Evening star., 1907-11-04
EGRAnDPR|S0NS
Pitied Russian conWcts Are
Really Fortunate Folk.
JAILS JUST FINE INNS
Where Everybody's Happy Except
the Poor Guards.
DOORS OPENED ON DEMAND
All St Petersburg Laughing at the
Burlesque Escape Of Big Po-
litical Prisoner.
Special Cshlegram to The Star.

uC1ca1 PRISONER.
Special Cshlegram to The Star.
ST. PETERSBURG, November 4. =
Prisons in Russia are mere inns say
the bureaUcrats who are held responsible
for such law and order as exist in car
dom. inns in which the guests eat and
drink more or less according to their
tastes, meet together, gamble. and even
conspire When they wish to leave they
either bribe a jailer or blow his brains
OUT This description seems exagger-
ated. but it is not altogether untrue
Prisoners possess revolvers, jimmies
bombs and daggers, and often use them
with dire results. The utmost that the
nationalist Novoe Vremya can say on
the subject is Thank heaven that the
bombs and other weapons are not distrib-
uted at the cost of the crown"
For years upon years Russian prisons
were Egyptian rooms of mystery. In
which miracles were daily performed
Prisoners managed to receive and stow
away in Their cells vast quantities Of for
bidden things. Bed posts were drilled and
followed while windowsills removed
boards of floors carefully taken up. bricks
scooped out. One might fancy that the
great Mahatma himself had ethereanZed
the articles and diffused them In the air.
Detection could. therefore. only be the re-
suit of chance or treachery. Thus in the
Sterlitamak prison some years ago con-
vict named Sookatshen hid a live horse,
which he had unyoked a short time pre-
viously from the cart on which the flour
lad been conveyed to the prison. All at
tempts to find 1t were frutless. AT last,
at the request of the inspector Sookat-
shelf himself undertook to search" for
it. He succeeded in finding 1t, its feet
lied together in the loft Of two-story
house. the door of which was locked with
the inspectors own lock.
So Sweetly Indulgent.
The jaiiers. warders and governors of
Russian prisons are an induIgent race Of
men. who humor the convicts whenever
they can, and sometimes even when they
cannot. without injuring themselves.
Hence clubs. card parties and other means
of killing time are in vogue in ali Russian
places OF detention. Most numerous es-
capes have also. during the past few
years, been effected with the active CO.
operation or the benevolent connivance Of
the jailers. Frequently warders receive
very harsh usage from those prisoners
who. falling in attempts at bribery, man
age by the help OF smuggled arms to ef-
lctt d stormy r or instance, q
few weeks ago at Kharkof chief in
Spector was kh.eu. five of his assistants
mutilated. and the prison fired by half a
dozen ''polit.cals'' In hurry to leave the
inn
Recently several revolutionists were
condemned to death on a charge of plot
ting against the life OF the car The
time of the execution was drawing near.
One of the doomed men Sinyavsky. the
most determined revolutionist of them
all, was the father of an illegitimate
child, the mother OF which applied to the
advocate. sokolofr. begging that he would
get permission for her to marry the con-
demned man. NJ. Sokolof presented a
petition without delay. but failed to move
the metropolitan archbishop of st. Peters
this church dignitary remarked that a
person condemned to die should enter
church." he added 'Joins two person.
for life. not for death Unbafied. the
advocate approached the holy synod
could not wait. At special meeting held
the same evening the most holy synod
granted the permission and dispensed the
bride and bridegroom from confessine
their sins or partaking Of holy communion
Therefore. Sinyavsky was legally Joined
in bonds of holy matrimony with the
mother of his child. The priest, in his
discourse at the ceremony. wished the
bridegroom life and q communication OF
his sentence. But the rite was for death
not for life. The wardens who were wit
nesses OF the ceremony were also spec
tators of the execution. In the gray Of
the following morning the bridegroom was
in world where they neither marry mol
are given in marriage.
One Daring Escape.
Even the most experienced jailer mus'
have been surprised at the daring. an6
so far successful. escape of the docto,
of philosophy, anarchist. communist anc
convict, Aleinikoff. from a large st
Petersburg prison. in the very heart Of
the city under the eyes of the gendarmes
the jailers, the judges and the lawyers
He had already been condemned to eigh,
years hard labor a few weeks before
and might. therefore. have been stowet
away in some provincial prison. and kept
out Of harms way for time, But the
authorities would not let we'll enough
alone They were about to have him
| tried for a second offense. After q
eirdsome cross-examination the pris
oner complained Of sudden illness. anc
asked to be allowed to retire. and the
was accordingly led away by two gen
darmes into the large hall. in a corner
of which three public 1avatories were
situated, or these one was used as q
StOreroom, the second was engaged dnG
locked
man quilted the third just as the
prisoner arrived, and 1t was into this
| compartment that Aleinikof entered. The
two gendarnnes waited outside-siient,
patient, watchful After ten or twelve
minutes suddenly the door Of one of the
lavatories opened. It was the compart-
| ment which had been locked. The men
on guard turned and scanned eagerly the
| face Of the man who came out. But only
| for a second He was mere stranger.
whom they had never seen before. and
therefore nothing to them-a black beard
ed man, with a tall hat and glasses,
wearing a cloak and carrying portfolio
an official of the court. Their features
| again relaxed the expression OF GU
rosty being followeu by that Of resig-
nation. Still they waited and waited. but
saw and heard nothing. After twenty
| long minutes had thus passed they called
out "Aleinikoff. are you i'll? Speak, But
! there was no reply. Members of the pub
| lie came up to know what had happened
| The gendarmes grew nervous. knocked
called again to Aleinikoh. and at las'
| burst the bolt and opened the door. The
place was empty. and the story OF Ale.ni-
koff's escape could be easily read by the
president OF the court OF appeals, who
| having meanwhile arrived in person, stood
pale and quivering in the hall.
Just How It Happened.
This was how it happened: An accom-