The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-09-27
THE "RETURNS" FROM
 SIBERIA IN MOSCOW The Story of an Escaped Political Criminal Very
 Interesting. EASY TO GET AWAY. Domiciliary Inspection, an Arrest Without
 Trial.
EASY TO GET AWAY.

This story of a political prisoner, who returned from Siberia, after get ting acquainted with all the horrors of that land of exile, is told by London Evening Standard correspondent:
 I do not know who ne is, and it would be indiscreet to say where l met him, but it was about week ago. By this time he must be safe over the frontier-in Germany, in Switzerland, or, possibly, in London, which is rath- CT in favor of late with those who are not in good odor with the Russian gendarmes. In short, he was badly wanted political criminal category which would include the cat that look ed at a king-if the Russian gendarmes could make any kudos or coin out of catskin. He has just re- turned, without cognizance of the au- thorities, from an involuntary sojourn in a desolate region. of farther Si- beria. In manner he was gentle man, and man of education and cul- ture. He was possibly landowner, for his knowledge of country life and agricultural methods was considera- ble: possibly a university professor, for he spoke with that authority and with that rapid, easy flow of polished verbiage generally confined in Russia Nto the more worthy of the university graduates.
 Of course, he was introduced to me by name, but the name properly be- ionged to 8 gentleman at Tomsk or Irkutsk-I forget which-who had lent his passport for the return jour- ney. He made no secret of that, and little need, for the sytem is by now thoroughly well established, perfectly well- known to the poHce, and only succeeds so generally because of the enormous numbers of siberian re- turns" and possibly little secret sympathy on the part of the minor of ficial who deals with passports at the police stations. The following is as much of his story as he thought fit to tell, and I find advisable to publish:
 "It was in the summer of 1905 that at last got away for holiday abroad. I went to Paris for three months. Up to then I had not be- longed to any of the parties, but, of course, sympathized entirely with the common objects of them all-to overthrow the bureaucratic regime. At that time, as you know, we talked freely, and lots of my friends be- came members, of various parties, Things had not then quite crystallized out so clearly as they have now and really one did not trouble very much about the exact shade of opinion of this or that friend, so long as he was not a Black Ganger. Before I left, one of them came and asked permis- sion to use my fiat in my absence as a sort of handy store for literature and possibly some arms. I was a bachelor and didn't think much about it but, all the same, 1t occurred to me to take his word that my fiat would not be used for meetings, which always attract the notice of the spies, and If any arms were put there it must not be anything more than half dozen revolvers, and all the proper and usual precautions were to be talk en not to spring the place. All this he faithfully promised, and I set of to have a good time in a free coun- try.
 ''When I came back as good luck would have it, I bethought me of an old friend near Kiev, and how glad he would be to see me with my budget of fresh gossip from abroad He was anything but pleased to see me, as il turned out, for he could not be per- suaded that the gendarmes were not then hot on my track. You know their pleasant methods! They are much the same as those your people use with a plague center in the East Any person who has ever come in con tact with you, personally or by letter is, for the gendarmes, politically in- fected and they pursue the infection throughout the Empire and over any length of years-a good deal more conscientiously than your best doctors track out the course of the plague! We'll, my Kiev friend told me the