Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-06-29
ONLY DESIRE OF
RUSS OF TODAY
IS TO FIGHT REDS
PoCket-Edition General Forces
Soldiers to Take at Least
One Bath Each
Week.

Archangel. June %. (By The As
sociated Press).-Six months ago
Archangel was gay, wartime CAP
ital, with hundreds of Russian SOL
ders in its streets and very few of
them at the front. Today it is be-
coming sober, businesslike and en-
gagged in only one pursuit-hghting
the bolsheviki.
The change came about in the
winter. Last autumn the Russian
military forces were small and the
civilian and promenade-the streets
officer class made merry while
Americans and British and French
fought their battles at the front.
But all the time, the people were
being modified and trained. There
was doubt in nearly every mind
about the ability of the newly
trained Russians to fight. Late in
the winter, when the bolshevik Of
fensive was at its height, Russian
mobilized troops were thrown into
the line. They made good, and from
that moment, with only few little
setbacks now and then, the Russians
have been keeping up the pass.
For six months they relied upon
strangers to fight for them. but from
the moment they began to find
themselves, the Russians developed
a morale that has brought about
countless changes not only at the
front but behind the lines, in once
easy-going Archangel.
Real General at Head.
Pushing them on has been a lit
tie pocket edition general. dynamic
personality in plump fve-foot
frame--Nladimir Marushevsky, COM
mander of the Russian
troops of the north. Once i'll COM
mard of Russian troops in France,
he came to Archangel to push the
reorganization of the Russian army
His orders to the Russian soldiers
and officers were as startling to the
analytic, verbose Slavic population
as they were laconic.
ut has come to my attention."
read one of them, that there has
been much useless chattering about
certain subjects among the officers.
Henceforth. there will be no more
babbling'
Every one in Archangel knew
what that meant-that political sub
jects were to be taboo in the North
Russian army.
The revolution Russian army
was clean, compulsorily so, but
after two years of disorder the SOL
diers were not so particular about
soap and water.
General Marushevsky, who, CARRIED
in plain, simple uniform without the
gaudy coloring or fancy swords al
fected by some of his subordinates,
went among the soldiers and talked
to them frequently. So he ordered
a compulsory weekly bath for every
man in the army.
ut is impossible, there are not
enough bath houses in Archangel,"
complained some OF his company
and battalion commanders. . am
not Interested in how you battle
them" said another order from the
dynamic little general. That is up
to you. I will hear no excuses;
every soldier must have his weekly
bath"
Have Weekly Bath.
And now, nearly every day ore
may see in Archangel a company or
80 of singing soldiers, marching to
! bath house with their bundles OF
clean linen under their arms. The
atmosphere of Archangel has GER
tainly improved.
Practically every able-bodied Rus
sion in Archangel and the province,
between 18 and As, has been mobi-
lied, and those beneath and above
the limits-the school boys and the
middle-aged men, have joined volun-
tarily the civic guard and militia.
In the parks, on the streets and IN
back yards one may see little groups
OF high school boys or bearded men.
mastering military evolutions and
the technique of an army rifle, under
instruction of army officers or non
CONS. -.
The city feels keenly this new
spirit of patriotism. The other day,
when some eight or nine Of the mid
dle-aged business men of this civic
guard failed to report for duty. the
newspapers put them to disgrace by
publishing their names in display
type.
tween. The women, joined in a pa
triatic society, are going to the front
as canteen workers, or engaged at
home in Red Cross activities: ;,
Yesterday, when boat-load OF
the new Russian soldiers went up
the Dvina to the front, their fam
lilies gathered at the dock to cheer
them. In the ranks of the privates
were men who had been bankers,
wealthy lumber men and dock hands
for the modified army makes no
distinction of class or wealth.
No one denies that allied assist
ance is still necessary, as the popu-
la.ion of the north is too small to
produce a large force, but, to all
evidences, the Russians here have
found themselves and can play
constantly growing part in their
own civil war