Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1918-01-03
A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD IN
WAR Time
BY URIAH S. JAMES.

WOIhmcH dL GillS LlI1c VI cLni IihS :" ~
volution and the entire plant was
placed under heavy guard; the men
were not allowed to congregate unless
there was a representative of the Police
Department present. At the theatre
there was a certain number of seats re-
served for members Of the police force.
The men were allowed one holiday a
month besides their regular church
holidays In case they took any more
they were Immediately placed in Jail.
The Jail, however, was too small to
accommodate them all so there was al
ways large waiting list.
The next city visited was Moscow.
Moscow is holy city and it was here
that all cars were crowned. There
are over 800 churches in Moscow and
in the tower of each of these there is a
set of Ginning bells. For the entire
week before Easter Sunday these bells
are rung almost necessarily by boys,
one for each bell, who stand up in the
belfry with rope tied to the clapper.
Harmony is the fartherest from their
thoughts. If they were being paid for
making noise | would say they certain
ly earned their money.
The Kremlin is the chief attraction
for visitors in Moscow This, in
reality, is a fortress enclosed by high
thick wall which is pierced in five
places by gates. One gate is called the
Gate of the Redeemer and over this is
hung a portrait. No man dares to pass
through here without removing his hat
regardless of what his religious belief
may be.
On the way through the Kremlin you
pass through the arsenal yard: On one
side of the walk are enormous quaint
ties of bronze cannons setting in
groups; these were left by Napoleon
after his invasion. There are also
quite number of Austrian and Ger
man cannons which have been captured
and placed in this collection during the
last few years. The mother of them all
stands just at the end Of the group a
colossal piece of bronze weighing forty
tons with an eighteen inch bore; this is
called the Gar cannon. A little
further along you see a bell setting on
the ground. This bell weighs two
hundred tons and was broken while
attempting to place it in the belfry.
The piece which was broken out weighs
several tons and lays by it's side.
There are some churches in the
Kremlin which were erected over four
hundred years ago; and as the guide
takes you through he shows you the
tombs of all the former cars and
members of the royal family; also the
altar on which the cZars crowned them
selves, as well as the magnificent
jewels worn by the royalty.
Your guide tells you the entire
history connected with all these and
talks continuously. After he has taken
you through you hand him thirty
kopecks, or fifteen cents, and he is
highly pleased.
The entrances to these churches are
infested by beggars. They are pious
creatures who bow and cross them
selves again and again as you pass by.
They are professionals and their victims
seem to be the peasant class. They be-
lieve in team work as they sit in pairs
on each side Of the entrance and when
they see you coming they bow their
heads almost to the ground, crossing
themselves at the same time. I
walking into one of these
places a short distance behind rather an
aged woman. When they saw her
coming they got busy and she donated
very freely to each. After she had
passed they turned and looked at each
other with broad smile as much as to
say it worked fine that time.
The city streets are narrow and
crooked being paved with round cobble
stones. as you pass over them in a
droschkie the life is almost shaken out
of you.
You see wounded soldiers every
where. They have their heads and
arms swathed in bandages, and in
most cases they are under the guidance
of red cross nurse who may have
dozen or more in charge guiding them
through the traffic and looking after
them as though they were so many
children. There are also large num-
bers of Polish and Roumanian refugees
wandering about, poverty stricken and
with hunger staring them in the face,
their sole possessions strapped on their
backs. Under these circumstances it
is quite remarkable to see thousands of
pigeons flying about and on the corner
is a man who makes business of SELL
ing dried peas to passers by who are
willing t6spend their last Kopeck for a