Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1919-1980, 1921-09-05
Death Toll
OF Famine
Runs High

Samara, Russia, Sept. 5.-Hun-
ger and death go virtually unno-
ticed in the streets and alleys OF
Samara. Refugees from famine
districts near this city, estimated
from thirty to fifty thousand. are 7
huddled together in deserted
buildings, unused factories, tat
tered tents and in wagons massed
about the open spaces about the
railroad stations and the docks
along the Volga river.
Hunger, typhus, cholera and
exhaustion are carrying off hun
dreds Of these miserable fugitives,
young children falling victims
readily to the famine and its at
ltendant scourges. Bedraggled and
ragged refugees are constantly
carrying pine coffins toward the
cemetery where unpainted wood
} en- crosses mark hundreds OF new
graves which have been dug since
the flight before the advancing
famine began. From fifty to one
hundred starving children are
gathered up daily from the streets,
or turned over to the central ref
uge, by parents who cannot feed
them. Many of these little suffer-
ers have typhus fever. but the
hospitals are without beds and
medicine.
Relief News Doubted
: Samara's only newspaper, a SIN
gle sheet Of brown paper, has
printed an announcement that the
American relief administration 8
workers have reached Moscow and
that 100000 tons OF American
. food is en- route to Russia. The
, discouraged and hungry popula-
ton, however, is loath to believe
that aid will come. and with Rus
sian stoicism, the thousands OF
refugees moving through this
great railway center are camping
> along the highways and endeayor-
ing to obtain railway rides to any
, place where food may be secured.
4 Vladimir Soksolsky, chairman
: of the Samara provincial soviet
q told the Associated Press last week
! that 500 carloads OF seed grain
' had already arrived from Moscow
! and that enough was expected TO
enable the peasants OF samara
q nrovince to sow approximately l.
[ o00. 600 acres of wheat for the
next harvest. samara usually
I plants an area OF ten times thii
extent but this year the area sowr
amounted TO only 100000 acres
" and the crop was almost a faii
e ure because OF the drought.
a Children Killed
e Although transportation Is dii
o fieult. NJ. soksolsky said the en-
i tire peasant population Of 2'5oo'
.e 600 would be dependent upol
ie outside food by November. Airead'
6 100000 peasants are withou
'e bread. this number including o.
600 children who have been piac
ed in soviet homes.
Conditions at Semayenkena'
village 80 miles from SamaTa an
remote from railway or river com
munications, are typical OF IN
misery existing throughout IN
nrovince OF samara. The peasant
j here are eating bread from me-
v ON rinds. sunflower seed and gras
p, seed One mother killed her bap
- last week. saying she could nc
= hear 10 see It starve. os>er moti
4 era are threatening to kill thel
te children. One woman with 81
E children said to the Associate
ef press: ,,,s-.,
sYou know, Il takes children
ID long 10 die. Il Is too horrioie
4 watch them shriyel up.
he one old woman showed the co
n rsspoudent a loaf Of mouldy gree
~ bresd and then. pointing to
"a flour min surmounted BY a win
"a Wheel. she begged send US som
( thing 10 grind. Il has been
VI long since there has been any re-
bread"