Now, I want to make the observation that while we were not rich in the ordinary sense of the word, we were fairly well to do, considering conditions in Russia at that time. As there was no school in the village, father was obliged to keep a private tutor in the house for us boys. I was the oldest of the six, for which he (the tutor) received 25 rubIes, ($12.50) for a season, including his keep, of course. Spending money we had none: we could not spend it if we had for the simple reason there was no place we could buy anything. When father would return from his journeys to the City he would invariably bring us candy, etc., but we very seldom had a kopeck to ourselves. So no wonder that 30 kopecks looked good to me.Imagine then my chagrin and disappointment that when I brought home the mail. and made ready for the trip, my mother objected to my enterprise and would not listen to my pleading to go and deliver the mail.
Starting from my home at 11 A. M., I arrived
at my destination about 2:00 P. M. As the snow had been very deep and
my attire somewhat bulky I did not make much progress.
The town had only two streets laid out in the shape of a cross. At
the intersection was the busines part of the town, while the private
reached out to the four corners. None of the mail in my possession was
addressed to any store, and, as I had no idea of routing, I
necessarily crossed and re-crossed my steps many times before I
finished the delivery of the eight letters.
And now I wish to make a verbatim report, as it were, of my delivery
and the successful results of collecting the postage due. Of course, in
the lapse of time I have forgotten all the name of the addresses which
is of no way important, but the principal incident is indelibly
impressed on my memory.
The first letter I offered for delivery, the addressee nor his wife was at home, but the son was a
youth, about twenty. I handed him the letter and waited. He opened it, read it and laid it on the table and looked at me. "What are you waiting for?" he exclaimed. "Why, for the 5 kopecks of course: I explained. "You do not expect me to pay you? Do you imagine I have money?" he said "Then who will pay me for the letter I delivered to you?" I replied. "Why, my father, of COUrse who else?" he said. "Well, then, where is your father?" I asked. "My father and mother are working on the
Count's estate and will return about 1 or 12
o'clock tonight. You can wait for them here or come back when they
return. It is all the same to me." Of course, I had no alternative but
go away and say no more about it, as the boy was much bigger than I.
The second letter I delivered to the man, to whom it was addressed,
without first asking him for the 5 kopecks. In the first place, I was
too timid and I did not anticipate the regulations under which I would
be working in the future regarding "postage due." When I ventured to
ask him for the kopecks, he said, "I have nothing to do with you I have
made arrangements with Petrutznikoff to pay him every three month,
and ,as I paid him off only two weeks ago, you collect from him or come
here ten weeks hence and I will give you the money. It is all the same
to me." The ten weeks have passed a long time ago, but I have not yet
called to collect.
The fourth letter brought me to a home where I found an old man alone
in bed. He was either sick or crippled. I had too much respect for old
age to ask payment in advance. When he was through reading the letter
he observed, "You want 5 kopecks for this letter don't you, my pretty
boy?" "Yes, Honored Patriarch, if you please," I answered. He reached
under his pillow and drew out a bundle of rags and started to unwind
same, When he was through he had the whole bed nearly covered with
rags and finally produced a three ruble bill and asked for change
amount to two rubles and ninety-five kopecks. "Honored Patriarch, I
have no such large sum in my possession, but if you will let me have
the bill I will go and have it changed at the Inn," I answered, "My
angel faced child," he exclaimed, here I was very much surprised and
pleased, how did he know I was angel faced, since he could not see my
face as only my nose and eyes were visible. "That is utterly
impossible for thou must know this bill represents the savings of my
life time. What would I do if the Prophet Elijah should happen to
descent from Heaven in his fiery chariot, the same as he went up, and
take you with him before you return with the change, or maybe the
rashlackis (the female devil of the species) would like to possess
themselves of such a pretty boy as you. I sincerely desire to pay my
debt and you are certainly entitled to the 5 kopecks, and no matter when
you come with the change you will find me here." What was there for me
to do but bid him good night and depart for the next address.
