On holidays in these two cities inebriates always
filled the police stations and often lay about on the sidewalks and even
in the streets. Things are so different today that unattended women may
now pass at night through portions of these cities where it was formerly
dangerous even for men. Minor crimes and misdemeanors have almost
vanished.
Tchelisheff, the man who virtually accomplished this miracle, was a
peasant by birth, originally a house painter by profession, then Mayor
of the city of Samara, and now a millionaire. Physically he is a giant,
standing over 6 feet 4 inches in his stocking feet, and of powerful
build. Although he is 55 years old, he looks much younger. His movements
display the energy of youth, his eyes are animated, and his black hair
is not tinged by gray.
In Petrograd Mr. Tchelisheff is generally found in a luxurious suite of
rooms in one of the best hotels. He goes about clad in a blue blouse
with a tasseled girdle, and baggy black breeches tucked into heavy
boots. He offers his visitors tea from a samovar and fruit from the
Crimea. Speaking of what he had accomplished for the cause of sobriety
in Russia, Mr. Tchelisheff said:
"I was reared in a small Russian village. There were no schools or
hospitals, or any of the improvements we are accustomed to in civilized
communities. I picked up an education from old newspapers and stray
books.
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