of private gentlemen, ofi-
 cers and professional men are, it is
 true, very numerous, but in their or
 ganization there is almost always, more
 or less, one element that is most care- fully avoided in institutions intended to benefit the poor among the lower or l ders. In their case every precaution is taken that there should be nothing that would unnecessarily wound their
 susceptibilities, or that would impose
 upon them anything that, in their class, would be regarded as degradation; but, on the contrary everything IS done to maintain their self-respect, and, | above all, to help to keep them from
 sinking in the social scale.
 It is typical of the complex nature of
 the Slavonic mind-that we in England | often find it so hard to grasp-that
 Russia is perhaps the first country in the world in which a serious and suc- cessful effort has been made to form an | association in which the helpers and the helped, both belonging exclusively to the upper classes, should meet on l equal terms The chief object of the
 aid given by this Association of Lay | Confessors," whether it be in the form of practical advice by experienced mep, l through introductions to people who | might be useful in the particular diffi- culty in question, or when the help needed is pecuniary, is that the person aided should be assisted privately, and 1 in such a manner as to enable him and his family, as far as possible, to retain their social position when by any unde- served misfortune it may have been en- dangered.
 The Russian association to which l allude by no means regards itself as a | charity" It is rather mutual aid society for the benefit in various ways i of members of the higher classes"- 1 that is, of persons who in society would naturally meet on equal terms with | those by whom the association is main | tained, Unlike other organized socie- | ties in Russia it possesses no official recognition, and its members are re- | garded rather as individuals working | for common object than as forming a | corporate body. The working of the association is exceedingly curious l Some twenty years ago certain num- Der of gentlemen whose absolute Hnor and integhity were fully recognized un- | dertook to receive privately persons in l their own class of society, to hear the | statement of any difficulty or embar- | rassment in which they might find | themselves placed and to give the best
 advice that they could. They also
 pledged themselves absolutely that
 whatever was told them should be held as sacred as confession to a priest and | that they would not themselves act in
 any way upon the information thus
 given, except with. the full sanction of
 the applicant.
 Absolute security upon these points | being of Fundamental importance, the | greatest care has always been exer- | cised ever since In the appointment of
 new members. They are nominated as
 "probationers'' for three years on the
 recommendation of at least three
 fourths of the existing members, and the sanction" of all the remainded; by
 the objection of a single one they
 would be disqualified. Should none of
 the other members withdraw their re- l lo 5 y,,i, | they are afterward empowered to act,
 and the fact Is privately made knoYn
 in the circles they frequent. Should
 the nature of the difficulty seem to re- quire not advice only, but action of any kind on the part of the Hay confessor"
 seriously affecting any third person,
 the applicant must himself or herself ] choose another tA act with him, or l should they disagree, third; and at
 the same time nothing of any kind is done without the full approhation of ! the person who has sought their aid
 As the Hay confessors" consist not
 only of nobles and private gentlemen,
 but of influential bankers, manufac-
 turers and professional men, their ad-
 vice, or the aid given through their
 personal influence, is often of inestima-
 ble value. In cases of illness, for ex-
 ample, the assistance of the most emi-
 nent physicians is often secured, with
 reduced fees, or altogether gratuitous- | ly; or again, where "ceste" would be
 lost by sending children to an inferior 1 school, arrangements are made for
 them to be received into one more suit l able to the rank of the parents-upon
 reduced terms-a fact kept absolutely
 secret from all except the director of
 the school in question.
 When pecuniary help is required a
 different system is adopted. The asso-
 citation is possessed of funds which now
 amount to a considerable sum, being
 constantly increased by donations from
 the wealthier applicants for advice, and
 others. This money is paid in1D the
 private account of certain number of
 "financiar' members who are appointed
 annually, and make statement of all disbursements to the treasurer-giving
 numbers, whichs correspond with his 1 private notes of the transaction, in-
 stead of names. When it is evident
 that money is needed, the applicant is
 advised to select any one of these | Efoo to1, lao d,