The Schulenburg Sticker (Schulenburg, Tex.), Vol. 15, No. 21, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 21, 1909 Page: 6 of 8
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SAVING
CZAR'S LIFE
"By GEOTtGE BAH.TON
J
Gen.TrepofFs Great "March 13" Coup—Its Accomplishment
Face to Face with
Death the Most Fa-
mous of Russian Detec-
tives Frustrates Plot to
Take Nicholas* Life-
Blood—Monarch Sees
Only Quietude of
Crowd as Evidence of
.Vicious Plans Being
Nipped — How Chief
Did It. A A A
W.
fm
-
<Gen. Trepoff, one time chief of the St.
Petersburg police, ranks with the most
famous detectives in the Russian empire.
He was in control of the secret service
department of the police of St. Peters-
burg during the lawless period extending
from 1875 to 1880. He seems to have been
successful In this difficult position be-
cause he won the warm commendation of
the czar, and at the same time, the
hearty detestation of the people. His
immediate predecessor was assassinated
and his own life was In danger on more
than one occasion. Vera Zassolic, a young
nihilist, shot at him while he was seated
in his office in the early part of 1880.
Trepoff was seriously injured but re-
covered and soon after that was honored
hv the czar who made him a councilor
of state.) \
N the early part of March,
v | 1887, the czar of all the
1 I Russians determined, as a
■ mark of confidence in the
loyalty of his subjects, that
he would drive in state, in
full view of the populace,
from the Cathedral of St.
Sophia to the Winter pal-
ace at St. Petersburg.
The importance of this
statement may be under-
stood when the reader
is reminded that for a period of
years the nihilists of that unhappy
country had been making determined
efforts to take the life of the emperor.
Only three months before it was an-
nounced that the czar, while out hunt-
ing, met with an accident in which
he was seriously injured. It is signifi-
cant that several persons who were
near the scene of the "accident" were
immediately arrested. One was hanged
and the other transported to Siberia.
Again there had been an "accidental"
explosion In the Winter palace while
the czar was attending a state din-
ner. Nothing ever came of this inci-
dent although it was proven later that
nihilists bad entered the palace dis-
guised as plumbers.
Now, however, it was believed in
high official circles that the country
was to enter upon an era of internal
peace. The emperor issued a mani-
festo of conciliation. Arrears of taxes
were remitted; certain criminals were
released from prison; exiles to Si-
beria had their life sentence com-
muted to 20 years of prison servitude.
The nihilists, on bearing this, were
passive but unsatisfied. They had
clamored for certain constitutional
rights which were denied them.
Nevertheless, It was determined by
officialdom that the czar should cele-
brate the return of "the era of good
feeling" by a public appearance in the
eapitol of the nation. The time agreed
upon was Sunday, March 13, 1887.
Five days before that date a cadet
in one of the military schools—a
young man with royal blood In his
veins, and a prince of a reigning house
of Europe—killed himself. The tragic
aot was attributed to melancholia due
to a hopeless love affair. It would be
supposed that a small romance of
this sort would be left to the district
police.
Not so. At this stage of the narra-
tive there enters upon the scene M.
Trepoff, a general in the army, the
chief of the secret police of St. Peters-
burg, and one of the favorites of the
czar. He was a burly man, brusque in
manner and not over nice in his
methods. Hated by the people, he
treated their attitude with supreme in-
difference. Whatever his disposition,
he possessed the unerring instincts of
tne real detective. His investigation of
the Mttle cadet's suicide was charac-
teristically prompt. It developed a
startling fact It can be Stated in a
single sentence.
The nihilists of St. Petersburg had
determined to assassinate the czar on
Sunday, March 13, 1887.
One of the functionaries attached to
the palace heard rumors of the plot
and rushed to Gen. Trepoff.
"It is unsafe for his majesty to ven-
ture out. Shall we countermand the
order for the procession?"
The chief of the secret service an-
swered with an expression of annoy-
ance:
"The program is to be carried out as
arranged—down to the smallest de-
tail."
"But—"
Trepoff interrupted the speaker by
banging his heavy fist on the desk
before him.
"I take all of the responsibility. If
it is necessary to make i any change
I shall inform the ciar in person."
By Saturday March 12, the gener-
al had a regiment of men at work. The
mildest mannered person in St.
