Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1906-06-08

The Russian peasant must neces-
sarily be interesting to the world to.
day, for he is the key to the Russian
problem.
In the myriad of villages scattered
throughout this vast country live 120,-
100000 peasants, no less than 80 per
cent. of the whole population of Rus
STA; and the portentous query looming
larger in all minds as day succeeds
day is: What can this huge brother
hood effect, what will it effect, and
when?
For centuries past, and especially
since the time of Boris Godunoff, 1893
1905, have these peasants been refused
the rights due to every man born of
woman. Culture, education, knowl-
edge of even the most elementary ma
ture, has been denied them. The out
side world has been a blank, and from
childhood it has been instilled into
their poor deluded minds that 1t is
enough for them to know something of
their immediate surroundings = no
more! 49, -x-4~-.
From his birth the Russian peasant
is dominated by two overwhelming fac
tors, superstition and obedience to the
tsar's will, the latter being observed
indirectly, but none the less stringent
ly, through the medium of the local
authorities-to put it tersely and gen.
orally, without going into details of
the numerous officials, the police.
cF - he
MANI and the village priest is bred in
the Russian; it is part Of his inalien-
able birthright; and after countless su-
perstitious ceremonies, both before and
after birth, which the unfortunate babe
is lucky If he survives, the first per-
sonage that his little eyes and body.
which are destined to see and feel
SO much distress, are made aware of
are the priest and the policeman
And what of his surroundings, what
of his bringing up? Both as bad as
can possibly be! Breathing the foul,
stuffy, vapor-laden atmosphere of the
two small wooden-walled rooms of the
Russian izba (cottage), from which
almost all light and certainly all fresh
air are excluded, except that admitted
and in which congregatesthe fowls and
other small beasts of the farmyard;
feeding ON the most meager food
black bread, vegetable soup, and small
cucumbers, with now and then milk
and tea for treat; sleeping with az
many of the rest of the family as can
congregare-male and female-togeth-
er on the top of the large stove TAX
ing up quarter or a third of one of
the two small rooms-what wonder
IL the ultimate production is lacking
in almost all respects the common 1T
tributes of Gods noblest creation,
mani
Stunted he is by the awful disan-
vantages to which he is subjected
physically, by the meager and totally
inadequate sustenance doled out to
him, and the lack of air; morally, ow-
ing to the method of his living as de-
tailed above; mentally, through the
ultra-paternal care bestowed upon him
by the powers that be. 1t may be
asked how it is that one sees so many
fine specimens of the Russian race in
the Russian villages, If the bringing
| up is so bad, and If medical treatment
| is SO hard to obtain and often not OBJ
| tainable, the distance from one vii
| lage to another where perhaps lives
| the zemski (doctor) being perhaps 20
| miles, and the road often impossible
| My answer is that it is only the very
| hardest who survive: the child-mor-
| tally in Russian villages up to date
would appal the civilized world IL a
| correct return were made public. Those
who do survive are almost necessarily
hardy specimens. That is the solu.
| ton of the conundrum.
During the last few years gradual
very gradual, efforts have been made
to improve peasant life; not neces-
I sarily because those in authority
Wished to. far from it; but because it
began to dawn upon them that, de-
spite all precautions to keep the peas
ants mind dark be was haaianiaa p