The Colville examiner. [volume] (Colville, Wash.) 1907-1948, 1919-09-13
,mber 49, 1919 $1.5O Year in Advance; Sc Copy

Forks to Greenwood. The first half
of this distance the road passes
by the finest kept farms of grain
and forests of orchards, and the
clusters of farm houses here rise to
the dignity of villages, almost, both
in point of number of buildings and
population. We saw prosperous
looking men, and comely women,
neatly attired in cotton suits, the
women with clean white cotton
squares pinned over their heads, and
we wondered what manner of
people? At the top Of range of
hills we stopped for spell at
spring that had been piped down to
the road where it spouted into
watering trough, and from there had
fine view over the broad valley of
the Kettle river. And dotting
the country below were large, square,
two-story structures, some frame,
others brick. Those of brick were
trimmed in blue and the frame build
ings were painted blue throughout.
On most of the farms there were
two of these houses. These are the
homes of the Dukhobors, the spirit
wrestlers, expelled in 1885 from
Russia where they thrived as an in
dependent sect principally in Caucas-
sus. They came, several thousand
of them, about 25 years ago to AL
berta, and attracted the attention of
the world by their strange practice
of discarding all clothing when they
congregated at their place of wor-
ship. About 15 years ago 1000 of
them, nude men and women and
children, marched through the coun-
try in body in search of the
Messiah, who, they believed, was be-
yond each hill that came to their
view. Not finding him at the first
hill they would go on to the next,
thus continuing their quest until
halted and dispersed by the mounted
police. They then came to British
Columbia and bought large holdings
in the Kettle river valley. The
Dukhobor is said to have no holy
days nor AN ordained ministry. 1t
is said of them that they believe in
the practice of killing all physically
imperfect children born into the
world in order to add physical
strength to the balance Of the race.
They live in community and are
said to practice free love rather than
foster the institutions of marrige.
We were told they have no educa-
tional system, but our time being
limited we did not verify this. Like
the Hindoo, they shrink from food
or apparel resulting from the sacri-
flee Of any animal which accounts
for them refusing to wear wool or
skins in any form.
Not far from the road was a
threshing scene and we were at
tracted there by the numerous COM
pany of elders with their children.
All of them seemed busy and we
walked over to get better acquainted
with the curious situation. We were
received with show of much cor
diality. Twenty or more children,
out of sheer curiosity, ran over to
meet us and swarmed about as we
walked into the inclosure. The boys
and girls alike wore long cotton
dresses. and their heads were shing
led. A half dozen men and as many
women were toiling on a threshing
floor prepared on the ground by
leveing compass 200 feet in dia-
meter, around on the outside Of
which were several stacks of grain
in the sheaf, the product of num-
Der of farms in the vicinity which
had contributed to this community
(Continued IN mn ga nIne.1