Petersburg was considered fit subject
for suspicion. Innumerable arrests
were made and some of these were
upon such flimsy basis that even the
rigor of Russian policedom could not
justify their detention. Hourly reports
were handed in to Gen. Trepoff. He de-
voured these with eager interest, purs-
ing up his shaggy eyebrows—and
thinking all the while. Presently one
of his officers brought in a printed cir-
cular—a sort of proclamation—and
this bit of paper was given more at-
tention than any of the regular re-
ports. After that he sent out other
squads of police and they, in return,
brought in other reports. There was
great activity at the secret service
quarters but, it jnust be confessed, not
much positive evidence of the alleged
conspiracy.
It was the eve of Sunday, March 13.
One of the personal attendants of the
czar called on Gen. Trepoff.
"Don't you think it would be wise
"Let the procession proceed."
The route over which the czar trav-
eled was lined with police. They stood
alone/ in pairs, and in squads. They
were conspicuous and yet not unduly
so, for hundreds of them in plain
clothes mingled freely with the peo-
ple.
Just before the parade started
Trepoff arrested four students. They
were young men waiting to see the
royal show. The people protested
against the arrest as an outrage, but
the grizzled head of the St. Petersburg
police grinned—and said nothing. In-
deed the calm demeanor of the pris-
oners seemed to justify the protest of
the people. One of the men carried a
book under his arm, evidently, from
the gilt lettering on the outside, a de-
votional volume; another had a green
bag containing legal documents; the
third, apparently with a desire to get
a good look at the czar, carried a pair
of opera glasses, while the fourth had
nothing unusual about his person, un-
less a roll of music be so regarded.
They were hustled off to the nearest
But things were different in the
famous "Third Section," as the secret
police are called. Gen. Trepoff was
there arranging in consecutive form
the result of five days of hard work.
Here is the story of what had been
going on behind the scenes, the knowl-
edge of which had been so carefully
kept from the czar.
The first clue came in a most casu-
al manner. One night a couple of men
in a restaurant on the Nevsky had at-
tracted attention by their earnest
whispered conversation. During part
of the talk the name of the czar and
the date, the 13th of March, had been
overheard. That was enough. Detec-
tives placed on their tracks followed
them like bloodhounds.
On the eve of the fateful thirteenth
one of the men met a woman in the
streets of St. Petersburg and had a
hurried conversation with her. Five
minutes after they separated the
woman was placed under arrest A
search of her person revealed a large
quantity of nihilistic proclamations all
calling for the death of the czar. She
1
^Tvazz: <5ZEPAND IZZ MLOW OUT yotzQ^n4z7vs'f>>
to postpone the procession to-mor-
row?"
Trepoff raised those eloquent eye-
brows in surprise.
"What," he cried, "and confess to
the world that the emperor of Russia
fears to appear in the streets of his
capital?"
"Yes," protested the other, "but the
danger—"
"The danger is for me to consider,"
he said, each word carefully meas-
ured.
The messenger bit his lips In per-
plexity. The chief of the secret serv-
ice looked up suddenly.
"Does the czar know of the plot?"
"No; not a word; but he is timid."
"Reassure him. Tell him that Tre-
poff says there is no danger—that he
will guarantee the safety of his maj-
esty."
"All right," replied the attache, bow-
ing himself from the room.
Late on the night preceding the pro-
cession an inoffensive-looking young
woman was arrested and lodged in
jail. Early on the morning of the his-
toric day several compositors and
editors—apparently innocent of any
wrong—were taken into custody. Still
those who surrounded the czar were
apprehensive. An hour before the
time they appealed to Trepoff. He
gave them a curt but comprehensive
answer:
police station and In a minute the
curious multitude, accustomed to
constant police interference, forgot
all about the incident. Simultaneous-
ly six persons were being arrested at
Paulvonia on the Finnish railroad.
Tens of thousands of the people
stood on the sidewalks on that chill,
gray, March morning awaiting the gor-
geous procession. It came presently,
with the czar in an open barouche,
seated with one of the ministers of
state. His majesty was attired in semi-
military dress, and if he felt any ap-
prehension, did not betray it The of-
ficial who accompanied him glanced
furtively about as if constantly expect-
ing the unexpected. The czar bowed to
the right and the left and received in
return cold, curious stares from the
people. If they felt any enthusiasm
they did not show it. Was their silence
intended as a mark of respect for their
sovereign? An onlooker from another
country would not have so regarded
it. The procession moved quickly and
safely to the Winter palace. It had
been accomplished without a single
mishap of any kind. The telegraph car-
ried the news to all quarters of the
world—the czar had appeared in pub-
lic and received the homage of his
people. The day of assassination was
past, and the delusion of a contented
people was hugged by the autocratic
ruler.
was literally loaded down with the
documents which were being dis-
tributed to those in the conspiracy.
She admitted that the young cadet
who had committed suicide had been
selected to assassinate the emperor.
