The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1901-12-07
Firms TO EMIGRATE
THE GRAND DUCHY MAY SOON
BE DEPOPULATED.
Hatred for Governor General May
Cause Wholesale Emigration From
Finland Within Five Years.

Within five years the grand duchy
of Finland will be entirely depopulated
and its present inhabitants will have
emigrated to the United States to es-
cape the despotism of Russia. Such, at
least, is the statement made by Firms
in Conneaut, o., many of whom are
aiding the people in the old country to
leave now. Conneaut is one of the
centers of Finnish population in Am
erica, and with Ashtabula and Fair
port, only few miles away, has near
ly the entire Finnish population of
Ohio. In the three towns there are
now over 5000 Firms, mostly ore show
elers, and the Firms here say that the
emigration from Finland will result in
doubling the number already here.
The influx of Firms will affect Michi-
gan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin also,
for, strangely enough, the Finn in
America is always associated with the
handling of iron ore.
Briefly, the cause of the discomfort of
the Firms in the continued attempt of
the present Governor General Nicolai
Jwanouthy BobrikOff, to take away
gradually all the semblance of indie
pendence possessed by the Firms, and
to make the country a dependency of
the car in name as well as in fact.
The government of the country is vest
bers nominated by the emperor and
presided over by the governor-genera
who is also the nominee of the car.
Bobrikoff seems to have been striving
ever since his accession to curry favor
with Nicholas II, the present car. The
Firms accuse him of telling the car
that the changes brought about by him
have pleased the people, and many
Firms allege that the car, by depend
ing on the reports made to him by Bo-
brikoff, is ignorant of the feeling in
Finland.
To the governor general is laid the
responsibility for the introduction of
the Russian language, the abolition of
the Finnish coins and postage stamps,
the increase in the poll tax, the intro
duction of the severe system of the st.
Petersburg police, the recommendation
that the length of military service be
Increased, and that the Finnish Diet
be made an advisory instead of a leg
islative body.
The name Of the present governor
general is never uttered by Firms here
without the use of some vile epithet
denouncing him. He is the Judas of
Finland. The people in this country
are passing around pictures of him in
which he is depicted with horns like
devil.
Since the governor general tore up
the petitions signed by nearly every
person in the country instead of send
ing them to the car the people in Am
erica have had little hope for their
countrymen abroad. In order to show
their sympathy with the oppressed
people at home, and in the hope that
when he saw that his conduct was I'M
derstood here by the Firms as we'll as
in the hope that he might relent, the
Firms in America adopted black
stamp marked "Suomin-Finland" and
intended to show their brethren at
home that they mourned for them. But
the letters bearing this extra stamp
were refused admission to Finland by
the governor-general. While some of
the Firms still hope that the car may
remove the offensive traitor to Fin
lands welfare, most of them think
that nothing remains but the leaving
of the country to the oppressors. Those
who will come will be the weather.
classes, ad they will become investors
here, but the poorest will remain to
die in the old land.
II the Firms who come hereafter be-
come as good citizens as those al
ready here, America will have no cause
to cry out against a Finnish peril"
Religious temperate, intelligent and in
dustrious the people have shown them
selves to be In the States. They are
not criers out against the government
here and most of them speedily take
advantage OF the naturalization laws.
homes, and many OF them become
If.Ua oil al In Nnxny