Evening star., 1915-02-28

x Russian official and con-
cerning inmates of the charity said TO
be the greatest in the world, startled a
certain Englishman who was travelling
through the. cars domain and had I'm
gered in Moscow as chief place or IN
terest. The visit was in times OF peace,
when there was no sign of war, so that
the first sharp surprise of such frank
admission soon Wore off and the travel
er followed his conductor on and up
through the avenue of lime trees to the
imposing entrance of the Imperial
Founding Hospital, for he had been
curious about it since learning that it
was mainly kept up by the revenue Sc
cured from playing cards.
a guidebook had told him that the
necessary funds came from the sale of
playing cards. which was not so def
mite a statement that in the Rus
sian Yearbook for 1872 that the in
stitution has a monopoly throughout
the Russian empire on the manufacture
as well as the sale of cards. A query
made at the Russian embassy ELECTED,
with a smile, the information that
imported deck of cards Is rare thing
on account of the very high duty i'm
posed, and that going into shop to
buy the home product even was mat
ter not to be considered unless one had
a full purse. The secretary also re-
marked IEaC IfllS asylum mas DTancheS
here and there over Russia where chill
dren are brought. and from there for
Warded to headquarters in the old capi-
tai.
Some children have been sent here
from Siberia, was another statement
that jostled the listening ears of the
traveller. who had now reached the
IL.
had stopped before sculptured group
by Vitali, representing charity and
education. I'VE can not strictly call
the Vospitatelnoi a founding hospi-
tal,' said the man in the resplendent
uniform, which somehow seemed to fit
in with the decorative Greek facade
dominating the great building and it's
countless windows, and to illustrate
some one part of the detailed system
of Slavic government. For We take
any children brought to us from any
where or IRON any one, without Ques-
1ion or inquiry, provided they are un-
der certain age. the entrance to our
receiving lodge is never smut, sum-
mer or winter, day or night. The IN
fants are all registered, and the par
ents give their names if they Choose,
but they are not compelled to do TINS.
They may pay for the cnildS support
or not, they like. Those who pay
$22 year have d right to see that
their child is not sent out to nurse, but
is brought up in the mouse.
Boys who nave $125 leIt with them
are educated as officers. AS | said be-
fore, the unpaid for nearly all become
common soldiers. Boys sent to Petro-
grad are sent to the government paper,
carpet and looking glass factories. our
best lads are sent to the universities.
When a child has been registered, bap-
tized and ticketed with name, the
record is hung around his neck dup-
licate is given to the person VINO
brings him, SO that the child may be
claimed when reaching the age OF
twenty-one. Through the sale OF pray
ing cards alone 1,0O0ooo ruples are
received, ruble being quoted va
rlous1y as between 30 ana .. cents
Never less than 10000 foundlings are
received every year, and 2a,ooo Is the
usual number registered on the DOCKS.
1:
But it was early in the morning and
the Englishman was eager u ~ ~
the galleried chapel within, perhaps
more than he was to hear about the
intricate system of the place lie
wanted to see thousands and thousands
of children at single service OF
morning worship. Here was the old
and historied capital Of an earlier
Russia whose people had burned to
ashes the first city of their nation to
stav the hand of the Corsican invader.
here were memories and monuments
and buildings recalling Peter the
Great and Catherine ii. and here was
"Merry Moscow" which might be
called the Seville of Slavonia; and in
the midst of these an edifice the size
of three or four palaces looking after
the little lives of as many children as
would belong to approximately a city
of 100000 people. But suddenly the