American Falls press. [volume] (American Falls, Idaho) 1907-1937, 1917-10-26
SOUkHOMLINOFF. MASTER
TRAITOR


=
If General SoukhOmlinoff is found
guilty, he will be the master traitor
Of all history; for, by ~betraying the
Russian armies to death, by poisoning
the Cars mind and thwarting the
plans of the allies at %Petrograd. by
o|verturning every Russian victory to
the Germans he prolonged the war I'M
til nation after nation that had re-
NAMED at peace was forced into it;
and he, not Hindenburg or the kaiser,
was the central figure of the whole
war"
Thus the Philadelphia Press de-
nounced the former Russian minister
of war, during his trial for treason.
Since then he has been found guilty
and sentenced to hard labor for life.
The scene in the courtroom was a
dramatic one as the jury, which had
deliberated for seven hours, brought
in a verdict of guilty while they ac-
( quilted his wife, who had been tried
with him. Of the charges against Gen
eral SoukhOmlinoff The Press said:
The Russian government charges
that SOukhomlinoff is the author if the
Russian defeats from 1914 on. He
was minister of war, and the car, ac-
I NOA4AnS " OGnEId4 NElllluhO , lESLl-
mony, relied implicitly on him and
saw everything through the spectacles
of General Souhomlinoff." The min
lister. it is alleged, was in Germany's
pay and communicated to her, through
his wife and certain spies, whose
names are given. the Russian military
secrets and plans of campaign. After
bringing army after army to disaster
Ir- chic v,aasrr r.l~ha~,1f,, sc o~.u~~,,I
his treason by %depriving the armies Of
ammunition and supplies. and the re-
suit was the great disaster of 1915,
when the Grand Duke Nicholas's army,
after advancing far into the enemy's
country, was forced to retreat with
great loss back into Russia.
All this time the French and British
were striving desperately to hold back
the Germans on the west front. The
Russian armies, by advancing into
Austria and even into Germany, could
have ended this state of afafirs and
the war as we'll. They did advance
into both countries, and over and over
again it appeared that Russia vas
about to save the allies in the west
and bring Germany to her own de-
tense. Each time the Russian armies
were halted at the moment of victory
and hurled back into their own coun-
try; not. it is now charged, because
they were outfought. but because they
we're betrayed. The Russian soldier
fought with little more than his bare
hands against German artillery; the
Germans brought up their guns and
played them on sections where they
knew the Russians were without am
munition, and massacred them.
Some people in Russia believe that
of the two who were tried for treason
the woman, who escaped punishment.
is the more guilty, and that General
SOukhOmlinOff's troubles grew out of
a desire to crafty the e~Xtravagant
tastes of his wife rather han a wish
TO aid Germany, the great cost OF
which he did not forsee. The Arkan-
sas Gazette says:
AT his trial it was shown that Nine
SOukhOmlinOff purchased as many as
5 ten hats in one season. She was
/, twenty-five when he married her, anC
p he at least sixty. There is a story in
+, Petrograd that she was a waitress a.
Kief in her early youth. ~SOukhomlin.
: off rose from the ranks to be minister
4 of war, earning his promotions b!
hard and efficient work, and was {
{ great favOrite with the car.
, Stories about SoukhomlinOff begaI
s drifting about Petrograd and Moscow
= soon after the outbreak of the war
- There was talk of graft in connection
f with war contracts. and also talk o
z the presence of underlings in the Rus
. sian wal office who worked hand il
i. glove with the German authorities
: The first loud murmur against Sioux
n homlinOff came in regard to the Ma
saeyeeov case.
: Long before MasaeyeeOv was tire'
0 and hanged as a spy. proof of thu
J. mans treason was submitted to thu
war minister. But the charges werl
I not pressed and MasaeyeeOv. a spy o
b the very worst type. continued in thu
e service of the Russian staff at Petro
grad. in close communication with tn
war plans of the country. 1t was dul
4 to him and ultimately to SOukhOmlin
p off. it is claimed. that the Russians
I suffered the terrible defeat at thu
Masurian lakes, where the Germans
, knew the plans of the Russians a
: the latter lacked ammunition to de
! fend themselves. M~asaeyeeov, togeth
err with twelve or fifteen more of hi