The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-12-16
SASONEFF TOLD
 STORY OF CRIME Made Straightforward Talk be-
 fore Trial Board HE HATED THE MINISTER Says Nothing Can Stop the Spread of SociaIlstic Doctrines, for
 Thousands Will Fight
 for Them.
HE HATED THE MINISTER

St. Petersburg, December I5-From the lips of a high parsonage who attended the trial O. Sasoneff, the assassin of Minister of the Interior von Plehve, the Associated Press is able to give the substance of the prisoners speech in which he strove to justify his act. Sasoneff spoke calmly and eloquently. explaining the aims and ob- jects of the social revolutionary party. The reasons for von Plehve's murder, the prisoner said, were his own biography.
 Sasoneff told how he joined the party and committed the crime. He declared that the social revolutionary party did not contemplate forcible destruction of autocracy, realizing the imposslbility of such a task without the aid of the army The social revolutionary party, he said, is entirely different from the party Of the national will' which slew Emperor Alex ander II. This latter party, he said, was engaged In a desperate duel with the au- tocracy in which to annihlate was the sole aim and object. The social revolu- tionary party is a peaceful propaganda to show he evils of autocracy, and to inculcate the principles of socialism among all classes of the nation; but real izing that the attainment of a perfect socialistic estate is so remote that "by the time it is reached, Russia will prob- ably be obliterated from the globe"
 Encountered Ruthless Opposition.
 This peaceful and idealistic mission en- eountered the ruthless opposition of cer- tain ministers such as Bogdanovitch, minister of public instruction (who was shot January 27, 1901 and died March 3 of the same year) and Sipiaguine, min ister of the interior (assassinated April 15, 19e2), and notably von Plehve, who made a business of hunting down apostles of socialism. The party was com pelled to defend itself, and this gave rise to a fighting organization whose members are pledged to exterminate prosecutors.
 sasenoff enumerated list of acts for which von plehve was condemned, includ- ing the prosecution of Films, the slaugh- ter of workmen at Zelatoust, the murder of Jews at Kishineff and the spoilation of Armenians besides his treatment of socialists. When the committee of the fighting organization decided on von Plehves death there were over 100 vol unteers to execute the sentence. Sasonef was selected and was told he would have an accomplice, but he did not know the name of his accomplice until he saw Sikorifsky after the murder. Sasenoff said that it was with loathing and horror that he undertook to deprive a human be- ing of life but that he realized that "the monster von plehve could only be met with the monster death.
 Studied socalstic Doctrines.
 Retracing the events of his life, sasenoff said he came from family belonging to the old faith which had enriched itself in the lore of that day, disregarding lat ter day teachings. He went to the uni- versity at Moscow and returned to his home in Ufa and began to study soeialis- tic doctrines. The murder of Minister Bog danovitch greatly impressed him, and he began to think the pistol bullet was the only remedy for tyranny. Soon afterwards he joined the Ural committee of the social revolutionary party. whose headquarters were at Ufa. He was again arrested on the charge of spreading the doctrine of socialism, and condemned to five years exile in Siberia. While he was in prison at Jfa he met a peasant awaiting trial in connection with the Zelatoust strike and learned how Governor Bogdanovich under yon Plehve's inspiration gave orders to fire upon a crowd of helpless, innocent neasants He vowed to slay Bogdanovich. but later heard that another comrade, who has not yet been discovered killed the governor general. Sasenoff then told how he escaped from a Siberian convict gang. crossing the frontier, ultimately reaching Greva, where he plotted for von Plehves life. He wound up with procia- nation that no people on earth was able | to stop the spread of the humane ideals of the social revolutionary party, whose work was carried on by thousands of will ing hands throughout the length and | breadth of the empire.