The fifth letter brought me to a young couple, recently married, and
as the letter was a congratulation from a rich relative, with the
promise of a nice present, it made them happy and not only did they
give me the 5 kopecks, but a piece of cake and a glass of home-made
beer besides, (I doubt whether it was of the 2.75) and with good wishes
for their future happiness, I took leave of them for the next address
quite content, as I had 10 kopecks in hard cash on my humble person.
By this time it was getting dark and I had still three letters to
deliver. My sixth letter took me to the "suburb," about 500 yards or so
from the square. There on the hillock was a small dilapi-
dated log house with a thatched roof. (It
reminded me of the cabin where Abraham Lincoln was born). One window
originally contained four panes of glass, three were missing and stuffed
with straw. Inside was a platform, about three feet from the ground,
reaching from the front wall to the back; I should have judged about 12
feet long and 5 feet wide. That was on one side of the door. On the
other side of the door stood an oven without a chimney. There was a
hole in the roof to let the smoke out but now stuffed with a bundle of
moss. There was not a spark of fire in the oven which took up nearly
all the remaining space in the hut. An inverted barrel completed the
furniture, as far as I could see. The addressee was a young widow, who
stood at the further end of the platform, where I could discern three
little figures huddled in the corner, covered with rags and straw to
keep them from freezing, and crying. The mother was wan and haggard,
covered with what was once a sheepskin coat, but now moth eaten and
full of ho1es. On her feet she had lapchess, (slippers made out of
stripes of bark and held in place with ropes around the ankles) and
shivering from the cold. My heart sank within me as I saw this sad
picture of misery and want, a mother and three little ones dying from
hunger and cold. A feeling of compassion overcame me; how could I take
from this starving family that which they had not to give? A sudden
inspiration brought to my mind the words in the good Book, "It is more
blessed to give than to receive." With a deep feeling of pity I handed
the young widow the letter without mentioning the 5 kopecks due. She
could not read and as there were no lights within, in the fading twilight outside and bitter cold of a
February atmosphere of that latitude, I read the letter for her. If I
remember rightly, it was from an uncle or brother-in-law, a farmer in a
distant state, and a reply to her appeal for aid. It contained the
following interesting information. "His only horse was stolen; his two
cows were confiscated by the government for taxes, foxes broke in the
hen house and nearly destroyed the whole flock. His only son and help
was drafted in the army and on top of all this his was dying of
consumption, and that he was heartbroken and could not help her in the
least." As I finished the letter the poor woman, stricken
with grief, fell to the ground in a heap; the children seeing this
cried out in misery and despair. When she revived somewhat between sobs
the mother told me they had nothing to eat that day, and only the day
before some charitable neighbor had given them some Shuee, (a mixture
of cabbage and bran) and as there was no charity organization in that
town the outlook for the poor family looked hopeless.
Young as I was I realized in an instant my obligation; could I, a
fellow human being, do aught else but offer my 10 kopecks to save these
poor mortals from starvation and death? With tearful pleadings I
finally persuaded the poor woman to accept the money. She showered me
with blessings and kisses of gratitude. Strange to relate, a feeling
of keen satisfaction overcame me as I parted with my fortune I prized
so highly; however, I reasoned she needed the money more than I.
The seventh letter was for a Jewish small merchant by the name of Hirshe Maharam. This being Friday night (Sabbath) the law had prohibited the transaction of any busines whatsoever, and therefore would not receive the 1etter but in a very kind manner asked me to bring back the letter Saturday night or Sunday morning and he would give me besides the 5 kopecks a big piece of candy. At this the dignity of my position deserted me and I broke down and cried. Hirshe Maharam,. (how well I remember the name) surveyed me with compassion for awhile and then suggested that if I would open the letter for him he would find a way of paying me off. This proposition appealed to me, though I had my private scruples in that respect, but necessity knows no law. I tore open the envelope. When he was through reading. he took a knife and inserted it in a small coin box. lifted out a 5 kopeck piece and handed it to me on the point of his knife, thus overcoming the interdiction of handling money on the Sabbath. Now I want to state that this gentleman was a dear friend of the family and would have gladly invited me to supper, which I would have appreciated hugely, but having compromised myself in the act, I did not dare disclose my identity. However, I had the consolation of having again in my possession 5 kopecks. I would have bought something to eat but the stores were all closed now and I had still another letter to deliver.
