The sun., 1918-12-29
First Hand Story
of Heavy Fighting
With Bolsheviki
and How Anarch-
lists Were Out
witted by Smaller
Forces

Va
the following account of Czecho-
Siovsk fighting in Russia, first
served as 4 corporal. He presided
over the convention that decided TO
fight the BoiSheviki and led a de-
tachment in the succeeding battles.
His story shows what vast difficult
ties were overcome by the newly
Organized nation.
By KAREL ZMRHAL.
TN the middle of May a small
Czecho-Slovak army in Russia
was scattered along 5000 miles of
railway. Some of the trains In which
it started its long Journey in March
were already at v~ladivostok, while
some were still standing in Southern
Russia unable to reach the main Siber-
ian lines. At every station the Czecho-
slovak trains were held up on one pre-
text or another, while the Moscow
authorities attempted to break UP the
army by insisting that one-half Of Il
should be diverted from the Vladiyo-
stok journey n go north TO Arch
angel. In Siberian cities the Soviets
were ruled by German and Magyar
executive officers who made II plain
that they would not permit the army
Of the Czecho-S lovaks to reach the
western front.
1t was evident to every member Of
this small army. to the common SOL
diers as well as to the officers, that
they were a handful OF unarmed men
among millions controlled by enemy
Influences. The fate of the army and
Of every individual vas at stake, and
since the Czecho-Slovak army was a
volunteer army. democratic in dts COM
position and without It's commander in
chief. who was then in America, II was
decided to call n convention Of dele
gates from all the units of the army.
who would decide what course should
b. adopted.
Trotsky Ordered Great killing.
The convention met on May 20 at
Cheljabinsk or the boundary of Euro
pcan and Asiatic Russia and 1876 dele
gates were present from all the scat
tered units of the army except from
the Nladivostok group. The delegates
coming from Vladivostok were i'm
prisoned by the Bolsheviki at kras-
noyarsk. Even before the convention
met secret orders were issued by Trot-
zky on May II for complete disarming
of all Czecho-Slovak troops. intern
ment in prison camps OF common SOL
diers and killing all officers. The con-
vention did not know this when It
decided on May 20 to proceed to Vladi-
vostok regardless of the desire of the
BOlshevik commissaries. and to cut
their way through should attempt be
made to stop and disarm them.
On May 81 came the news Of the
t~reacherous attack by the Bolsheviki
upon Czecho-Slovak trains at Marian
ovka, Zlatoust and Irkutsk. The con-
vention adjourned n 1t was the turn
OF the military leaders. When the
break came with the Bolsheviki the
position of the Czecho-Slovak troops
would have discouraged the most san
Fuinc commander. West OF PenZa,
where the Czecho-Slovaks reached the
Siberian Railroad on their march from
the Ukraine, there were still nine
trains. but these attachments were
well armed. Between Penza II Syz-
ran. where the railroad crossed the
NOlga, there were six trains; then
there was a jump to the Trails. and In
the mountains between Zlatoust and
~Cheljabinsk there were six trains. In
CholjaSinsk itself there stood seven
trains and a hospital train; further
east at KurGan was n train OF COM
la'ants and one train OF supplies; at
petropaviosk one train of supplies. and
at Omak was the stan train of the
army corps. Scattered on the wide
Plains between Omsk and Irkutsk were
trains and fifteen trains
had already discharged their men at
N~iadiyostok. All trains stationed east
o. Pcnza were disarmed and in some OF
them there was not even n single rifle.
TIE stu, m seemed desperate. In
addition TO the lack Of weapons and to
TIL gathering of the small army over
thousands of miles of track there were
no plans and there were no expert
eucod leaders. II seemed almost Inn
possible 70 establish contact between
the different sections and to issue Or
L.r- to commanders Of the different
trims. The telegraph could not be
used because the wires were under
control uf the Bolsheviki.
stan Was at Omsk.
" -r-- .-,