Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1917-03-20
THE RUSSIAN
REVOLUTION
Nathan Boynoff, Proprietor of the
Boston Clothing Store Of This
City Gives his Ideas.
BRIGHT FUTURE FOR PEOPLE
The Gear Not Disliked.-Grand Duke
Michael is Popular With
the Masses.
BRIGHT FUTURE FOR PEOPLE

lmentS OF many former residents o;
Russia now living in America, that
Russia has jumped from the frying
pan into the fire, Nathan Boynoff
proprietor of the Boston Shoe &
IClothing store of this city, sees a
bright future for that great country
in the recent revolution.
He smiles at the interview pub.
lished Saturday in one of the Des
Moines newspapers in which a ma
Tive of Poland affects to see no flu
ture for benighted Russia in the re-
IvolutiCn. Mr.. Boynoff thinks the
man either willfully perverted facts
or is entirely ignorant of present
conditions there.
Mr. Boynoff has been in America
only seventeen years and is native
of Bobrinetz on the Black sea. He
is we'll acquainted with the condi-
lions under which the common peo-
pie and peasants have been strug-
Cling toward the light for years. He
says no one in his home vicinity
hated the car; they felt no senti-
ment toward him whatsoever and
the czar will probably live on in
Russia unmolested. Certain it is
that there could be no change in the
government at this time that would
not be an improvement. Grand
Duke Michael Alexandrovitch is or
dinarily well liked and as regent is
likely to endure.
Mr.. Boynoff states that the duma
which was formed after the Japanese
Russian war, has had no voice in
the government which, as all know,
has been plutocracy. The senate
is the highest governmental body,
but has no power to veto the car :;
torders. On the other hand, the czar
may veto any measure of the SEN
ate he sees fit. Mr.. Boynoft
says that schools are open to
all Russians, but not compulsory.
One per cent only of the Jews may
attend the Russian school. His
nephew, George Boynoff, of whom an
interesting story was told two years
ago concerning his spectacular es-
cape to America to avoid service IT,
the Russian army, was one of two
Jewish boys in 4 school of two hun
Edred Russians, so something of the
strictness with which this one per
cent is obeyed may be easily seem
The Jewish boy is educated by the
rabbi and the Jewish girl in her own
home, or with private instruction of
some kind.
The peasant class of Russia have a
chance to become physicians, law
yers, etc, if they so desire.
The Russian senate dictates to the
church which is Orthodox Greek Ca
tholic, but occasionally there have
been reactonaries among the priests
who have led upen rebellions, as
few years ago.
The Russian peasant is h eavil "
taxed and his knowledge of the new
law or the new tax. or whatever
it may be, comes in the form of
lukase which is posted conspicuously
or published. 1t is inevitably sign
led by the car and the peasants sigh
and shake their heads, saying in
Russian, 1T is no use. The car is
far off and God is too high" mean
ling that obedience to the ukase is
the only recourse open to them.
When the tax collectors come
Iaround they collect. There is no put
ting them off until you have the mo-
|ney, or indeed until you have any
money at all, for if you have not
the money they will take what You
have that looks unnecessary or lux
|urious. One time when Mr.. Boyn-
off was little child he remembers
the tax collectors arriving at his
home when his mother had no money
in the house and the father was not
there, so the soldiers took couple
'of pillows with them. He ran il,
haste to his father then, telling of
the occurrence, so that the father
might go to the police station or city
hall and redeem the pillows. Mr.
Boynoff says he has known of their
taking the windows out of house
in lieu of money. Taxes are fearful
ly high and nearly everything which
might be construed as luxurious Is
taxed. This coupled with the fact
that the wages are low. has made q
condition of poverty almost unpar-
alleled in the world.
The government owns the rail-
roads and keeps restricting finger