The
eighth letter was addressed to the richest man in town and as such I
anticipated no trouble in collecting my fee and, as it was supper time,
a rich man ought to be generous enough to invite a sub to the table. I
found the local Rockfeller seated at the table by the samovar drinking
tea. On the table were cakes, fruit of different variety and some
bottles. My eyes were bulging at the sight of those things. The man had
a smile on his face that would seem to indicate that he bore "good
will toward all and malice toward none." I approached him with the awe
and respect due a man surrounded by so much luxury. I gave the letter
but no sooner did he glance at the mark and handwriting on the envelope
than he became livid with rage and exclaimed. "Will I never have peace
from them? Since she died 1 am never going to be happy for they insist
on making my life miserable. Let them have a care or I will have them
exiled to Siberia”' he shouted.
Then turning around to where 1 stood. very much frightened, he
yelled. "Here, take that letter back and go to the devil withit. you ill
visaged young rogue." (I was very much surprised and chagrined at the
same time how he knew that I was ill visaged. as only my nose and eyes
were visible). I did not wait for a second invitation and went without
wishing him good night. He did not think that I took him at his word.
Not only did I go to the devil, but 1 became the Devil himself, as it
proved subsequently.
Discouraged, disgusted, tired and hungry, with only 5 kopecks in my
pocket, I turned my steps homeward. When I walked nearly a mile of the
distance I became exhausted and could proceed no further. I crawled up
an embankment of snow by the roadside and soon fell asleep.
Yakub Galltenzick was a well to do farmer living a little distance
from us. Once a week he would take a load of stuff to the market in
"Whiskers" and return home any old time during the night with a load
of voodka on the inside, and few articles of merchandise on the outside,
in vehicle. He was otherwise a devout Christian and a good neighbor.
I was aroused from my slumber by an unearthly yell about 100 yards away, in the direction of the town. Yakub and his team were coming toward me galloping. Yakub stood in the sleigh whipping the horses and urging them on at top speed, and for good cause, about 100 feet behind him, were three wolves in mad pursuit. I saw distinctly the outline of their bodies against the snow, although the night was very dark.
I wish here to digress for a moment to explain the construction of a
Russian sleigh of the peasant variety. It is somewhat in the shape of a
duck's breastbone, high and narrow in the front low and wide in the
rear, with open back where one gets in and only about a foot from the
ground.
I took in the situation at a glance and not having much time to
think, I instinctively had to act much quicker, and it was the fastest
move I ever made in all my long career.
When Yakub came abreast of me, just a few seconds later, I jumped out
of my vulickes right in the sleigh behind his feet. (If I had missed
the sleigh you would have missed this story.) The volakies being
permeated with human perspiration attracted the wolves who fell over
and ravenously devoured them, and thus ended the pursuit after the
sleigh.
With an unearthly yell Yakub dropped the whip and reins, fell on his
knees, crossed himself and cried out. "Holy Father of the Seventh
Heavens, now what have you done? Did you deliver me from the wolves to
throw me into the arms of the angel of darkness, though only half of
him is here, the wolves having devoured the other half, for which thy
Holy name be praised."
There is hardly another nation on earth that can beat the Russians in
vituperative epithets. If his accustomed vocabulary becomes.exhausted,
he can improvise on the instant something to suit the occasion.
