Omaha daily bee., 1906-10-28
Doukhoborsow CoIonss Are Building Conadas Railroad

(Copyright, 1905, by Frank q. CarpenterJ
90 AsHINGTON. d. C., oct B.-Cspc-
W ciai Correspondence Of The Bee.)
Il have letters from the British
w northwest describing the work OF
49, the Doukhobors on the new rail-
roads now building throughout the wheat
belt They are largely employed on the
Grand Trunk Pacific and arc using their
own horses. The chiefs OF the railroad con-
struction make their contracts with ver-
igin and the work is generally directed
by verigin, who is the head Of these
strange coionists. The earnings OF the men
are all paid to him and are transferred to
the common treasury Of each village,
enough being set aside to pay the expenses
OF the hands while at work This Is the
way all Doukhobor labor Is hired The peo-
pie have a sort Of communal system, such
as Is IN vogue throughout Russia. and they
work by villages rather than as individ-
uals.
Russian village system I'm Canada.
These Doukhobors are introducing the
Russian village system into the British
northwest; and that much to the disgust
OF the Canadian government. BY an esDe-
oial arrangement made upon their coming
into Canada by Verigin and his associates
they were awarded their lands I'm a block
or blocks. and they have divided them up
among their villages. each village holding
a certain amount OF land In common. The
ordinary village contains about forty fami-
lies, or altogether, about 800 souls, and
they have a common title to the land.
Each village has built its own granary
where its oats, wheat and other crops are
stored. It has common treasury, and
It buys It's agricultural implements and
other things whole. II may give an
order for a dozen plows at a time, or for
enough threshing machines 10 harvest the
village wheat crop The people work to-
gether. Both men and women go out 20
the fields, and they have about the same
customs and habits as are TO be found
IN the hundred thousand ana more villages
which make up the Russian empire.
This situation Is not pleasing to the rest
OF the Canadians. It destroys Individuality,
and Il makes a foreign body in the heart
of the New Canada The dominion gov
eminent wants every one OF its settlers to
be a citizen interested in the building up
Of Canada. It objects TO lot of Russian
fanatics who are interested only in their
own towns and religion, and who care
bait little for the general welfare of the
country. The matter will be brought up
before Parliament and Attempts will be
made to force the Doukhobors to take
their lands in severalty. SO FAR they seem
to have no desire to do this, They are con-
tented with Peter Verigin as a manager
and with their community system. 1 am
told they look upon Yerigln as a sort Of
czar and priest; and that he could, II he
wished cast their vote as a whole.
The arst trouble with the government
came when the census was taken The
Doukhobors refused TO give any information
we're apparently afraid they might be sub
jeot to military conscripton, Some Of them
have refused to register births, marriages
and deaths, and most Of them object to the
public school system. When they were
told that their children needed education
they replied that they did not believe in
our system Of teaching and that they pre-
ferred TO educate their own children In
their own way.