Do Not Believe in War - Advance Guard of Strange People Arrives in San Francisco

SAN FRANCISCO June 14 - Ivan Samarin and Vasili Pivaroff both from the province of Kars in Southern Russia are her as the advance guard for the families that will one day make this state their home.

Both Samarin and Pivaroff are great stalwart men and look as if they had spent their lives in the hardest toil. They belong to a peculiar religious sect known as the Molokans.

The Molokans do not believe in war or in fighting and one of the tenets of their faith is that they will never carry a case into court but prefer to be swindled rather than have recourse to litigation.

Samarin and Pivaroff are now arranging for the transportation of several Molokans from the province of Kars to this State and are also arranging for the bringing up from Panama of several Russians who are near there.

It must not be thought that these Russians are a penniless crew. All of them have a little money and if no one has the money he is aided by his brethren as they live in a strictly communal fashion. The Molokans first went into Canada where they purchased land and started farms. Owing to the terrible autumnal storms and the severe winters they were compelled to leave Manitoba. The rigors of the climate were not the only things which made them discontented. They claimed they were robbed by unscrupulous agents and rather than seek redress through the ordinary channels they packed up their belongings and came to California. They went into the southern part of the State and commenced to work in the lumber yards and on the ranches. These men sent such glowing descriptions of the country that Molokans decided to leave Russia for this state. A hint of the movement was given the Russian authorities and close watch was set on them. Then came the war and the Molokans true to their belief refused to be drafted into the army and kill their fellow beings.

An underground railway was formed and the Molokans began to slip out of the country. Some of them have already arrived, some are on their way here and are at work on the canal at Panama and it is with the intention to bring those who are on the Isthmus to this state that the arrangements are being made with the transportation companies this morning.

The Molokans are said to have more money per capita than any other class of immigrants and this rate is put at $600.

It is their intention when a sufficient number have arrived to purchase a parcel of land and go to work at farming as a community. They want land where there is frost and a little snow and are looking toward the northern part of the state in which to settle.

Oakland Tribune | Oakland, California | Wednesday, June 14, 1905 | Page 5