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Rh  of the war was felt there also. The chief bread-winner of the family had gone to war; both industries and trades were crippled. Emigration, the safety valve of poverty, was now impossible. Into the midst of this suffering came pouring in the refugees from the border regions, on the one hand, and on the other, the exiles from Germany and Austria, where they had previously found food and shelter, and whence they had now, so to speak, been thrown overboard.

The economic role of such an element, hungry and unemployed, is easily appraised. Small wonder, then, that such a condition should become absolutely unbearable; starvation has become a common occurrence, and many prefer suicide to asking for alms. And should some of these care to ask for aid there is no one who could offer it, since the local population cannot cope with the need that has so suddenly swooped down upon them.

Russia is a vast country, as is the soul of the Russian. Enough land and bread exists for all its children. Many have relatives who would welcome the refugees and exiles into their homes for the time being; many could