Custer County Republican. (Broken Bow, Neb.) 1882-1921, 1902-05-15
MANY PEASANTS DESTITUTE
DELIGHT IN DEVASTATING ESTATES
or MOBILES.
SUFFERING FROM A FAMINE
fake sony what Tn Need When On"
opposed, Hut Force Used
When Necessary. s1S%

London. The st. Petersburg cor.
respondent of the Associated press,
alter personal investigation OF
The situation ia southern Russia,
writes from Moscow, under date Of
saturday, May 3, as follows:
Comparative order has been OBJ
.alned by the governm ent Of Poltava
Ind Kharkof, but the peasants are
)nly out wardly Qiuescent. The d.
islon OF the lands of noblemen will
De effe, ted during the com ing au-
tumn, leaving the land owners only
iwenty acres and q yoke of oxen
zach.
Particulars OF the disorder oc-
turing during the last three weeks
show that they were largely due to
extreme suffering from famine,
which was utilized by agitators 30
| Ioment rising. ssThc peasants were
not the only believers in the Issue OF
IN imperial ukase permitting d.
vision Of the property Of the nobility
md charitable distribution of po-
satoes by the steward of the Duke Of
Mecklenburg's estate at Kharlofka
tended to confirm this belief.
1.-The people of the whole country
side, often led by the village mag
mates, streamed to the Kharloffka
and Other estates afoot, on horse
back and In wagons, and demanded
the keys OF the pantries, granarlcs
ind barns and carried OF their con-
tents. Rich Cossacks suffered equal
y with the noblemen. When land
owners refused to deliver up the
keys the peasants broke down the
doors, quietly seized food-stuffs and
returned home, even well-to- do
peasants sharing In the plumber.
BURNED AND DESTROYED.
"When unopposed the peasants
,ontented themselveA with supplying
their immediate needs, but when OPP
posed, they burned and destroyed,
carried OF live stock and desolated
estates. Most of the difficulties &C.
cured where the Inhabitants OF the
villages were already on strained
footing with the ne'ghborlng land
owners.
evidence is reported In from
twelve to fifteen villages, while
three estates have been devastated
In the Kharkoff government. TO add
to the general CONSERVATION 200
| Cossacks arrived at Poltava after the
regular military process had restored
order. The Cossacks fired on the
peolpe In two or three cases and
In one instance the peasants attacked
the troops with stones whereupon
the latter fred, killing several per-
sons and woundiDg score, among
whom were women and children.
Corporal punishment was admin
istered right and left without over
scrupulOus inquire into the guilt of
the people logged. Some OF the es-
Inmates place the number OF peas
ants punished as high as 10000.
There was similar occurance at
Kharkoff, whose governor general,
Prince OboleDski, was particularly
severe. General Evenge Michael
Ovich- Doukhovsky as among the
sufferers His estate at Mechek was
ruined and he himself was seized
and beaten. He is still iii from the
effects Of the treatment he received.
"As an example OF the extent to
which the ranks of the famine
stricken villagers are swollen by the
return of unemployed factory work
ers it is pointed out that one iron
works, which heretofore employed
1900 to 90 people, Is now en-
ploying only 5000 for three days a
week.