Show THE RUSSIAN SUFFERING COUNT LEO TOLSTOI ToL the eminent russian bussian nov novelist elst and philanthropist has baa a six column article on the famine among his bla countrymen in a recent issue of the new york world he begins by referring briefly to the acquaintance of the outside world with s the condition c ondi tion and locality of tile the famine stricken districts this having been accomplished by means of mail and telegraphic communication and the press and the reproaches bestowed because of alleged apathy and indifference these reproaches he claims to be exaggerated if not entirely ground low loss and 1 I have 19 1 9 9 he mp come to the conclusion that society mind and the have ben straining every nerve to help them and that their efforts have attained a degree often slon sion which admits only of relaxation not of increase of energy so bo also he says the central government are doing their contributions contribution being in the form of alms public works and gratuitous fuel these efforts added 0 fc those of charitable societies churches churchea journalists men of letters and the more wealthy in the various departments of life are all that could be expected he says if the results of all these efforts are inadequate the fault is a not essentially with the government or society the relations relation of the government to the people are more to blame and these he makes clear prefacing his explanations with the ats startling ertling statement that the culminating point of the dis distress has not yet been reached two things which appear to the author as the cardinal omissions in that behalf ire are the failure to supply seed corn to the peasantry who needed it and not giving them gratuitous fuel from the state forests fo reata these theae faults seem to us so simple so easily overcome that it is only by a perusal of the entire article we can be made to understand how it is in that such seemingly trivial circumstances con the keynote in the great wall wail of distress that surges up and out from the muscovite most mod of the seed corn furnished came so go late lutki that itt ff not abedin and the hungry h ones were ere compelled to devour it it at once instead of reserving it for the use designed and of the fuel distribution tolstoi that on n september 18 permission permission ier mission was accorded to the families of necessitous farmers to gather dry wood in the forests belonging to the state which however were situated at such considerable distances from the villages on which this privilege was conferred that the peasants none of whom had bad any hay for their horses found it absolutely impossible to cart it home I 1 know for certain that in my district not a single peasant pro fifed difed by the boon 2 this represents a state of affairs not confined to one or a few instances or localities but is widespread and general being dwelt upon by the writer at considerable length the question as to whether there is famine or only a panic prevalent in the stricken districts tolstoi answers by a characteristic illustration if you want to patch a hole in a coat or other garment it behooves you first of all to find out the size and shape of the rent this is the first step which any reasonable man would think of taking faking but as it happens it is precis precisely elv about the shape and size of the rent in the he welfare of the russian people that the representatives presenta tives of the latter and the government are now at sizes sixes and sevens the authorities maintain bat it its so very small and imperceptible that no patch is needed that a patch of any kind would only spoil the garme garment tit and render it unfit tor for wear the former contend that it is so immense that all the cloth available would not suffice to cover it and while they both stand there wrangling and waxing hot the icy wind is blowing through the hole and the limbs of the unfortunate wearer are becoming stiff and numb and then he summarizes his answer by setting forth what he saw with his own eyes in some places the people were eating bread containing contain ine thirty to fifty per cent pigweed this being not black that to is dark or brown when applied to broad brand but inky black heavy clammy and bitter and this is the stuff which young and old weak and sickly consume delicate little children eat it women before and after childbirth are nourished on it mothers who their newborn children draw from it whatever strength and nutriment it can rive give and the sick and dying teed feed the flickering lamp of life with it idt similar instances are numerous and even harder cases cam not dot infrequent such as a peasant selling three of the four wooden walls of his him hut and burning the fourth for fuel buying potato stalks of a landlord and the buyer binding himself to till an equal about of land to that from which the stalks or vines were taken in payment the situation is so ap appalling so an unbrokenly nilse miserable do 0 o unbearably heartbreakingly distressful that moral restraints are am broken down drunkenness prevails whenever and wherever the opportunity comei for it and it really seems that if tha th prevailing distress were to be relieved relieve altogether the train rain of evils ent entailed aile upon the people as a consequence of their heir sufferings have taken atoo too firm a hold to be for a long period entirely overcome it is indeed a terrible terrible tale |