But now in his semi-intoxicated condition, when he thought I am he
who must be feared, and as I was in rather close proximity to him, he
applied only mild epithets, such as "dark," "unfortunate” "misguided”
"left” etc. Never once did he refer to me by my right name, "Devil"
whiIe I remained as his guest in the sleigh.
"Holy St. Martin:' he continued, "ten candles will I donate to the
church in Thy precious name, if you will persuade the misguided angel
to leave me in peace." I remained where I was.
"Beloved St. Gregory, Patron Saint of my Venerated Father, fifteen
candles will I donate to the church in Thy Holy name, if you will
assist the unfortunate angel whose lower body the wolves ate up, to his
abode below."
I still remained coiled up like a ball at the bottom of the sleigh.
In this way he kept biding five more candles at a time and calling on
different Saints until he reached fifty candles. Whi1e he was talking
he never stopped crossing himself, for he believed as long as he made
the Holy sign of the cross I could not harm him. _.But, as a mattr of
fact, I never intended to, for I had the most kindly feeling in the
world for him, but he was not aware of it.
By this time the horses not being urged forward, slowed down to an
easy gait, or, as I thought, to a snail's pace. When he had reached the
50 candle limit, and I was still his unwelcome guest, he decided to
change his tactics and do business with me direct. He addressed his
remarks something as follows, in a maudlin, supplicating tone:
"Unfortunate angel of sorrow, accept my heartfelt sympathy for your
accident, but I was powerless to prevent the wolves from eating your
lower extremities, curse them for ever and ever. Though I belong to the
Orthodox Church, and am obliged to comply with its rules, many a time I
have served and pleased you in indirect ways. Were you not pleased
with me last week when I arrived home and brutally beat my wife for no
cause at all? Why did I do it, if it was not for the purpose of pleasing
you? Even in today's transaction you could not be otherwise than
gratified." He kept arguing in this fashion, but with his face to the
front and crossing himself until at last we came up in front of our
house where I quietly rolled out of the sleigh almost frozen stiff,
particularly my feet.
I found my mother in hysterics, my father having returned that
afternoon unexpectedly was pacing the floor in an agitated manner.
When they beheld me, mother fainted, and when father perceived that I
was minus the vulicks, open his arms and gave me such a warm welcome
that I felt his loving impression on me for many days afterwards. But
that was nothing compared to the shock I received and from which I
have not as yet recovered was the discovery that I lost the five
kopecks.
Under the circumstances am I morally obliged to pay the Natchalnick the 10 kopecks still due?
"The stanz was a one roomed affair, with a sort of anteroom, in which a
Cossack with a gun stood on duty to watch prisoners in the lockup. I
found on my arrival a soldier who was jailed for desertion and was
awaiting removal to the city jail in Kharkov. Several times during the
evening the Cossack guard would go out and walk about the place. On
one of the occasions the soldier told me that if the officials sent me
to Kharkov by sleigh I would perish in the cold, it being mid winter at
the time. I was told to demand being sent to town by train, which I
could do providing I paid my own fare and the cost for guard. This I
consented to do, despite the fact that I had but two roubles-about
ninety-six cents in American money-in my possession.
"It happened that the Emperor, Alexander the Second, was going from
Odessa to Moscow, resulting in all the passenger trains being
sidetracked, giving the royal trains the right of way. This
necessitated my remaining in the jail all night, after the soldier had
been taken away. During the early hours of the morning the Cossack
went out to get a sandwich. Being left alone I took advantage of the
opportunity and tried to escape through a smaIl opening in the door
through which the food was passed to the prisoners.
"I soon found that it was impossible to do this with my clothing on, so
I decided to undress. Doing so I dropped my clothing through the
opening first and then, after much difficulty, succeeded in crawling
through myself. I dressed hurriedly, but none too soon, for the Cossack
returned and I hid behind the door in the anteroom. When the guard went
over to the fire to get warm I sneaked out. I ran for the railroad
station and got on the first train which passed, getting off again at
the next station. Here I remained until morning.
