My paternal grandfather had his trigger finger amputated in order to
avoid the Russian draft in 1911 when he was 21 years old. I'm
wondering how long the term of service was in the Russian army at that
time and whether Jewish conscripts were still treated harshly at that
time. I'm assuming that self-mutilation for the purpose of draft
avoidance was illegal -- so presumably it would have been difficult
for him to find a doctor to perform this operation? I'd appreciate
hearing >from anyone with knowledge of this subject. Thanks. David
Laskin, Seattle, WA