CONDITIONS IN RUSSIA

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 81, 31 December 1918, Page 3

CONDITIONS IN RUSSIA

A DELAYED DISPATCH. The confusing character of much of the news from .Russia is partly accounted for by the fact that messages are often greatly delayed in transmission. The following Associated Press dispatch, though it is dated June 30, did not reach America for publication until last' month. Moscow, June 30. The average Eussian wants bread and rest from the turmoil through which he has been passing for the last four years, and he believes he will eventually find these two blessings. He doesn't know exactly how, but he's hopeful. The Russian public '"s struggling along with grent. patience, making the most of its very limited food supply, making over its much-worn clothing, polishing its shabby shoes and getting all tho amusement it can out of life by attending the theatres and visiting the summer gardens. Moscow's bread allowance is one-quar-ter of a pound daily for eaeli person— if he gets it And the quality of tho bread varies so greatly ■ that there is much bettin? and jesting daily as to what sort of bread tho food committees will supply the following day. Straw Portion of Brsao. Straw enters largely into the composition of the bread supplied to Moscow, Petrograd, and other cities far from the grain-producing centres. Sometimes the straw is chopped so finely it cannot be detected. On other days it is so coarse and abundant in the loaf that straws an inch long may be found. A recent cartoon in the Moscow "Novoye Vremya" showed nn old man plaiting a straw 'hat. Two urchins wearing straw hats playing at his feet, and a loif of bread from which long straws were protruding lay.on tho tab'le. A neighbour who 6tood beside tho weaver inquired:— 'How do you find the bread these days ?" The reply was • "Wo can't eat it, but it makes excellent otraw hats." ■ Alcoholic Drinks Scarce. The dearth of alcoholic drinks afforded the subject foir a cartoon which gave Moscow a hearty laugh, A customer holding a bottle of perfume in his hand stood before an apothecary, to whom he complained: "I don't like tho odour of this eau de cologne.""Gracious, ono doesn't 6mell it nowadays," the druggist exclaimed. "One drinks it!" Under tlie greatly restricted diet enforced by the food shortage, persons in all walks of life have lost flesh to such an extent that really fat men and women are seldom seon. The chief work of tailors and dressmakers nowadays is taking in of garments to adjust them to reduced figures. At a recent music-hall performance an. onormous fat man who was shown to a seat near the stage broke his chair into pieces when he sat down. Tho accident made such a noiso that the attention of the entire audience was drawn to tho unhappy man, who was extricated from the wreckago by two ushers. Tho audience rose and ohcercd vehemently. The fat man acknowledged tho applause goodnaturedly, and took no offence at shouted inquiries of "How do you do it on a quarter of a pound of bread a day?"