Evening star., 1922-03-07
by HAL O'FLAHERTY.l
Special Correspondence Of The Star and Uhicag,
Daiiy News

life. There are thousands Of orphaned
children, eight thousand men and
women who fed for their lives after
Kronstadt last spring. and ten thou
sand others who have fled from Rus
sia at other times because their lives
were not safe, their property con-
flscated and the clothes torn from
their backs. They are fed through
the charity Of Americans and shelter
ed through the charity of Finland and
they continue to live through the
charity of Divine Providence that
inures soul against suffering when
the limit of human endurance has
been reached.
Pursuing the Karelians.
1t seemed to me last spring, when
from Kronstadt with bolshevik bull
lets snarling at their heels. that sure
ly the last act Of the tragedy had been
enacted, that the people of northern
Russia had had enough Of killing one
sansculottism. But the end was not
reached then. nor has 1T BEEN reached
today, for another and even more ter
rible influx of refugees has begun. this
time with something worse than
death stalking behind. The bolsheviki
East Karelia for daring to call upon
an outside country for help and for
having the unusual courage to refuse
to stand and deliver go per cent Of
their meager rations Of food to the
benevolent government in Moscow.
Some who read this article may
wonder where Karelia is and who
and what the Karelian people are. II
line were drawn straight north from
Petrograd to the arctic circle. 1t would
run, roughly. through the center of
East Karelia. 1t is a country of pri-
meval forests, chained lakes and scat
tered villages. The karelians are for
the most part OF Finnish origin and
their culture has come mostly from
Finland. The Firms built their roads
and their schools and developed their
industries. A hundred years ago Kare-
liza was recognised as part of Finland,
but succeeding generations have re-
arranged the frontier largely to the
economic benefit of Russia.
Interference With Plebiscite.
When the government of Finland
signed the treaty. Of peace with the
parties agreed that the Karelians
should be allowed to vote on the ques.
ton of their allegiance to Russia or
Finland. By signing this agreement
that the Karelians had some claim
to self-determination. A majority of
the people resident in Karelia had
expressed a desire for the plebiscite
and actually believed that the soviet
government inclined to ALLOW them
Attempts were made repeatedly to
have this promised vote, but each
time the bolsheviki. through the work
of secret police and red Finnish
villages in the south where the reds
were in the majority a ballot was
taken under the strict supervision of
police agents and red guardists. but
the effect was to make travesty OF
All during the last summer the
leaders Of the Karelians in the north
complained bitterly regarding the op-
pressive measures instituted by the
: commissars of the red government.
tendencies were taxed numerically.
Certain influential men in the viii
lagos who leaned strongly toward
affiliation with Finland were arrest
| ed and sent to Petrograd for mock
| trials before the extraordinary COM
by the patriotic Karelians and sent
| to Helsingfors with formal protests,
| which were transmitted by the Fin
| ish government to Moscow without
! the slightest effect.
Conascate Karelian Crops.
1t was the collection of the revic-
| tualing tax by the bolsheviki that
alton and brought about the revolt
that Is now being mercilessly crushed
by Trotsky's red guardists. The
CROP in Karelia last summer was
very poor, and in some villages the
seed grain was being used to make
to be long and exceptionally severe.
At the very moment when the peas
ants began feeling the pinch of
| hunger the bolsheviki sent around
armed collectors. demanding SO per
cent of the harvests. and later, when
the required amount. 1t was decreed
that those who failed should lose all
Of their crops by confiscation. With
out any regard for the plight Of the
peasants from whom they were TAX
ing the last ounce Of bread, the boil
sheviki carried out this decree. 1eav-
ing nearly every village in Karelia
with hardly a months supply of
grain and meat.
Rumors of the discomfort in Karelia
reached H Helsingfers sing and nd V Vibosg daily ally
1t was not believed that the Karelians
were strong enough to offer active
resistance. On November 8, without
warning that military operations
were under way. word came from the
attacked and defeated the bolshevik
garrison at KEN. village Of con-
siderable size lying north and east
of Lake Ladoga. The attackers were
too poorly equipped and too thinly
clad to be called an organized army.
They had only few small detach-
ments mounted on skis, armed with
sport rifles and few guns that had
been smuggled across from Finland.
The initial success was so encourag-
ing that every village in the northern
section of Karelia sent every man
and boy capable # bearing arms to
join their countrymen in the fight for
Reffer Than caIomel