But when he realized the meaning of
his assignment he killed himself. She
stopped at this stage of her confes-
sion. Neither persuasion nor torture
nor threats of death would induce her
to give the names of the others con-
cerned in the plot.
But Trepoff had a foundation on
which to build his case. Here was a
bit of paper. It would have to be traced
to its origin. It was evident that an
illicit printing press had been set up
somewhere in the city. All this time
the two men who had talked incau-
tiously in the restaurant were being
followed. They were seen to enter a
house In the Jewish section. The rec-
ords of the police showed that the
house was occupied by Aaron Zonde-
levic, who, at one time, had been a
printer.
That was sufficient In less than an
hour afterward the house was raided.
An officer with a squad of police broke
into the place without notice. What
they fotind did not seem very dam-
aging. Four persons were at home ai
the time—two men and two women.
Mme. Kriloff, the- head of the house,
was a woman of about 45 and of un-
usual intelligence. The other female
was her servant One of the men was
rather aristocratic in appearance. He
said he occupied a minor ministerial
office and color was given to his state-
ment by the portfolio which he had
in his hand. The other man, named
Lubkin, was a consumptive, about 23
years of age.
"Where is your printing press?" de-
manded the officer. f
Madame shrugged her delicate
shoulders and outstretched her hands
in a manner which said plainly enough
that the police were welcome to any
printing presses they might find in
that place.
A printing press is a bulky thing.
It should not be hard to find. But the
officers searched the house from cellar
to garret without result. All the while
the quartet sat in the large dining-
room, prisoners. On the return of the
police, the two men and the two
women were put through the "sweat-
ing" process, but they revealed noth-
ing. The aristocratic-looking young
man laid his portfolio aside for a mo-
ment One of the policemen picked it
up and opened it. Astonishment made
him speechless. He silently handed the
portfolio to his chief. It was filled with
manuscripts and proofs of a pro-
hibited nihilist paper called "Land and
Liberty." The aristocratic-looking per-
son with the portfolio merely smiled
at the consternation of the officials.
He realized the gravity of his offense.
He knew the penalty. But he never
quailed for an instant.
"Come," shouted the chief, "you're
convicted already. You might as well
confess. Where is the press?"
The quartet remained' silent They
were not offensive. It was the silence
of submission—but not of fear. Sud-
denly the chief gave a shout of sur-
prise and pointed to the cupboard. The
other policemen followed the course in-
dicated by his accusing finger. They
saw nothing and their blank coun-
tenances said as much.
"Don't you see?" almost shrieked
the official.
"No," replied his chief lieutenant.
"What is It?"
"A daub of ink on the door of that
closet"
"A daub of ink?" repeated the other,
parrot-like and with no indica-
tion of intelligence.
"Yes! Yes!" he retorted, "a daub of
printer's ink."
Slowly a consciousness of the mean-
ing of his words penetrated their dull
heads. At the same moment they
made a simultaneous dash for the
cupboard. To their amazement they
met with resistance. Mme. Kriloff, her
servant, the aristocratic man of the
portfolio, and the consumptive com-
positor were lined up in front of the
cupboard. AH were armed and Mme.
Kriloff, pointing her pistol at the head
of the chief officer, said with great de-
liberation:
"Advance a single step and I'll blow
out your brains. We're desperate.
Life means little to us now. Save
yours."
Here was a dilemma. The chief
knew if he made a move to reach for
his pistol this frenzied woman would
carry out her threat Only two other
policemen were in the room with him
and they were covered by the aristo-
crat and the consumptive compositor.
The remainder of his men were in oth-
er parts of the house. He hacked out
by degrees. It was humiliating, but he
felt that it was politic. He must have
time to think and plan. His two com-
panions retreated with him. As they
reached the outer sill of the floor the
consumptive compositor slammed the
door violently and one of his asso-
ciates bolted it The racket brought
the other policemen to the aid of their
chief. There on the landing they held
a council of war. The besieged nihil-
ists, on their part, were sparring for
time—they had something to conceal
or destroy.
The house was already strongly
guarded on the outside and the siege
held out for less than a minute. The
door was broken in and .after a fierce
resistance the four nihilists sur-
rendered. The aristocrat fought like a
demon and at the last asked quarter
only for the women. While the police
were completing their work the con-
sumptive compositor had a violent
paroxysm of coughing and asked per-
mission to lie on a cot In an adjoin-
ing room.
