FIRE AND PILLAGE IN ROUMANIA.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume L, Issue 59, 21 May 1907, Page 4

FIRE AND PILLAGE IN ROUMANIA.

PEASANT WAR ON JEW'S. Vienna, March 22. The rising of the Roumanian peasants against the Jews is spreading every hour.*~*lwenty-two districts, including several in Southern Roumania, are now affected, and thousands of peasants, accompanied by carts are roaming about them burning and pillaging. the towns.

More troops have been sent to the disturbed districts but the mobilisaiion of the reserves has been a dire failure. Tiie men defy the authority of the officers, and plunder the Jews in the towns where they are quartered. The reservists at Vaslui attempted to take the prefecture by storm. Ten of them were shot and five were bayoneted by the regulars. At Lespezi they attacked the gendarmerie barracks. Four of their number were killed and twelve were wounded. A quarrel arose between Hungarian and Koumanian peasants at Cuculeni. The soldiery sided with the latter, and killed thirty four of their opponents. Then they plundered the town. PoJul also lias been devastated by niutinoif soldiers.

Another attack has been made by the peasants at Misaileni but they were repulsed by the military, who killed fifteen. The peasant casualties at Belgestre amount to twenty-four, and at Bacau to fourteen.

Tile siege of Jassy the capital of Moldavia, which has 90,000 inhabitants, has now lasted for three days. The troops have erected barricades on all the roids leading to the town. ARMY OF 40,000.

Berlad is besieged by an army of 40,000 peasants., who declare that*they will burn the town to the ground.

Bueecea has been attacked by 7000 peii-ants whom the burgomaster gave leave to sack the Jewish quarter, and considerately ordered the police to set a mark on the houses of tne .Tews.

But the sacking of towns does no! content the peasant-. They have devastated 3.">0 estate-, including those belonging to Prince Cantteuzenc and Prince Ghika, and have destroyed the iatter's distellery, which is the largest in Rouuiania.

At first the peasants were anxious to spare- life, but now, exasperated by the opposition of the troops, they have lost their scruples, and several cases of murder and mutilation are reported.

The'son of a father who defended his father's farm for hours against a horde of peasants, of whom he killed live, was saved by a ruse. The police give it out that he had been killed, and carried him out of the house and through. the ranks of the infuriated peasants in a shroud.

Agitators have circulated a num(ber of pamphlets amongst the peasantry. They purport to have been issued by the Queen of Roumania, and call on the peaasnts to rise and seize the land. It is reported that the British and American Governments have made representations (to the Roumanian Government, which is beginning to realise the gravityof the situation, and Jus dismissed several anti-Semitic official's well known to have instigated the peasants to revolt.

The Government is introducing a Bill, somewhat on the line of the Irish Land Acts, providing that land amy be purchased by the State and distrub'uted among the peasants. The Bill is also directed against the fanning trusts. It will give power to annul" leases, and will prohibit rackrenting. The thousands of fugitives iu Bukovina are suffering severely from want of food and shelter.