"In the meantime an alarm was sounded about my escape. I was approached
by a gendarme who told me that a boy had escaped from the jail in the
next town and that I answered the prisoner's description. I asked him
if he thought I was the boy, remarking at the same time that if I would
stop so near the place of escape. He agreed with me and without any
further word I purchased a ticket, boarded the next train and started
on my way rejoicing.
"I travelled about Russia the following four or five years and then
went to Germany and from there to England. During my rambling I always
wrote to my people, but I was unable to hear from them as they did not
know from time to time what towns I would be in. After a short time in
England I came to America. --- See my Biography.
A Short Sketch of my Biography
I was born in Kurland (a German province in Russia) in 1860. After
passing more or less eventful episodes of my youth there, I left my
native land at ripe age of 14. Anticipating Jack London’s Adventures
and struggles in his travels, like him I beat my way through Germany
and England until 1878. When I landed in New York on August the 18th,
coming over on the steamer Hevetia of the National line, made famous by
Jules Verne in his "Eighty Thousand Leagues under the Seas." as a
stowaway. Shortly after I got a job in a grocery at the wage of $6.00 a
month and board the hours were from 5 in the morning to about 10 at
night with Saturdays free. Subsequently I got another job in a dairy
for $8.00 a month with provisions to cook for myself. Subsequently I
enlisted in the U. S. Army in 1880 and served in the 6th Cavalry for 5
years, fighting Indians in Arizona and New Mexico. When I left the
army, I passed a civil service examination and was appointed letter
carrier-the first year salary was $600 per year. In the mean time, I
married Henrietta Sameth of Hungarian ancestry and prominent family. We
had three sons and one daughter of which only one son survived. In
1920 I was retired on a pension and migrated to the City of the
"Angels”, where I am now residing. This is 1944, and still going strong
and growing up with this country which is still young. Furthermore, I
am looking forward to the time that Edward Bellamy wrote in "Looking
Backward," that is of the year 2000, which is only 56 years off; when
the whole world and I will ,enjoy real civilization without any if's
and but's. AMEN.
Q. What is your name?
A. Samuel Abbey Harrison.
Q. Where were you born?
A. In KurIand,a German province in Russia.
Q. To what
nationality do you belong?
A. To the Jewish.
Q. Harrison is not a Jewish name!
A. No, but circumstances alter cases.
Q. What were the circumstances in this case?
A. Well, when Peter the great of Russia introduced western
civilization in his realm., he also introduced western military tactics
in for his large crude Army. And for that purpose he brought back with
him from Western Europe several generals from different European
nations. The youngest one amongst them was an Englishman by the name of
Lord Edward Maynard Harrison of ancient royalty. When the general came
to St. Petersburg, he met and fell in love with a Jewish maiden by the
name of Ettah Malkeh, the beautiful daughter and accomplished
linquest of French, Italian, German and English, of Hershel Maharam who
was one of the wealthiest merchants in the land. He secretly married
and as secretly became a Jew (circumcized) and in the course of time
several sons were born to them. As time elapsed and the General won
many victories in the battles with Sweden, he became a great favorite
of the Emperor, who created the General a Kniaz (Grand-Duke) and
endowed him with immense estates in Rupyolev, Griveh, Slabodky, and a
few castles in the bargain. Thereby arousing the envy and jealousy of
his companions in arms. And one day when leaving the Emperor’s
presence, he was assassinated in ante-chamber in the Royal palace.
After the General's death, his widow and her childr,en returned to her
fathers house and her own people. And the children were, of course,
brought up in the Jewish religion, but retained the title of nobility
and income which became in time dissipated through prejudice and
discrimination of ignorance. And so here I am.
There are many Jewish Harrisons floating through this country and a
number of them here in Los Angeles, besides several are my bona fide
nephews, and the rest are probably descendants of the original Lord
Edward Maynard, but are timid of claiming relationship for obvious
reasons.
Done in 2010 by Christine Usdin with courtesy of Harold L.Atkins