The Hope pioneer. [volume] (Hope, N.D.) 1882-1964, 1920-05-27
PROBLEMS FACING
STRICKEN WORLD
Shall Chaos or Reconstruction in
Europe Follow the Great
World War;
RUssIA's GRAVE MORAL ERROR
Forcible Seizure Of Land Understand.
able, but to Be Regretted as Max
ino a Precedent to Justify
Dishonesty.
Article XIX.

OtSToVG0Sys
Article XIX.
BY FRANK coMERFoRD.
An examination of Russia, the pa
tient, just before the treatment was
started, reveals several findings which
are necessary to complete the history
and physical examination.
Russia was 78 per cent i~literate.
This means that nearly four-ifths of
the people in Russia could not read
or write. 1t does not mean that they
could not think. There Is as great q
difference between illiteracy and in
%telligence as there is between illiteracy
and ignorance. l have met many Rus
sian peasants who could not read or
write, who had good native minds,
genuine power of reasoning-home-
spun thinkers. The head of Russia
had not been trained, but it was not
empty.
There are many reasons for The H.
literacy of the great majority of Rus.
sian people. The %autocratic state was
the principal conspirator against the
Russian people getting an education.
The autocrats knew that ignorance is
the greatest insurance against up
rislngs, the greatest sedative to keep
the slave from complaining. The
Church in Russia, the Orthodox
Church, was used to keep the light
from the people. The czar was the
Little Father" the divine agent of
God on earth. and the "Unholy Synod"
of the Russian Church bowed, not be-
fore the Christ, but bent low before
the z They betrayed Christ, even
as they betrayed the sons and daugh-
tiers of men. their own blood, the Rus
sian peasants and toilers.
Religion Their Only soIace.
The people of Russia held firmly
to their faith in God. The rest and
ease their faith gave them was the
only comfort they had. In moments
of intense religious communion they
were lifted out Of themselves and for
seconds forgot their burdens. These
seconds were long spaces Of relief.
green spots in the endless desert waste
of life.
How Christ must have wcpt when he
witnessed the "Holy Synod" the
monkish r%ascals. with their sacrilegious
icons, %silencing the protests Of souls,
throttling the cry for freedom. by
quoting in his name that those
who suffered most here would be high
est In heaven. A blasphemy, a cor
ruption Of the Lowly One, who used
the word brotherhood to define equal
ity, and the fatherhood of God to ex-
press the justice that man owed to
man.
1t was agreed by and between the
Holy Synod and the cars that the
Russian worshipers Of God must not
know how to read or write his name.
So 1t was that the orthodox church
Of Russia used religion to insult God
and hold his creatures in bondage. It
was the only great church in the
world that did not provide prayer
books for its members. 1t was ar
gued that If the people had prayer
books they would learn to read, and
If they read the Christ message on the
Sabbath they might read other strange
and dangerous books on Monday and
Tuesday and the other days of the
week. They might misuse their abil-
ity to read, and read things like the
American Declaration Of Independ.
ence. The churches of the Byzantine
painted the story Of religion on the
side of its walls. They gave the peo-
pie an education by the picture book
method we use for children before
they have reached the kindergarten
age.
eoIshevism Officially Launched.
The birth certificate of bolshevism
was issued on November 10. 1917.
"The All-Russian Congress of the
Councils Of Workingmen's. Soldiers
and Peasants Deputies DEGREES the
form of the administration Of the
country, PENDING THE MEETING
OF THE CONSTITUENT ASSEM-.
BLY,. The provisional workers and
peasants government Is to be called
the Council Of Peoples Commission
ers. The administration of the indi.
vidual branches of state life is to be
entrusted to boards, the composition
Of which Is to secure the carrying out
Of the program proclaimed by the con-
gress in close contact with the organ
izations of workers. sailors, soldiers,
peasants and employees. The gov
eminent authority belongs to the board
and chairmen Of these commissioners.
that is, to the peoples commissioners.
and the right Of systematizing them
belongs to the All-Russian Congress
of the Councils Of Workmen's and
Peasants and Soldiers Delegates and
its Central Executive Committee"
The government of the car was au.
tocratic, not because 1t was a bad gov
eminent and misgoverned the people.