The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-06-28
A NIHILIsT's ADVENTURES.
Sent as an Exile to Siberia-Two and Half
Years of Suffering in the Gold Mines.

Cincinnati sun.
Alexander Seminoff, a highly-educated Rus
sian, who has been living here a short time, and
has attracted the attention of scholars gives the
following account of himself:
MY pseudonym is Charles Frank My Rus
sian name is Alexander Seminole. In 1876 / was
one of the editors of a secret Nihilst paper and
having been convicted of treason, / was sent to
Siberia for an unlimited number of
years. Nihilism, you may be aware, is
spread all over the Russian empire
and the peculiar secresy of its principles
and workings is mainly owing to the fact that
only ten may join together to form a band
Each band often knows nothing whatever abont
another band of ten. Each band works sep
arately We do not know even outside of our
band who is Nihilist or who is not After
editing Nihilistie paper for two years was be-
trayed to the police by one of my associates,
and was surprised one night in bed and taken to
the prison in Odessa, after having been cruelty
scourged. After an eight months examination
l was sentenced to three years hard labor in
Siberia, and TO exile as colonist in the extreme
north of the country.
I'm June, 1876, was separated, according to
legal form, sanctioned by the clergy of Russia,
from my wife and children, and with head
shaved on one side, and twenty-eight pounds of
alleged criminals, to the central prison at Mos
cow, and thence to Siberia. The jour
ney lasted fourteen months, and during
that time the knout was used freely on
chinsk, and, on arriving, were assigned
to different gold mines In the mines worked
from o'clock in the morning until at
night The allowance of food per day
is two and half pounds of black
bread, half baked and hardly palatable, and
bowl of soup, with a small quantity of meat.
Morning and evening, cup of tea is
allowed. l endured my suffering for two and
half years Then | completely broke down,
and the doctor of the district declared that
uvpC aufit for pOrl- rha Of co,,fa 100
RENTED, and was Immediately assigned
to my place in the colony. Ii was in one of the
primitive forests of the north, where wolves,
bears and reindeer dwell In 1881, toward the
end of May, | resolved, with four companions,
to escape, without money or weapons and with
only knife and teakettle. We took the direc-
ton toward the Caspian sea. through forests
and an almost impossible country We had no
shoes our feet, and kept ourselves alive on
fish, game and mushrooms In the Tauskian
country We separated, and, with only one
companion, Maosilli Murainoff, | went on.
soon lost him, and, then pursued my journey
alone At length ! arrived at AStrab1d and
Teheran, in Persia, where / received assistance
My hair had grown over my shoulders, my
beard extended TO my chest l had neither shirt
nor shoes, and my face was sunburnt almost to
black color. An English telegraph operator
took charge of me. He had me washed and
gave me clean clothing. l next went through
Turkey, and thence to Switzerland, where | was
arrested and kept in prison for four months.
Again was arrested in Hesse Darmstadt, and
served term of five months. ] then resolved
to find peace in England or the United States.
l met Mr. Bradlaugh in London, and. at his
request remained at his house for four days.
Through his kindness ] received means enough
to take me to the United States l arrived in
New York in January last and have been in
Cincinnati a few days only. l want to go to
Chicago, where l understand a great many
Russians reside"