The Emporia weekly news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1881-1889, 1883-07-12
The semIIons' Oath

Philadelphia Press: a curious case,
Involving ali the features OF the COrsl-
can vendetta, has come To light at
Reeds Station, Northumberland cOun=
ty, Penn, through the death he'd confess
sion of Alexander SemilOtt, q young
Pole, who died this morning. For some
time past, SemilOti, who was an edu.
Gated man, but considered morOse, mis-
anthroplcaI, and cynical by his country
men, was noticed To be failing in health,
and on Wednesday physician was sum-
moned at his request Being told that
he could not live till daylight, he de-
sired those present to listen TO the iOl-
lowing confession:
In 1868, when he was boy of about
seven years, he resided with his father
in the Polish village of Sitomir, on the
Russian frontier. His fathers sister, a
young married woman, lived in the same
town. Her husband was in the army at
the time, and she resided with her
maids. In the fall of the year, g young
man named ROmanO1f, son of the pre-
feet OF the district, and captain of
regiment OF Cossacks, came home ON
furIOugh, and during his stay became
intimate with the Semilo1fs, and finally
betrayed the woman. She, as result,
ended her career in a noted resort in
Baden.
Upon hearing the news of her beIray-
al, SemilOf took his young son on his
knee and made him swear to avenge the
wrong by killing off the entire R0man-
off family. Soon after the village pre-
feet was found lying dead by the road
side, but in such Il manner as TO give the
conviction that he had committed sui
eide. But SemiloIt's father had shot
Romanoff and LAID tine pistol by his side.
Soon after young ScmIlUH left SiiOinir
and the father enlisted and went To tue
Crimean War. Two OF Romanutf 5 SONS
were officers III the Russian army, and
one night both we're discovered murder
ed in their tents. No clue could be
found to the murdereTs.
Soon after the elder SemilOH deserted,
and was unheard of for some time. Dur
ing his abscncE IN Crimea and else
where, the s0L was pursuing course
| of study in tue CracOW university. For
| a period of ten years he never saw his
| father, until one night the latter ap-
| peared anu requested that he follow
him the xt morning. They started
| for Italy, anu went to Florence. There
o brother OF RomRnof was an attache Of
the Russian legation, and the father and
| son determined To STAY him. One night
as they were walking along the Arno
| they espiCd the object Of theiI
search, accompanied by another gentle
man. Following in pursuit, they soOn
deliberately murdered him in sight OF
his com panIon, whom the old Semilof
held IN his grasp.
They trusted 10 the masks they wore
! to hide their features and went back
boldly to the city next morning Old
Semiloff was subsequently arrested fol
the crime. lie was in church at the
time and could make no resistance. He
| was sentence Il TO death and executed 9
few weeks alter. Young Semiloff escap.
| ed and Joined brigand band, which he
sooE left, and gong back to Poland
| found that all The Romanof family had
left. Some being exiled TO Siberia for
| treason, they sOOn died from the hard
| ships of that rigorous cline. The BAL
ance went To America, and thither
| young SemiloIf came.
After searching a few years, he found
they had gorie to the mining regions
where all but one had died, thus escap-
ing his vengence. This one he found
near here living alone. Disgusting
himself, SemilOf took quai tiers there,
and soon perfected his plans. One night
LObOski, the last of the ROmanof tribe
disappeared. No notice was taken of it
by his neisllhOTs, sudden disappearance
being. common. SemIlOf then came
here.
His vengeance satisfied, he became a
gloomy, mOfose man, and took up quar-
Iers with the rest of his cOuntrymen. He
gave description Of the spot where he
buried LOboski two years ago, and, fol
lowing the account, party went to the
place and dug up the skeleton OF man
with large knife still sticking in the
body. Early this morning SemilOf
breathed his last. The curious story
caused great deal of excitement, and
there is no doubt of iIs authenticity.
The singular manner Of the man, To-
gesher with his remarkable education,
proved that Semiloa was more than an
ordinary iaborer.