The state herald., 1892-04-29
ESCAPED FROM RUSSIA.
ENDURED BY slBER-
IAN PRISONERS.
rhe Break for Liberty and tho Awful Re
sultan Exiie's Thrilling Taio OF
tho Land of tho Gar
Prosecuted Poles.

Pursuing the occupation OF brow
Try manager In this city. says tho
Cleveland World. is u well-known cit
zen upon whoso head good price is
let by the Russian government and
whose story has all the horrors OF and
moro Intensity than tho narratives OF
ioorge kennan concerning tho Siborl.
IN exilcs.
AT about tho time tho civil war wns
aging in this country tho inhabitants
,f Poland mado thcir last determined
stand for freedom. Bender was boy
of 1S years In 1861 ho entered tho
Polish army, and for n yoar and IL hall
lid not know what 1t was to sleep un-
Ter n roof In three great battlos
which wero fought he received
wounds. Tho troop OF which ho was
member was surrounded by tho
Cars forces and tho siegc began.
The provisions OF tho bosieged were
exhausted. and -thoy were compelled
TO kill their horses for meat. Mr..
Bender says that young horseAesh Is
as swoot rs chicken. After untold
privations break for liberty was
made. A bullet struck Bondonin ~.
back OF his head and ho tumblod from
his horse Ho remembers nothing.
until ho recovered consciousness In H
hospital. When he had partially ro.
covered ho was confined nine months
In Jail.
No trial was given him, but he was
sentenced to twenty-five years at hard
labor in tho mines OF Siberia In tho
nino months OF his Imprisonment hc
was allowed very little food and baro
ly sufficient water to drink. lie asked
for water to wash In. but was refused,
and the slime OF tho cell was oncrusted
over his skin and clothing. Finally
he, with over 200 prisoners men,
women md children. were starlcd for
Siberia under guard OF sixty soldiers.
iio tramped through tho snow for
seven months. Every day some OF the
weaker ones fell from exhau stion.
They were placed on slcdges, which
tho other prisoners were compelled to
drag. AT some OF the villages tho in.
habitants took pity ON them and gave
the prisoners covering for their OK.
posed feet food and water. At other
places tho inhabitants pcltcd them with
dirt and filth. The soldiers offered
them no protection. At Miensk. civ
ilization having been left behind and
escape being deemed impossible. the
chains by which the convicts had boon
bound In pairs were removed.
In the prison pen Mt this point tho
horrors endured by tho prisoners arc
scarcely describablc. Vermin AT
tackled them with the fcrocity OF hun
ger. Somo OF tho creatures IL Is de-
clared. were as largo around as I'M
ordinary lend pencil and half IN inch
long. and they covered tho coiling.
wall and hunks completely Ono
night OF such existence added TO tho
suffering OF tho csilcs In the previous
seven months. decided number of
the more hardy OF tho men. They
realized that OF those who endured
the march. few would survive the OK.
piration OF their sentence. and n gen.
cral agreement was entered into to
attack the soldiers and escape or dio
Ia the attempt The cxiles had no
arms while tho soldiers carried rifles
| and other effective weapons Sticks,
stones and even baro lists were to DO
employed by tho desperate rebels TO
secure their freedom. They waited
until the train reached spot where
tho undcrbrush was thick. Thon
eighty OF tho men dropped their bur-
dens and rushed upon the soldiers
Some were trampod down ut once
! by tho horses. Others fell under tho
murdorou, iire poured into their midst
10y the soldiers rs soon MS they could
bring theirgun 10 benr In all thirty or
forty of tho cxiles were left dead upon
tho ground. About twenty. after nj
terna,oly fighting and running for two
hours got into the brush md left their
pursuers behind. Tho little band scat.
tered TO make pursuit more difficult
A half dozen. among whom was Bender
kept together They skulkcd and
starved for four months and seven
days avoiding the towns and picking
up prccarious living until tho Ger.
man frontier WIS reached in safety.
Thoy were kindly treated by tho Ger
man people and Bender spent three
months In tho empire. Assistance
reached him from friends In New York
and ho took passage. arriving here
July 4. 1879. Being we'll. educated and
Intelligent ho found no difficulty In
securing employment and Is now we'll
to-do.
Ho has not OF course. ever dared
venture back to Russia where the
police would enforce severe punish.
mont upon him Tor his escape lie
learned nltor his arrival thnt his fa.
thcr was convict mt tho mines and
later heard OF his death there.
Mr. llonder married after his mr.
rival In this city. His wl'o was n
Polish girl. She had boon possessed
Of information concerning n plot "a
again robol against tho rulo OF the
Car Sho was arrested and required
TO dlvulgo all sho knew. sho refused
to give the Information which would
lead 10 tho death or transportation oi
fifty or sixty OF tho conspiratorS nnd
wns sent TO prison. = For n year md
flyc months sho was starved and tor.
iurcd In tho fii,by prison. Period.
ically she wns sub ~ v ert1lQ lps kpps,
hut invariably md d504 ne' Ishbf'
anoo of amy us.. sp,,ifncy. The Russian
o1lnlnls finally bccnine CONVINCED that
she know nothing and lot hcr 90
sha was required 10 tnks mn oath tha,
she would roturn 10 hor home but did
not hold herself bound by tho OK.
,ortod promise nnd camo 10 Amcrlcu
whore sho met Mr. Bender.
Didn't Foot tip hight.
Now. Mary hang out tho olotho'
10 that tho neighbors will sec tho bcs'