The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-04-02
PERSECUTION OF THE Firms
CARS EFFORTS TO DELIBERATE
FINNISH AUTONOMY.
Finnish Americans Will Appeal For
Assistance Through the Washing
ton Government.

New York, April 1.-The Finnish
American central committee met at the
Office of the Siirtolainen, the Finnish
local newspaper, in Brooklyn, in order
| to discuss further measures and re-
port progress in the agitation in this
country directed against the cars re-
cent decree to destroy Finnish auton-
omy and national existence. The chair
man read a. letter from the Films of
| Calumet, Mich, giving details of the
organization Of a Finnish committee,
consisting mainly of lawyers, doctors
and professors of Finnish birth. This
committee reported the unanimous de-
/ cision to cooperate heartily with the
central committee of New York, and
announced the formation Of committees
Of Finnlanders throughout the middle
western section of the United States.
The meeting, although convened at
single days notice, was attended by
several hundred transformations,
and a collection of over S100 was taken
toward preliminary expenses.
Further news was received from
South Ashburnham, Mass, where all
the Firms, twenty-three in number, had
signed petition which is being circu-
lated through the state. A list for sig
natures was asked for from Browns
vile, n. Y.
SEND at once lists with q heading in
Finnish, Swedish and English, all
through this country and Canada, for
additional signatures to the petition,
which is to be taken to Washington.
Advices have just been received by
the committee from Finland with sew
erai interesting items of news, Show
ing how the hand of Russian persecu-
ton is already being felt, it is stated
that the Russian governor general,
Bobrikoff, has compelled the Finnish
senate to send orders to all ministers
throughout Finland forbiddlng them to
criticise the cars recent ukase. Rus
sian secret service agents have become
active throughout the country. and
have been promising farm hanis that
as soon as Finnish law has been re-
placed by Russian, they shall have all
the land they want, which, the Films
say, means theft and spOliation of the
peasant landed proprietOrs. who prac-
tically own most of tie arabic laud of
the country. This measure, if carried
out, these late advices say, would simp-
~ result in the absolute ruin of all
agricultural enterprise.
The committee received information
that when the governor general re-
Quested his Finnish adjutarI, Captain
Toppelius to go around among the peo-
pie of Helsingfors and vicinity in order
10 probe Finnish feeling On the subject
of the cars recent decree, the latter
answered: 81 am hated enough merely
for being in your service, and if I am
further required to go around spying
on my own people, refuse absolutely
For this reply Captain ToDpelius has
been banished to central Russia.
The committee is perfecting arrange
ments for the holding Of Il preliminary
Indignation meeting in New York. prob
ab.y in Cooper Union, in the near flu
ture The idea Of sending the petition |
to Washington is to bring influence to !
bear through that quarter on the dele |
gates from this country To the inter
national peace conference