Omaha daily bee., 1902-10-29
FIFTEEN HUNDRED ACT MAD
DOukhObors Leave Home and wander
Starving and Naked Through
western canada.

WINNIPEG, Man, Oct. 2s.-with gaunt
faces and eyes lifted heavenward, an army
Of fanatics. chanting weird religious hymns
entered Yorktown, Assinaboia, today. ill-
ing the inhabitants with fear and pity.
The pilgrims form part Of the colony OF
Doukhobors, or Russian zealots, who To-
Gated in the Canadian northwest two years
ago, which has gone on the march, leaving
crops half harvested and deserting their
horses and cattle. Sixteen hundred men,
women and children entered Yorktown this
morning, carrying their infants and sick
on stretchers.
The body marched TO the immigration
sheds, where agents OF the government met
and interviewed them. Through inter-
prefers the Doukhobors told the officials
they did not know where they we're going
or what they expected to do, their only
mission was to convert people and find
Jesus" The male members Of the party
refused proffered shelter for the women
and children and the sick, but after much
persuasion we're induced to leave The
weaker ones behind while they continued
their march through the city. The men
and women are living on weeds and raw
potatoes and look emaciated after their
long tramp from the villages.
Four hundred more Doukhobors are now
just outside of the town, and 600 are leav-
ing their villages. A child dled this even
ing while they we're on the march. when
word was brought Of their proximity this
evening a meeting of the council was
called, and several special constables were
sworn in. No violence will be used by
the defending party, which is under the
command of the officers OF the Northwest
mounted police, who are stationed there,
but trouble lis feared, for while the original
mission Of Doukhobors was Of a peaceful
nature, some apprehension is felt that they
will be driven to acts Of violence by sheer
necessity.
OTTAWA, Ont, Oct. 2s.-Inquiry in Of
fcial quarters with regard to the reports
about the Doukhobors elieits the informa-
tion that probably 1000 are affected with re-
ligious mania. They are going from village
| to village among their own people and 1t is
said that they are likely to arrange to
| meet in some central place, probably York
ton, to decide upon future action.
They believe 1t a sin to hold domestic
animals in restraint and have, therefore
turned their cattle and horses loose upon
the prairies. They will not wear leather
shoes or any clothing produced from ami
mails and the men and women have been
yoking themselves to the pillow and wagon
A large number OF horses and cattle have
been seized by the government and sold
at public auction. The AMOUNT realized
about $4,000, will be used to take care oi
| the fanatics when the winter closes in.
The superintendent OF immigration,
Frank Pedley, has just returned here from
the Doukhobor settlement. and J. Obed
Smith. the agent at Winnipeg, is also in the
| city. They say there is no suffering OF
starvation among the Doukhobors.
A mounted police officer, who completed
a trip through the Doukhobor settlement
near Duck lake on October -. reports that
the Doukhobors in that's settlement were
everywhere busy threshing and plowing
| They raised thousands of bushels of first
class wheat.