The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1903-12-04

leaked out and within q few days after,
the police agents visits the revolutionary
were in their hands again, sur
to the authorities by soldiers who
felt 1t their duty" to give Information.
The few who failed to turn In the seditious
papers at once either Ia been arrested
or have been placed under the closest
surveillance by the police.
Within a few days further distributions
nave been made, this time actually by the
social democrats, but so wary have the
become that many Of the men
known to have anarchistic leanings have
promptly informed the police Of the dis
tributions and turned over the contraband
literature.
AS the Russian forces stand in such alb
Ject fear of their chiefs, it is difficult to
determine exactly how much this extra
ordinary disaffection has undermined dis
clpllne. No outbreaks have occurred and
the higher officers apparently are uncor-
rupted, but the recent actions Of the gov
nmen indicate that 1t is taking no
chances, n almost everyone connected
with the service Is more or less under the
eye of trusted police spies.
What the authorities fear most, Is, of
course, that the army, by the aid Of which
only can despotism continue its sway, may
yield to the persistent exhortations of the
socialists and, in the event Of %uprisings,
take sides with the people. That this fear
IS a long way from being %groundless Is
proven by the recent publication in the
Petite Republique, the Partisan socialist
organ, of two revolutionary manifestoes
dated in April and August of this year
which emanate directly from the Mill
tary Revolutionary Organization'-the
more courageous of the two secret socie-
ties known to exist among the officers Of
the Russian q rro1Hy The a rct ne fhaca uyIjoh
is addressed to officers, refers to the uni
versal discomfort in the country Of the
car and to the shameless clique which
governs Russia in the name Of Nicholas
IL. and then urges commanders to fulfill
their sacred duty by refusing to lead their
soldiers in the fratricidal war against
their fellow countrymen."
The second manifesto, addressed to the
rank and file, breathes a similar spirit
and dwells especially upon the bonds that
unite the soldier with the peasant and
working class brethren. It goes on to as
sert that among the superior officers are
many who are perfectly conscious of the
odius part they are obliged to play. They
are not sure, however, whether their men
are with them or against them. But,
whatever may be the views Of the officer
IN command, 1t is not he who aims and
fres, but you yourselves, he soldiers. It
therefore depends entirely upon you not
to Ere"
While the authorities nave been busy
trying to control the troops who already
wear the Russian uniform, the enlistment
officers hav been uncoverine one of the
most remarkable schemes for assisting in
dividuals to evade military service dis
covered In the history Of the empire and a
special co~urt-nartial, sitting at Odessa,
has just found four men guilty Of mon
strous practices.
Mutilated to Escape Service.
FOR years this quartet which has flour.
ished under the firm name of Kirk & Co..
has been getting rich by performing upon
young men liable for military service sur
glcal operations, the results of which in
sure their being rejected by the army
medical examiners. Organized through
cut southern Russia, this gang has mu-
tllated, In some cases fatally, scores of
perfectly sound youn men who to escape
the dreaded military CONSUMPTION, paid
the manners literally.
Equipped with almost every instrument
and appliance known to modern surgery
the band was able to do permanent injury
TO Almost any organ or to inoculate any
system with incurable disease, One fa-
forlte treatment was the inhaling Of
strong chloride fumes which produced
bronchitis, while other applicants were
given a course Of such powerful cathar-
LUIS were DeTlnA-
nently ruined in bringing about the de-
sired appearance of anaemia.
In other cases castor oil was admins
tered to produce catarrh Of the stomach
While another injury favored by many
was that Of destroying the ear drum
either by piercing 1t with a sharp instru-
ment or placing in the ear a caustic So
tuition OF carboiic acid. The gang also
had means OF producing artificial leprosy.
Thu prices demanded by Kirk & CO
for even the simplest injuries were high
enough to insure rapid wealth for the
operators. On the trial a soldier swore
that he and his relatives had raised s150
to pay for making him anaemic, while
another recruit whose ear drum had been
pierced was obliged to produce $3.50 before
the band would consent to operate.
kirk, the leader of the gang received
the heaviest sentence, being condemned to
lifelong loss of all rights, state and per-
sonal, as well as two and a half years.
confinement in a military prison. Da-
V1dov1ch, Kinks first assistant, and Mel
n~itchanski, who did most of the operat-
ing, each received two years impr!son-
ment with life loss of all rights, while
the fourth man. Kabatnikoff, who acted
as agent between the firm and it's patient.
was sentenced to six months hard labor,
Three soldiers who were found guilty of
receiving the injuries solely to shorten
their terms in the army also received
sentences of imprisonment.