Morning journal and courier., 1883-04-25
Vera Saasulttch.
,E,o,,, cto,;n.h, s.1r,darorornd

From Stepinaks "Underground hussla.'
 Vera Sassulitch has nothing about her of the heroine of psuedo Radical tragedy, nor of the ethereal and ecstatic young girl. She is strong, robust woman, and, although of middle height, seems at first sight to be tall. She is not beautiful. Her eyes are very fine, large, we'll shaped, with long lashes, and of gray color, which become dark when she IS excited. Ordinarily thoughtful, somewhat sad, these eyes shine forth brilliantly when she is enthusiastic, which not infrequently happens, or sparkle when she jests, which happens very often. The slightest change of mind is reflected in the expressive eyes. The rest of her face is very commonplace. Her nose somewhat long, thin lips, large head, adorned with almost black hair. She is very negligent with regard to her appearance, She gives no thought to it whatever She has not the slightest trace of the desire which almost every woman has of displaying her beauty. She is too abstracted, too deeply immersed in her thoughts, to continuously give heed to things which interest her so lit tie. There is one thing, however, which corresponds even less than her exterior with the idea of an ethereal young girl-it is her voice. At first she speaks like most people. But this preliminary state continues a very short time. No sooner da her words become animated than she raises her voice and speaks as loud as though she were addressing some one half deaf or at least hundred yards dis tant Notwithstanding every effort, she can not break herself of this habit. She is so abstracted that she immediately forgets the banter of her friends and her own determin- ation to speak like the rest of the world in order to avoid observation. In the street, directly some interesting subject is touched upon, she immediately begins to exclaim, accompanying her words with her favorite and invariable gesture, cleaving the air ener- gstically with her right hand, as though with a sword. Under this aspect, so simple, rough and unpoetieal, she conceals, however, a mind full of the highest poetry, profound and powerful full of imagination and love.
 Vera Sassulitch, who is once more report
 cd as having been captured by the Russian authorities, has been as extensively and in consistently Autographed" as her French sister, Louise Michel. She was born in 1850, according to the (apparently) most trust worthy authorities, and in 1867 was shut up in Lithuanian prison for the offense of heinz schoolmate of the sister of Netchaieff. the political conspirator. Her imprisonment lasted two years, and she had scarcely been liberated when she was rearrested on an ad- ministrative order of exile and hurried away from her mothers house so rapidly that she would have perished of cold but for the com passion of gendarme, who covered her with his cloak For some years she was passed on from town to town as a suspect" until, having spent the best years of her life in prison and victim to the insolence and brutality of the police, she had learned to pity those who were similarly afflicted and to desire to revenge them. In 1878 she learned of the brutal ill treatment of prisoner, BoeoIuboff by General Trepof, ''Prefect of the Town, :" at St. Petersburg. The Gen eral had entered the fortress and was exas- perated on beholding Bogolubof and com panion walking together and conversing, as, not being convicts, but merely accused men detained on suspicion, they had a right to
 Fro uo1fiop to Sphv thia allowed, one of the two volunteered an ex- pIanatiop 'tI do not address you-to your dungeon!'' shouted the General, furiously. The two prisoners walked on quietly, when Trepoff, crying, Hats off !'' aimed blow at Bogoiuboff The prisoners hat fell of, but Bogoluboff picked it up and put it on, whereon the General ordered him to be
 iogged A romantic version made it seem that Vera Sassulitch had been acquainted with Bogoluboff-had even been his mistress but there was no truth in the story. She read with indignation of the outrage and waited some time to see if the government would pay any attention to it. When no ac- ton was taken she resolved to do vengeance herself, and on the 9th of February, l91o'
 went to the Generals reception room with 8 petition, and when he stretched out ms nano to receive it shot him through the body.
 She made no effort to escape ana salo tns' she had fired upon the General premeditated-
 Iv without caring whether she killed him or
 ,1ereIv wounded him. since in the latter case her end would be obtained of calling atten- tion to his brutality. She was brought to trial in April, 1878, and defended by M. Alex androff. The jury selected was composed of six members of the civil service, two mer- chants and a nobleman, 8 school-inspector, a student and an artist, and 1t acquitted her promptly amid the applause of the audience, despite the evidence, her avowal and the speeches of the judge and prosecutor. The acquittal provoked general outburst of ap- plause from the press throughout Russia. On the 3d of July, 1878. Vera Sassulitch ap- peared at Geneva, where she was received Tn triumph by Rochefort and his friends. She gave out that she had been rearrested but permitted to escape. It was reported for some time that the Vera of Geneva was an impostor, and that the Russian Charlotte Corday was really in Siberia, but finally all doubts as to her identity ceased. In Decem- Der, 1879, she published statement to the
 effect that her attempt on the Generals life had been made in pursuance of orders from the revolutionary committee and that she had been designated by lot as the avenger.
 In February. 1880, her arrest was said tc have been effected at St. Petersburg, but tht report proved false, and she was repeatedly heard of thereafter at Geneva and Paris pushing on the Nihilist propaganda and nc tive as one of the editors of the Narodnalf
 Volta, well-known Nihilist review.