Bonners Ferry herald. [volume] (Bonners Ferry, Idaho) 1904-current, 1920-11-02
DEATH STALKS
IN PETROGRAD
PEOPLE ARE STARVING TO
DEATH AND PLAQUES KILL
THOUSANDS OF OTHERS
RED CROSS MAKES REPORT
City Has Shrunk to One-fourth Its
Pre-war Size-One Wood Yard Is
Turning Out 10000 Collins a
Month and This Is too Few

Paris, Oct. "A graphic, eye wit
ness description of the fearful condi
tons existing in Petrograd is giyel
by the Finnish Red Cross in an appea
just issued 70 the Red Cross societies
of the world. II is accompanied b,
documents prepared by Professor Eel
der, formerly head of the PetrograC
Red Cross, but now refugee in Fin
| land The documents, which reached
the Paris bureau of the American Rec
Cross yesterday. tell the story Of tn,
agony Of dying city.
Petrograd's present population, bias
ed on the food cards, now is from
100000 to 100000, and the former cap
ital of the car Is described AS having
shrunk TO one-fourth its pre-war size
The report says
death stalks on every side waiting
for winter to aid in the grim work OF
moving down the silent, hungry. sick
and dying thousands. With streets
and houses choked with filth that is
already spreading spotted and inter-
mittent typhoid, the cold weather will
finish the task with pneumonia and
typhus.
'"rhe fuel situation was never so bad.
Wooden houses have been torn down
for fuel. The material is distributed
equally among the population, but dur
ing the night the more active citizen,
steal the quota of wood from others.
1.-THE wood yards have been national
lied. One of them has been given up
entirely to the manufacture of 10000
coffins monthly. But even this mum
Der is insufficient. People have mol
time to bury the dead, and the bodies
take their turn, waiting several days.
"Only one important tramway line
Is in operation. and that runs TO the
suburbs. In the center of the city,
either there is no street cars or they
run very rarely.
Attempts TO repair the streets,
which are full of holes. owing to burst
ing water pipes, failed because the
wood blocks used for pavement had
been stolen during the night for fuel.
kerosene costs $50 rubles a pound.
There are no candles. Most homes are
in darkness. There is no means Of
transporting things by waterway, be
cause the barges were long since de-
moIished for fuel.
1.-THE railway distribution is devot-
ed almost exclusively TO the distribu-
tlon of flour Only 200 persons are
permitted to leave Petrograd daily by
passenger train. Workmen receive
half pound of bread daily, and some
times other food is given. The prices
of foodstuffs continue to rise to in
credible heights.
'The monthly mortality has reached
n startling rate owing TO the lack of
food and unsanitary conditions of
houses and streets. Fat has left the
majority of the population long ago. At
present the muscular tissue is consum
ed The faces of people have taken
on wax-like color.
"There is no fuel, no hot water
baths. no janitor doorkeeper or serv
ants for cleaning yards, streets, build
ings. or for the removal of garbage.
The government appointed special
sanitary commission with sweeping au
thority, hut the commission, accom-
plished nothing. The commission is
housed in a building where the heat
ing plant is out of order and the
water system and toilets are not run
ming.
'Petrograd Is facing dreadful /
phantom Of epidemics. Thousands are /
already dying every month of spotted,
abdominal and intermittent typhus,
dysentery, Spanish Influenza, smallpox, /
pulmonary diseases. hunger and ex-
haustion.
THE healthy people Of Petrograd /
have puffed faces and baggy eyes with
sallow compilations They are all suf-
'ering from hunger and inclpient, drop
" brought about by almost complete
absence of albuminous elements and
'ats.
The report concludes as follows:
cit is impossible not to be mortified
" the scene in every day life of the
inhabitants of Petrograd.
L is impossible not to be moved by
heir struggle with hunger, the wealth
II, and by the 1000 deaths occurring
very day, which threaten the speedy
lying off Of the remainder of the pop
llation of this former great Russian ;
'apital."