Evening star., 1922-01-28
PROFESSOR PLEADS
| FOR A|DTO RUSSIA
Science, Morals and Culture
of Future Hang in Bal
ance, Says Letter.

An appeal has come to Commo-
dore J. S. Brown. U. S. N, retired,
formerly Of the United States Naval
Academy. from Prof. II. J. Backlund
Of Wiberg. Finland on behalf of 1900
refugee Russian children in Finland.
Would IT be possible to interest
American men OF science in the un-
fortunate young Russian people in
Finland. who need education and are
aware OF the necessity to learn in the
interests OF the future Russian" asks
Prof Backlund, in a letter to Prof
Brown, who was a one time connect
ed with the naval observatory here
They need $500 a month for these
l'oVo children, the writer says. Com
fnodore Brown is giving the matter
great consideration, and probably will
! .aahe every endeavor shortly to in
.erest the scientists of this country,
! especially the astronomers, in the
Russian Science Dying.
Conditions in Russia are related by
FroI: ,.1 backiund, who said. in part:
ne Russian science Is dying and
VII! become extinct. II nobody comes
10 the rescue. Many members of the
Academy OF Science broke down under
terrible prfvations. Seventy-e.ght pro-
lessors died during the last three
ssears. the greatest part of starva-
nave been shot by the bolsheviks.
The remaining have no chance to
Work Tor their science, the physicists
ana chemists have no gas no electric
current for their experiments, no
light and more, they have no paper.
no pencils.
But there is no help for these un-
fortunate men as long as the bolshe-
Hih are In power, and with them the
Russian science will die out Per-
eaps you will answer. that the rising
generation will continue their work
after the end of this regime.
But 1t is not SO. The next genera
tlon VIII not be able to continue the
work OF those dying representatives
OF Russian science.
And what moral education those
poor children get in Russia. 1t would
lead US too far. should 1 try to give
you a full picture of that side Of
, schooi life, but here only a few facts:
no religion. no obedience to parents
and authorities except the leaders Of
bolshevism much unoccupisd time
and In the boarding schools, boys and
girls together without any superin-
tendent. all sortAof literature of the
meanest sorts at their disposal The
Iesults OF such an education you can
nnd in the bolshevik papers-S0 per
cent OF the children are suffering of
Eenereal rnaladies. girls of fourteen
fifteen years mothers. Those rising
generations will never be able to sue
ceed the dying. =:
$4,000 I'm Finland.
There are in Finland about $4,000
refugees. among them l.500 children
in school age. But their parents are
unfortunate refugees, who left their
whole property in Russia, robbed by
the bolshevik. and have no chance Of
finding work, because Finland is a
small country. With great efforts
and help from better situated Rus
SANS abroad. we succeeded in main
tanning eleven schools for 1000 pu-
pills. But now the means are ex-
hausted. and We face the necessity
OF shutting our schools. These chill
dren are the hope of the future Rus
sia, they Will be the teachers, the sus-
tanners OF morals, culture and knowl-
edge.
we Russians know very well the
magnanimity of the American people
and are daily witnesses to Il: the
starving and needy Russian refugees
receive from the American Red Cross
nour. bacon and milk, for MANY the
only means OF existence. But the hu-
man being needs not bread alone FOR
his body, he also needs mental nufri.
ment."