Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1913-09-12
The Prisoners
Alphabet
How a Girl Learned II and
II Led to Her Freedom
BY CATHERINE KRONIN

't"t-tt'f-t~t'tt't't't"tt
the department of Koskoma, Russia
Our peasants, who had formerly been
serfs and not many years liberated,
were very ignorant, and 1t seemed to
me-then a girl of twenty-that the
first thing to do to better their condi-
ton was to educate them, for they
but little above what was performed
by beasts of burden. Indeed, they
We're treated by the government Off
Gals as cattle. l have seen a man go
into clamorlng crowd with a stout
whip and scatter them as he would so
many steers.
My father forbade me to do anything
for the poor creatures that was not
permitted by the government, know
ing well that by doing so 1 would get
into trouble. But my sympathies were
so strong that l consented to teach
clandestlnely. l found 1t easier to
teach the children, and l used back
room in PEASANTS cottage for school.
l had not been long at the work be-
fore the secret got out, and one day the
government officials broke into the
room while my school was in session,
and l was caught red handed.
l pass over our dreary march to 81
IBERIA, for 1t has nothing to do with my
story. That story begins on the first
night of my arrival at the prison at
Kara. l was lying on my cot in my
cell, overcome with that dreadful feel
ing Of being locked in and wishing that
death would relieve me from the suffer
tngs In prospect for me. do not know
whether 1t had seemed bleaker to me
outside or now that l was within the
prison walls. So uncomfortable were my
thoughts that tried to turn them to
the home l had left, my father, my
mother and my sisters. But l knew
they were suffering on my account, and
to think Of them gave me no relief.
But dark as the prospect was, deep
as the gloom In which l was plunged,
there came something that turned my
thoughts from my misfortunes A
heating pipe entered my cell at the
floor and ran perpendicularly through
the ceiling. Suddenly a sound passed
over the pipe, as when steam Is turned
on in a radiator 1t was but one tiny
tick, such as would be made by tho
pipe being struck by metal. 1t was i'm
mediately followed by another tap,
then short interval, then a third.
Next three taps came together, follow
ed by two.
This was enough to indicate that the
sounds were not made by the expan-
sion or contraction Of the pipes from
heat or cold, but that some one was
tapping on them, with what / did not
know. | listened for some time, dur
Ing which | knew that message was
being transmitted; but, since did not
know the code, l could not interpret II.
When 1t ended another series OF taps
commenced, and there was differ
ence In the key, indicating that the
later series was produced by a differ
ent instrument from the first.
oh, blessed relief - something TO
think about, something to unravell
Messages were being transmitted
through my room over the heating
pipe. | was Mt once Interested in read
ing them. Had l known Of the Morse
telegraphic cOde-which | did not-I
would have surmised that this one was
similar. The Morse code is composed
Of dots and dashes This prison code
was composed Of taps and intervals.
For instance, one tap might mean the
letter A, two taps u, two taps and one
after an interval c. one tap and two
after an interval ID, and 80 on.
/ did not gain n knowledge of a sin
gle letter that night, though two per
sons talked over the pipe for some
time All communication ceased
quarter Of nm hour before the last visit
OF the guard and recommended quar-
ter Of nm hour after the round had
been made, the persons continuing to
communicate for half an hour, when
they ceased, giving me the first cue
or wOrds-as / took them to be-were
tapped after short silence, and the
same taps and intervals were repeated
by the person who received them.
had by this time learned TO sep
arate letter from letter and word from
word. These last two words, tapped
and repeated, were composed the first
Of four, the second OF five letters.
listened for some time for more, but
heard nothing, and It occurred TO me
that the words spoken were intended
for n closing Of the conversation, just
as today persons talking over n tele-
phone sny "goodby" TO each other to
indicate that they have nothing more
to say. Immediately It flashed upon
me that the words spoken were good
by, but the second word Of Roodby II
composed Of two letters, whereas, as
I have said, the second word OF tho
last message was composed OF FIVE
~ have I'll The message was good
night"
80 ended the first evening OF my priB-
on life, for, small ms tho distraction
from my troubles was, It was enough,
worn out as I was, TO bring on sleep.
passed into Inconsistencies, think
ing that probably the messages would
recommence on the morrow and l