Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1881-07-14
RUSSIAN DESTROYING ANGELS.
HERoINTs oT THE REVOLUTION -sks-rIITOH,
BAEuIS ANp rEEuTrskL

BAEuIS ANu rEKurTskL
Trom the Pail Mail Gazette.
Sophie Bardin, Of TamboG young
lady Of noble birth, was the first to
iamiliarile the public with the ,pccta-
Gle of u Russian revolutionary hero
me- She had not finished her studies
and passed her final examinations
when she had decided to dedicate her
life to the service Of "her brothers. -
At eighteen years Of age she went %
Zurich to study the labor question in
Switzerland and Germany, and to iii
at the feet OF Bakuin, the apostle of
universal destruction" and the proph-
ct of anarchy. She soon returned to
Russia confirmed in the faith n to
the necessity for rcmodcling society.
and resolved to lose no time in setting
10 work. She assumed the name of n
soldiers widow, and began to work at
daily wages in factory, the better to
be able to carry on the work of pro-
selytism among the di-inhcritcd Of
the world. \ year after her descent
among the workers she was arrested.
The authorities took two years to pre-
pare her indictment, and she was not
tried before the spring of 1877. She
conducted her own defense, and sur.
prised every one 10y the courage and
passion with which she pleaded her
cause. Thousands of copies of her
address were sold in II. yr,bure.
and the fate of the eloquent speaker
gave force and emphasis to her closing
words "Ihe association will aycngc
me, and its vengeance will be terrible.
Let your hangmen and Judges massa-
ere and destroy Us now, during the
short time that force is still on YOUR
side. We set against YOU our mortal
might, and that will triumph. Pro.
gress, liberty and equality fight for u-.
and through these ideas no bayonct
can thrust Her cloquence availcd
not, and Sophie Bardin was sent to
labor in the Siberian mines for nine
years-a drcary cxpiation for one
years propagandi,m of revolutionary
doctrine.
Sophie Bardn was the first, and
Sophie Pcroil-ki the third. of the pop.
ular bcroincs Of the Russian rcvolu.
ton. The second was occupied by
Vera Sassulitch, whose name i, per.
haps even more familiar in the West
than that of either Of the Others.
Vera, who achieved notoricty bv the
shot she fred at Gen. Trcpolr to avcnge
the chastisement inflicted on n prison
err Boglaiouboh, who was personally
unknown to her. was four years older
than Sophie Bardin at the time of her
trial. Her troubles, however, began
even earlier. When only seventeen
years old she was flung into jail as the
friend Of the sister of Nctchaieff. the
well-known conspirator. She lay there
two years without trial, and after her
release she spent three years in exile.
being passed on by the police from
town to town rs suspect. Opprcs.
sion drives even the wise man mad.
and no one can be surprised that such
treatment drove the victim into the
ranks of the active conspirators. and
at last led her to shoot Gen. TrepoF
She made no attempt to escape. and
justified her deed in court as being
necessary to call attention to the cruel.
ty which was practiced under his con.
troll. All other means o. publicity
being denied her, she resorted to the
revolver. Her plan found favor in
the eyes of Russian jury, and her
acquittal, which was applanded by al.
most every newspaper in st. Peters
burg, startled Europe. Immediately
after her acquittal, amid scene Of
riotous enthusiasm, she disappeared.
1t was said she had been arrested by
Administrative order" and banished
to Siberia. After short time il was
discovered that she had only been in
safe hiding, and soon afterward she