Stevens County tribune. (Morris, Minn.) 1877-1880, 1879-06-12
A Battle in a Printing Office.

A letter from St. Petersburg to the
New York Herald gives details of the de-
scent by the police of Kief upon secret
Nlhilist printing Office at that place and
the fearful struggle which followed. The
letter says: The policemen went in by
the way indicated for the use of the in
mates of the house, but were fired at the
moment they made their appearance. =
Seeiug themselves in the midst of some
dozen resolute and armed youths the po-
Aicemen. though it prudent to retire, and
went to the nearest police station for re-
Inducements The Nihilists had no time
to remove anything and did not choose
to give them over to the police cheaply.
They lost no time in getting up plan OF
action and of defence against the ex-
pected attack. Thirty-four policemen
returned. Some were stationed around
the house as outposts and the rest went
directly in by the gates Of the yard,
which had a two stored house on the
right hand and one on the left. All the
windows on the second floors, as well as
the roofs of the two houses, were occu-
pied by armed students. who welcomed
| the police with a sweeping volley Of bull
| lets. Three policemen fell dead on the
spot; the rest retired for consultation.
They determined to enter the house. in
tending to fall upon the Nihilists who re-,
manned down stairs in charge of the
books and the presses. And here, in
large room, was enacted fearful scene.
The fight became general, and the result
was as follows: On the side of the po-
police four men received light wounds,
/ mir
killed on the spot. The losses ON the
side Of the Nihil1sts were, it seems, still
greater--four young girls, students of the
university, and three students killed,
while all the others were wounded and
finally arrested by the police. The police
seized the printing press and great
number of interdicted books of foreign
publication. How many people were ar
rested in all do not know, as the num-
Der of political prisoners is not fully Civ
en- by the official reports. ~=--s-arl-.
But the affair did not end here Sim
ultaneously two other girls and several
men were arrested in the neighborhood
of the printing Office. Then a Mile
Herzfeld, was arresthd-a daughter of a
General Herzfeld, who occupies high
position in St. Petersburg, being a
member of the State Council. The
young and renowned Countess Panin,
belonging to one of the oldest Russian
families, was also taken. Her STEP
mother is reported to be still one of
the danes dhonneur of the empress,
and her great grandfather was Sec
ond Chancellor of State in the time of
Catherine the Great. I am told that
both young ladies were taken in the
act of firing at the police with their re-
volvers. 1t is not to be wondered at
that girls of high families are found in
volved in such disturbances. The wo-
men of Russia have repeatedly taken
part in the manifestations of national
aspirations, as for instances, Martha
; Possadniza, of Novgorod; the Princess
Sophia, Peter the Greats enterprising
sister, and others. Russian ladies in
the olden times of domestic seclusion
could not be kept wholly from taking an
active part in the popular movements and
nowadays they take lively share in all
that concerns their husbands and brothers,
and are quite ready to support them
when the occasion comes.