Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1920-02-06
SIBERIA AS Seen BY
A MONTPELIER BOY
Some Of the Financial and Social Conditions of
Russia are Told by Forrest Stuart in the
Third InStallment of His Article.
CONTINUED from last week)

CONTINUED from last week)
1t is not difficult for these people
to make q living. When in need Of
bread they make raid on a settle
ment. The rivers and lakes are full
Of the finest kinds Of fishing and no
where in the world is there better
hunting than there is here. The
Chinese Golden Pheasant, one of the
prettiest birds to be found in the
ZOOS of America, exists here in abund-
ance. In the woods, hills and noun
tains are many varieties Of big game,
including wild boars, deer. elk. an
telope and bears. Evidently there is
another kind of animal here that no
one ever heard Of. While over in the
quiet, little village of Mulin, Man.
churia, not long ago, went for
walk early one morning before break
fast. Passing through a grove OF
trees near a summer resort start
ed for an interesting looking cave
up in the side of hill. AS neared
its entrance / noticed some tracks
that were quite different from any
! had ever seen before-sort Of a
cross between those of a camel and
an alligator. Having left my revol-
yer in the car l turned round and
walked briskly back to town where
I had another narrow escape in that
/ was nearly trampled under hoof
by a bull that came pacing up the
street, ridden by-a Chinaman who
Garfield q red flag.
Russia ia the largest country In the
world. 1t covers and area of Sh mil
lion square miles, which is equal to
that OF the moon, according to t..
astronomers. In land Of such di-
mensions perhaps it ds only nat
ural that the people should think SO
easily in huge figures. They speak Of
1000 miles as IL they were four
blocks. Their thermometers regis
ter about six inches below zero while
ours hover around the freezing point.
Stuffed into one Of my pockets are
fifteen thousand Siberian rubles.
With them one could buy happy
home and all that goes with 1t be-
fore the war. Today they are worth
about thirty dollars. The financial
system is one of the country's great
est problems. Prior to the war q
Romanoff ruble had the value of so
cents in American money. Since the
fall of the Gear other kinds OF ru-
blues have been issued-Kerensy,
Siberian and Horvat-and 1t is now
runored that the present government
is going to turn out another brand
soon. In vladivostok the Siberian ru-
BILE is acceptable; IN other parts OF
Siberia and Manchuria 1t is not. The
value Of this money Is constantly
fluctuating. On the Hardin exchange
recently, new money printed in Amer
lea was placed on par with Siber-
ian, which was quoted at ITS for one
American gold dollar. Horvat mon
ey was placed on a par with Keren-
sky. These two issues-Horvat and
Kerensky, small money, had been on
the same par with Romanoff. The
fact that the value OF the rubie
compared with gold dollar may be
100 to l one day and the next day
$50 to 1 makes it quite impossible
to regulate salaries or to negotiate
any legitimate business.
The Cars government in building
the Trans-Siberian Railway intended
it for military, and mot for CONNER
cial purposes. The system is lightly
constructed, and will have to be en-
tirely rebuilt IL it ie ever to handle
the heavy loads that are carried over
the roads of the United States. In
it's best days. the Trans-Siberian was
operated at loss. At this time the
price of a ticket from VladiyostoA
to Nikolsk, SO miles away, 10 about
rs cents, and all other fares are in
proportion. But for the fact that
for the last two years the Aiiiei
have been advancing funds viii
which to run this road the singls
artery that feeds Russia's interior
p0pulaee-it would be in a condition
Of utter collapse.
The Enter-Aiiied Railway ccmmis
sion, Of which the Russian Railwa,
Service Corps, under the able direc
ton OF Mr.. John r. Stevens and Col
ouel George H. Emerson, is . unit
has been, and stu In, endeavUrini
to put the Trans Siberian Railroad in
TO good working order, but so "a
has not accomplished great deal
owing to the lack OF cooperation OF
the pert Of the ''naehaliniks" (offi
cials) of the system. These officials
though graduates Of one of the tech
meal courses OF one Of the seyera
universities. look with more or les
indifference upon the suggestions OF
fered for the betterment Of their ser