Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1904-11-05

I slider all beasts of burden unclean and
| cursed by God. OF late few of them
have begun to use horses, but the more
fanatical of them still hitch their
wives and daughters to the ploughs
ard wagons. Several times these pill
grimages have numbered nearly a
| thousand men, women and children,
who march along without a stitch Of
clothing to cover their bodies. Some
of the weaker women and young chill
dren are placed in wagons, which are
| drawn by the women, while the men
| attend to the chanting. At such times
| they refuse all kinds of food except
| that which they can gather by the
| wayside. When these pilgrimages are
/ started in the winter, the plight of the
| wandering Doukhobors soon becomes
pitiahle from want Of clothing and
| food, several of them having died on
the first trek they made in this coun-
| try.
| When Lord Mimic. the Governor
| General of Canada, made his great
overland ride Of inspection last month,
these people again started out, his
coming being coincident with a
prophecy that the Saviour was on His
| way to the Doukhobor colonies. How
| ever. their trek was soon headed off by
| the Mounted Police, the leaders put in
irons and taken to Regina Jail and the
pilgrims taken back to their farms.
When the decree of the Car went
! forth that these people could no longer
| live in Russia after their own fashion,
! the Canadian government offered them
| inducements to come to Canada, and
gave them large tracts of fertile land
in the Northwest territories. Apart
| from these lapses into fanaticism.
they have shown that they are good
settlers and a welcome addition to the
sparsely settled regions Of the Cana
dian Northwest.
Peter Veregin, whom the DoukhObors
look upon as a leader, has been in this
country only two years, after spending
twenty years of his life in the mines of
Siberia where he suffered the greatest
crueties at the hands of the guards
and jailers. Since his arrival here he
has altered the character Of the COM
munity. has changed it's modes Of
agriculture. gradually Introducing mod
ern methods, and has built up organi-
cation out of chaos.
Several thousand acres of land have
been broken in the Doukhobor colonies,
and the land under cultivation next
wear will be at least double the crop
area Of the present year. Last year
the Doukhobors expended more than
ST.. 900 in the purchase of land and ma
chinery. The latest implement secured
by them is a steam plough, and it is
the first in that part of Canada. At
81, H.
gines are used in the community.
These engines run flour mills sawmllls.
flax mills, etc. During the times that
the Doukhobors have had these engines
thew have not been idle for a single
dav. excepting Sundays. When one
village has no use for them, another
has. so that they are always peihg
moved around to where they VIII De OF
the most advantage.
Peter Veregin has plans to connect |
the different villages by telephone III
the near future. and later Will put III |
narrow gauge railways to move the
produce and provisions from place 70
place, as they are required. "A large
wal 4house for the distribution OF Sooos
has lust been built at central point
on the branch Of the CANADIAN fa-
cjtic P.,ilway, which runs through ne
Doukhobor lands, and grain elevators
will be erected as soon as TIE crop 's
large enough to warrant hte expendi-
ture of money for such purpose. |
Last year they grew more than one
hundred thousand bushels of wheat.
and this year the crop will be twice as
large. This wheat is not quite SUM-
cient for their own use. Owing 10 tne
plan Of sowing fax on the newly
broken land. the wheat area does not !
increase as rapidly as 1t otherwise
would. The Doukhobors are about I" !
engage in fruit culture and also In the
production Of flax suitable for weaving.
having already had some success IN
this line At the present time large |
stables are being built in each village
for the use of the horses. cattle, sheep
and hens, which are kept and owned
in common. The Doukllobors do not
raise hogs, as they say that Gcd has
classed them among the Enciean
animals. In the winter the men engage
in logging on Dominion lands. for
which they hold permits. They hive
purchased a brick and tile making
plant, aad gradually their log houses |
are being replaced with bricks, and the |
sod roofs by tiles. The bcilcing Of 50 /
many railways in the vicinity Of the
Douknobor colonies has enabled them
to earn much money as section hands.
This money all belongs to the COM
p,une, and is used for the purchase OF
land. implements and groceries. Last I
year they earned 100000. and this
year it is expected that the earnings
will he, larger. All tire goods FOR the
colony are bought In wholesale Quar-