The cupboard proved to be a veri-
table magic closet. It contained a com-
plete printing outfit. Needless to say
the paraphernalia was extraordinarily
simple and adapted peculiarly to the
purposes of the conspirators. There
was a large cylinder covered with
cloth which answered the require-
ments of a press; a roller of a sort
of gummy substance; several fonts of
type, display and otherwise; a few
jars of printing ink, benzine brushes,
and sponges. This was all packed to
be taken to police headquarters. Just
as the prisoners were being rounded
up a sharp pistol shot was heard from
the adjoining room. The chief hurried
in and found Lubkin, the consumptive
compositor, in the death agonies. He
had shot himself.
In half an hour's time the remaining
prisoners and all of the facts in the
case were in the possession of Gen.
Trepoff. He rubbed his clumsy hands
with satisfaction.
"Move the second in the game of
life and death," he muttered. "We
shall postpone our third move until
morning. Not because we like to, but
because we must" t
In the morning, as already stated,
the arrest of the four students oc-
curred. Their Innocent-looking posses-
sions were taken from them at the
police headquarters. The book, the
green bag, the opera glass, and the
roll of music each contained bombs
which were to have been thrown at
the emperor. They were stripped. On
each student was found a small vial
suspended with a string from his
neck and resting against his breast
These frail bottles each contained a
most active poison. The purpose was
evident Failure or refusal to do their
frightful work on the part of either
of the students would have brought
forth secret agents of the nihilists,
whose duty it was to strike the unsuc-
cessful or delinquent conspirator on
the chest thus smashing the bottle
and permitting the poison to enter the
wounds caused by the broken glass.
Little wonder that the unsuccessful
students took their arrest stoically.
They were merely exchanging one fate
for another.
Gen. Trepoff had made other ar-
rests of those Who were directly con-
cerned in the attempted assassination.
He counted them over.
"Nine fish in the net; we seed
more."
His chief of staff and a sqnad of
his trustiest men had already started
off for Paulvonia on the Finnish rail-
way. He wired them to act immedi-
ately. They found what he had sus-
pected—a bomb manufactory. Ik was
there that the deadly missiles of the
four students had been devised. Sir
more arrests were made in connection
with this private arsenal.
On the day following March 13. Gen.
Trepoff hjtd 15 prisoners in all on his
hands. Each one represented a stage
in the conspiracy; the compositors
and pressman who published the proc-
lamations; the girl who distributed
them; the students who were to throw
the bombs, and the men who Manu-
factured the deadly missiles.
The 15 were condemned to death,
but, on the recommendation of the
court, eight escaped hanging and were
sentenced to penal servitude for life
In Siberia.
The czar learned all of these de-
tails later. On the evening of the 13th
of March, as he entered the Winter
palace, he was credited with say-
ing :
"The people were very polite and re-
spectful. The details were nicely
planned—and by the way, tell Trepoff
I was pleased with the police arrange-
ments."
(Copyright, 1908, by W. O. Chapma.)
Home-Loving Montenegrins.
Nowhere is love of country move, in-
tense than among the Montenegrins,
to whom exile Is the greatest of
ishments. When W. J. StlTlman
there in the seventies all tho
were away fighting, and ho
that when a messenger was wanted
the official took a man out of the
prison and sent him off, with no fear
that he would not return. One such
messenger was sent to Cattaro, in
Austrian territory, with a large snm of
money for the bank, and he duly earns
back.
Another asked a Russian nt Cattaro
to intercede with Prince Nicholas for
his release from prison. "But yon are
not in prison!" said the Ressian.
"Oh," said the man, "I have only oeme
down for a load of skins for So-and-Se,
but I must go into prison again when
I get back to Cettinje."
One prison guard watched al the
prisoners when they sunned
selves out of doors, and if b
called away a prisoner would tnhe his
rifle and act as sentry for the tiaoe.
American Teacher's Life in Japan.
An American teacher. Miss Helen
Hyde, is now living in Japan and using
the life there as materia] for her
prints. Miss Hyde has her house and
studio at Akasaka, where she lives in
Japanese style, but still retains "all
the comforts of home." Into the little
Japanese house, with its bamboo
frame, and walls of sliding screens.
Miss Hyde has introduced the Ameri-
can push-button bell, American ehairs
(the Japanese prefer to sit upon «oor
mats), and even the unheard of luxury
of an open grate fire. By designing
most of her furniture herself, along
Japanese lines, and having it made
by Japanese workingmen out of their
native material, Miss Hyde haa made
a house and studio equally compatible
with American ideas of comfortable
living and the Japanese standard of
art
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Winfree, Raymond. The Schulenburg Sticker (Schulenburg, Tex.), Vol. 15, No. 21, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 21, 1909, newspaper, January 21, 1909; Schulenburg, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth189325/m1/6/: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Schulenburg Public Library.