The Great Trek of the Russian Mennonites to Central Asia, 1880-1884, Fred Richard Belk, 1976

litary service in Turkestan. He could not promise, however, that young men over twenty could come, because Russian draft regulations re- quired them to stay in their territory of registration. He did say he was planning to see the czar, who was in the Crimea, and agreed to ask him if this regulation could be reversed. Kaufmann then prom- ised to meet with the Mennonite delegation on his return trip in two or three weeks. The hopes of the delegation were encouraged by this cordial reception. After Kaufmann’s return to the capital he informed the dele- gation that the czar had given permission for the Mennonites to emigrate to Turkestan, and that free land and exemption from mili- tary obligations would be the reward for their journey. Concerning THE SPREAD OF THE MENNONITES IN RUSSIA Within 150 years Mennonites spread over European and Asiatic Russia establishing some fifty settlements with a population of some 120,000, in 400 villages and estates, covering a land surface of 5,816 square miles (equal to the state of Connecticut). 3 eee ff £1910 a : Naess k cx Gaauie Sy @ Ignatieyo1889 ipernity Cherti ize and Modlot sadoy pup sunjd 6L 80 The Great Trek of the Russian Mennonites the young men over twenty, however, he said he did not want to take away the prerogative of the minister of the interior on that subject. So the supplicants paid a second call on Ivanov. To their chagrin, the minister emphatically stated that all young men over twenty must stay and perform military service, but all others would be exempt. This, he declared, was his final position. Thus the en- couragement by Kaufmann was negated by Ivanov’s obstinancy." The delegation returned home discouraged about their prospects for migration; they believed the entire party would not favor leaving the young men behind, because the enforced service requirement was one of their major reasons for wanting to go to Turkestan in the first place. After telling the brethren of the favorable contacts with Kaufmann, they explained the major barrier to the migration. The congregations agreed with the delegation and decided to postpone any immediate plans for a trip until they could obtain influential help to get Ivanov to change his position. At this point many were very undecided about going to Turkestan. A Secret Trip to Tashkent In December 1879, during this period of doubt, two Mennonites, Jacob Hamm of the Trakt and Peter Wiebe of Molotschna, secretly and without permission of the entire group, decided to take the responsibility upon themselves to go to Turkestan, confer with Kauf- mann on his home soil, view the settlement sites, and see if any new policy was forthcoming from Ivanov. After traveling to Orenburg, where the railroad ended, they decided to spend the Christmas holi- days in that city. But an opportunity arose to travel with a Russian official on his mail