﻿580 
  

  

  THE 
  NATIONAL 
  GEOGRAPHIC 
  MAGAZINE 
  

  

  these: 
  young 
  jugglers 
  give 
  a 
  performance 
  whenever 
  a 
  train 
  arrives 
  

  

  The 
  trio, 
  one 
  with 
  three 
  knives, 
  another 
  with 
  sticks 
  and 
  rings, 
  do 
  their 
  tricks 
  at 
  Manchuli 
  

   station 
  to 
  the 
  accompaniment 
  of 
  a 
  doleful 
  Chinese 
  song. 
  The 
  leader 
  punctuates 
  his 
  perform- 
  

   ance 
  by 
  catching 
  his 
  sticks 
  on 
  a 
  drum, 
  while 
  the 
  diminutive 
  fourth 
  member 
  passes 
  the 
  hat 
  

   for 
  the 
  passengers' 
  coins. 
  

  

  were 
  either 
  looted 
  or 
  destroyed, 
  violently 
  

   or 
  by 
  decree. 
  

  

  The 
  latter 
  method 
  was 
  by 
  forcing 
  the 
  

   merchants 
  to 
  accept 
  the 
  worthless 
  paper 
  

   money, 
  backed 
  only 
  by 
  the 
  capacity 
  of 
  a 
  

   press 
  to 
  print 
  more 
  money, 
  which 
  the 
  

   various 
  transient 
  rulers 
  issued. 
  As 
  many 
  

   kinds 
  of 
  money 
  have 
  been 
  in 
  circulation 
  

   in 
  Siberia 
  since 
  the 
  days 
  of 
  the 
  Roman- 
  

   offs 
  as 
  there 
  have 
  been 
  governments 
  or 
  

   military 
  chieftains. 
  

  

  One 
  day 
  I 
  flashed 
  a 
  10,000-rouble 
  bill 
  

   which 
  I 
  had 
  bought 
  for 
  a 
  few 
  roubles 
  in 
  

   the 
  barakholka 
  on 
  the 
  waiter 
  in 
  the 
  leading 
  

   hotel 
  in 
  Chita. 
  Incidentally, 
  the 
  hotel's 
  

   proprietor 
  was 
  a 
  Greek 
  with 
  a 
  brother 
  in 
  

   Baltimore. 
  He 
  laughed 
  at 
  my 
  gullibility 
  

   until 
  I 
  explained 
  that 
  I 
  wanted 
  it 
  as 
  a 
  

   souvenir. 
  The 
  next 
  day 
  he 
  handed 
  me 
  a 
  

   bundle 
  wrapped 
  in 
  a 
  newspaper. 
  It 
  dis- 
  

   closed 
  about 
  60,000 
  roubles 
  in 
  bills 
  of 
  

   many 
  colors 
  and 
  sizes, 
  most 
  of 
  them 
  

   Semenov 
  1,000- 
  and 
  500-rouble 
  "pigeon" 
  

   notes, 
  so 
  called 
  from 
  the 
  resemblance 
  of 
  

   their 
  Russian 
  eagle 
  to 
  that 
  bird 
  of 
  peace. 
  

  

  "How 
  much 
  do 
  you 
  want 
  for 
  them?" 
  I 
  

   asked. 
  

  

  "Nothing, 
  nothing; 
  they're 
  a 
  present," 
  

   he 
  laughed. 
  "I 
  only 
  use 
  them 
  for 
  ciga- 
  

   rette 
  papers, 
  and 
  a 
  piece 
  of 
  newspaper 
  is 
  

   just 
  as 
  good. 
  I'm 
  worth 
  half 
  a 
  million 
  

   roubles 
  in 
  that 
  money." 
  

  

  paper 
  money 
  abolished 
  by 
  the 
  

   republic 
  

  

  One 
  of 
  the 
  first 
  acts 
  of 
  the 
  present 
  

   government 
  was 
  to 
  abolish 
  paper 
  money 
  

   as 
  legal 
  currency. 
  Reversion 
  to 
  a 
  hard- 
  

   money 
  standard 
  brought 
  the 
  old 
  gold 
  

   coins 
  out 
  of 
  their 
  hiding 
  places. 
  

  

  The 
  disciples 
  of 
  communism 
  do 
  not 
  

   bother 
  their 
  heads 
  about 
  fundamentals 
  of 
  

   financial 
  economy. 
  Most 
  of 
  them 
  believe 
  

   that 
  gold 
  has 
  a 
  value 
  as 
  a 
  circulating 
  

   medium 
  because 
  the 
  Russian 
  eagle 
  is 
  

   stamped 
  on 
  it, 
  and 
  a 
  gold 
  coin 
  is 
  looked 
  

   on 
  with 
  a 
  deep 
  and 
  abiding 
  hatred, 
  as 
  a 
  

   symbol 
  of 
  capitalism 
  and 
  the 
  dreaded 
  

   money 
  power. 
  

  

  However, 
  the 
  men 
  running 
  the 
  govern- 
  

  

  