The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-12-12
SAFE HERE FROM SIBERIA.
,RUssTAN PRISONER Tells OF ES-
ID CAPE IN A CASk.
'aserschunIn. Once Head OF the TerrOrists.
Greeted by an East Side Mo- I'm Jersey
C1ty-WOman on FerryOOat Him
y n Rose and Is Thanked Personally.

were besiezed yesterday afternoon by sew
sral hundred Jewish Socialists and members
Z of the Russian revolutionary patry who
wished 10 greet Gregory Gerschunrn, also
hmo wn as Andrew itch, once head OF the
Tsrrorists.
| G~erschunin was sentenced TO life i'm
prisonment in Siberia for completely in the
assassination Of Sipia Gune, Minister oil the
Interior, two years ago. He escaped TINS
year from the silver mines Of Akatui, on the
/. Monaghan frontier of Siberia, hiding IN a
oask supposed TO contain nothing but can
baQe. His compatriots took him from the
cask and he was Struggled into Japan
osse territory, whence he recently sailed
for San Francisco, arriving there several
weeks ago.
A committee of fourteen representative
Russian Jew ish radicals, DIR. PaulS. haplan,
DIR. 8. NJ, Jacobs, Abe Cohan, editor Oh
I Voypceyts. Editor Miller of WorheH, y. A
Beneouit and o. 8. Pollock went 20 Phlia-
delphia in the morning expecting to greet
The reyolutionist there. His train was very
late and they returned to Jersey City and
waited until he got there at 5l5 L. VI. a
throng of commuters retlr ming 20 tner
Jersey homes helped TO swell the crowd tnst
cheered and waved hats and handkerchleis
when the train with Gerschunh aoOaIu
rolled into the station.
The uniformed man in charge of the
rate was nearly swept on his feet by the
rush of the crowd toward the reVoiutionist
A he appeared in the long landing enclosure.
Women kissed his garments, IN the JEWISH
Yashion the men, more Amerlcahlzeu anu
less impulsive, patted hun on the back;
The crowd massed about him, cheering
and yelling, and bore him tirst toward tne
ferry slip of the Cortlandt street boat
Then the impulse OF the cTowd ehansoJi
and IL surged, with the delighted but well
xIueezed revolutionist revolving, as ne
never mad before, toward the big Jersey
City waiting room.
Their Gerschunn was mted on a oeuCh
40 that all his comrades might see MN
and cheered Justify. He lis apparently
about 40. somewhat bald, gray eyed ana
"A Intellectual looking. He sad a lew WORDS
IN Russian, holding his right hand TO ms
mouth as il he were shouting an oruer IRON
The bridge of a ship. He said he ~rejolced IN
heing in a land where he was not constantly
under espionage, where he was sure no
one was following him, where ne might
utter his thoughts without fear OF either
persecution or prosecutlor-m inc iahu ol
real freedom OF speech.
He wound up bv exclaiming: Long live
The reyolution!" and was whlrled ana tossed
IA the human eddy out through the waiting
room door to the ferry landing: Inc Terry
ticke collectors, after a vain effort 10 stem
the tide. stood aside and let the crowd reform
on the upper deck of the ferryboat;
A Rray-haired woman listened 70 the
revo~lutionist as he made. at the urging OF his
friends. another little speech in RUSSIAN.
Shs said that she understood some Russian
and was deeply interested in the revolution.
When she learned that the speaker was
0~erschunin she took a pink rose from her
bosom and gave II to a young RUSSIAN Jew
Ia take 10 Ge%rschunin. The rose bearer
addressed Cahan In English, saying the rose
was the last that the American lady had, ana
that abe begged to offer it TO G~erschunln as
her tribute Of appreciation.
Cerschunin. who cannot speak or under
stand English, had Cahan translate the
iadv's remarks. Then ~" insisted upon
shakine hands with hel. 3 lane was swiftly
opened for her and a. -ne passed through
And Rrasped Gerschunin's hand, congratu-
lating him on his eflorts 10 Tree MS county
all hats were lifted. =,
The boat was detained in the Cortlandt
street slip to give the party time 70 get on
. Gerschunin was lifted bodily into a cap
In West street and driven 70 an East SIDE
meeting room, where he had a long confer,
enoe with the leaders in that n~eighborhood
ef the Russian revolutionary prop uganda.
Oerschunin told last night at the home
OF DIR. Kaplan, 230 Fast BROADWAY, the
story Of his adventures AFTER ne hau peen
trrnsferred from the prison at MOSCOW TO
Afatui. He spoken in Russian and EDITOR
Cah.n Interpreted. He was one OF .hve
Ifars. one Of when had killed the Minister
Of Education, Bogolepof. They began 70
consider plans OF escape the T Tpn .d AZ
rot 10 the Akatui prison. Inc warden
mad like a despot and attractions OF rules
we're sometimes punished with death, -,
The 100 political prisoners not only die
III the work for the guards Out also pre-
pared their own meals
cals- including Marie S~piridonova. Sh'
mad killed a General who hogged peasants
The silver mines IN whlGh the nSnnar
had expected TO work had peen aoanuoh one.
and this deprived them OF a chdhce Ihe)
had counted on 20 get away
Inst before Gerschunln suc>ee geo III
escaping the warden Of the prison had beer
Changed and 100 more soldiers added 10 th'
.rIard- increasing il TO lTO men,
The nyisoners made cut up cabbage
~vhioh was later used for sauerkraut, taklnl
q IN casks about three and a half feet hlgi
ara three feet in diameter TO a storage
house across a narrow road ron ine pTrls ESQ
schunin was needed by his compatriots II
IRE outer world, and every man and woman
entered into the plot to free him. The wlve'
Of some Of the prisoners had been permltteI
e. visit them before the new warden came
h,t he excluded them and they did what the!
could outside.
sroup OF prisoners began fixing a casl
"a which TO place Gerscnunh- me o ~
In The room where the work OF storing TN
sisw1n the casks was going on there was n
4 waard. Gerschunin got into the. prepared
sssk and curled himself up. He had 3
fake of all his clothing except an under
shirt 10 squeeze in. He found two, TN.
vrbher tubes connected with small holes u
thc aide OF the cask, and through these h
breathed, while his comrades fastened nm
IN He wore on his head a metal cap =
that an officer who might want TO sample Tn
nlaw with his sword, IA they sometime
did. would not cut his head.
Eight soldiers went with the bearers o
the casks, including that containing Gers
chunin, and saw them put into the celia
<vSf the storehouse. But the prisoner
cask was later secretly lowered into III
rabceIlar, a foul smelling place wher
not even the soldiers cared TO go. Ger
rbunin soon felt himself suffOcating. II
heard a prearranged signal that cam
from a revolutionist who had made his wa
4, the subcellar through an u~ndergroun
r,nssaUe dug after months OF patient TO
BY the prisoners. -,
Then he heard a warning whistle and n
tread of an officer in the cellar above. II
man who whistled was TO have cut open Il
Caak. 1t was surmisei that Cierschunl