RUSSIAN ATROCITIES.

North Otago Times, Volume I, Issue 7, 7 April 1864, Page 6

RUSSIAN ATROCITIES.

The Paris correspondent of the Times contains the following : — " Private letters from Lithunania to the 25th of December are lamentable. One of the latest acts of General Mouravieff was to order the General commanding the district of Jezorosy not to appear before him until he had completely suppressed the insurrection in that quarter. The General came to the conclusion that it was useless to make any distinction in a country where the entire population is favorable to the insurrection, and he determined to strike a great blow. Having selected a colonel and two other superior officers notorious for their cruelty as his assistants, he arrived at Dusiaty, a chateau belonging to the Counts Ladislas and Caesar Plater, which had been confiscated by Mouravieff, and there established his head-quarters. He commenced by transporting all the farmers on the estate en masse without any trial, and with them the Abbe Viotwarier, the parish priest of Dusiaty — a man beloved by his parishioners. The Canon ■ Macewicz was the next victim. Having got rid of all the clergy, the general proceeded to the village of Aulozezs, consisting of ten farmhouses. Determined, if possible, to discover the chiefs of the national organisation, he ordered ten peasants to be brought before him, the greater number of them being fathers of families, and, having selected two, the bastinado was applied to them during the night. The following day he ordered ten victims to be led to the market-place of Dusiaty, and in the presence of the peasants of the neighboring communes the general ordered that from 200 to 500 blows with a stick shquld be inflicted on each. He nevertheless failed to extort any confession from them. The mutilated bodies weie j then removed, and the general ordered Norbett Urbans, fifty years of age, and possessing great influence in the country, to be brought forward. He first spoke to his prisoner with mildness, to induce him to give information, but he could obtain nothing for him. He then ordered that he should be beaten without mercy, and his wife and two children should bp committedj to prison. Finding that all was in vain, the general endeavoured to terrify Urdanus by commanding- that he should be shot. All the preparations were made, and be was led to the pi ace of execution. He there exclaimed with a firm voice, " You have commanded that I shall be shot, but that is nothing new here. It is not two months since we witnessed in this little town the death of one of our brothers. If it be necessary that I should die for the advantage of my country and of my religion, I do not fear death." He was then released. The general next commanded that other villagei containing in all 117 houses and 500 inhabitants, should be plundered, and the inmates, men,women and children, brought to Dusiaty, where they were exposed to cold and hunger in order to force them to give information. The pillage continued from the 7th to the 23rd of December, and all the property of the villagers was sold for anything offered by the Burlaki, or " old believers." All the agricultural implements were given to the Burlaki, who rushed on the houses of the Polish peaRants. The entire population of Dusiatj and of Shopsistik were transported to Siberia.

"What is a Shin-plasteb ?— lt is a favour* American remedy, a kind of Poor Man's Plaste' and one that gives but poor relief, which is not being applied to all cases of tiek-dollar-oux. I bus the effect of materially lowering the circiu? tion. — Punch. '<*