The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1906-11-02
The D0ukhobors a Stran6e Sect

officials not realizing the dangers of
the communal system as to group OF
foreigners like these.
In the D0ukh0bOr Villages.
These Doukhobors villages look like
slice of Russia cut out of the
Black Plain and dropped down upon
North America. save that the houses
are better and the people more thrifty.
The average village Is one long road
with a row of cottages on each side.
The buildings are of wood and frame,
but the roofs are often Of thatch or
turf. Many Of the houses are made
of logs, we'll chinked and plasted.
The windows are of small panes with
heavy wooden shutters, which are
closed at night. Plenty Of whitewash
Is used and everything glares. The
average house is of one story, and it
has seldom more than two rooms,
The principal room serves as dining
room, bedroom and kitchen. 1t has
great chimney at one side, with q
bake oven connection; a wide bench
runs around the walls for use as chairs
during the day and beds at night, and
table is in most cases the rest of
the furniture.
The houses are much better kent
than In Russia. have travelled thou
sands of miles through the cars
farming regions, seldom finding
peasant home that was sanitary or
clean. The Canadian Doukhobor wo-
men scrub almost as much as. the
Dutch, and all the people take regular
sweat baths. Every village has its
5athhouse. This is little log cabin
containing brick oven. 1t is enter
ed by low door, but has no windows
or other openings. When the bath
house is to be used the owe mis- heated
red hot. and then the bathers enter
stark naked, each carrying bucket
or so OF water. They throw these
on the red hot stones. andwithin a few
moments the house is filed with steam.
Each bather has a bunch of willow
twigs with which he whips and rubs
every part of his body. In a short
time he begins to perspire, and it is
not long before he Is thoroughly
cleansed.
The Doukhobors ire rapidly amass-
ing wealth. I was told in Winnipeg
that they had brought in as much as
| 100000 at one time, and that they are
steadily improving their property and
! towns. They are now building eleva-
tors for their own grain and have put
up mills to grind their own flour.
! Some of their villages have construct
ed flax mills and linseed oil mills ant
some will put up wooden mills.
Spin Their Own Cloth.
! AS it is now the Doukhobors have
their own sheep and spin the cloth
| for their clothes. Much ftheir mach
inery is being driven by steam anu
! they have some steamplows. under
stand that they have discovered clay
on their land, and that they expect
to put up brick plant and have
brick dwellings for the future They
also talk of narrow-gauge railway
to connect tltsre villages; and they
will probably introduce the telephone
soon. Their communal system gives
them large capital to work with, and
they take advantage Of this nv buv'ne
their supplies in quantity and at low
rates. AS 1t is now, each village has
one large stable for its horses, an
other for its cattle, and shed for Its
agricultural implements. This is in
striking contrast with the average
Canadion settler. who leaves his mach.
inery and often his stock out of doors
the mercy of both wind and weather
1t will be seen from the above that
the average Doukhobor is good
citizen. Indeed. were it not for his
communal interests he would be ia,
better than most Of the other Euro.
peans who are now coming into
Canada. There are many exceptions
however. and especially the fanatics
The Doukhobors have among them q
number of men and women who seen
half Gravy on the subject of religion
and who every now and then break Out
in what might be called spiritual
revival, which is far more radical thar
any REVEALS in the United States.
At such times they say Christ is
about to appear on the earth a second
time, and they start out on a pilgrim.