Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-11-24

Perfldy OF Bolshcvilsi Shown in the
ssN- Treatment Of Czec,lo.Siovak
Soldiers.
MADE TREacHERous ATTACKS
After Guaranteeing Safe Passage
"a, Across Siberia, Trotzky and Le-
nine Organized Armed Opposition.
Czcchs Disarmcd ASSailants.
CIV n Cxccho-slovnk omcerD

4 the least Wiltten hpout. ouS SSeSs VI
~ tile war. II Is ihIS army % iorinci
S Czecho- Slovak prisoners Of war III lius-
STA which has iotned the core OF the
a1tied forces now "pera5ims , IN Sipsr,I A.
and Magyar eXpr!SoncrS, a great mum
Der of whom are armed. The hus-
2 sian BolSheVik forces. whom they are
also facing are not formidable. Ihey
s surrender after the first shot.
~ On the Russian front the S2eSn ana
4 ISlovak eN-priSonerS formed INTO III
army under almost insurmountable dlt-
e ficulties. were cooperating with the
Russian army and since the summer
q of1917. were practically the only army
on the Russian front capable OF mill
tary action; In July lsl, during Inc
arst revolutionary offensive liens Ven, "n nhef
really attacked and advanced
sMhen the bolsh ,sn IgTiys s1 ,reaiv
E!fof about 10000 men was in Ckrainia.
I near Kien. The former Jkraininn gov,
thrown themselves into The arms OF
the enemy. and when the Austro-Ger-
man armies began advancing into TX
i IL became desperate. The enemy was
advancing in overwhelming numbers;
and there was danger that we wGula
be surrounded on all sides. we snad
no lines OF communication behind us.
no stores of material and no reserves:
the BoIshevik Rcd GUARDS. VINO ald nov
4 seized the locomotives and were flee
ing east in panic everywhere was dis
organization and anarchy.
DEAL WITH AUSTRIA
$50 Under these circumstances emperor
Charles, OF Austria, sent us Specla1
envoy, pro,nisins us an'ne o,d a dis, qMi
We replied that we would not neEot'a'e
with the Austrian Emperor. q.
~ AS we could not hold front. ~
was clear that we had to retreat. we
decided 70 transport our army over
Siberin and America 10 the weS dril
cult retreat from KEN. and the enemy
at once seized the important railway
junction ut Bachrac. 100 miles IN orr
v rear which we were Obliged 10 use
4 TO make good our retreat to the east
AT Bachmac we were compelled TO
fight an overwhelming force of Ger
mans. The battle lasted four DAYS
: and ended in a costly German defeat.
We were offered a tw"-day truce. and
accepted it, for it was our duty to get
out of Ukrainia. The truce was can
celed by the German chief commander.
Linsignen. but our trains had already
gotten past. We lost altogether about
GOO in dead wounded and missing. but
in only one day we had buried about
1000 Germans
) So we escaped from ukrainia. j..
But when reached the soil OF
Soviet Russia and tried to reach an
agreement with the Bolshcvik govern
ment TO insure passage through Rus
STA, the Bolsheviks acting under
enemy pressure, hcaped obstacles i'll
our way We mad" it clear that we
could take neatly Moscow and wipe
ease, for the Bolsheviks were in no
position to offer resistance. and we had
salvaGed equipment from the Germans
before leaving the front, which gave
our regiments from 200 TO 800 machine
guns apiece.
TO prove our loyalty to tho Boil
passage over Russian soil. VIC gave I'D
all our arms with the exception Of a
few rifles, which we kept for personal
snfety--about ten rifles for every 100
men. In return, then. for arms. horses
automobiles, airplaneS and other equip
ment. worth lo0o.o0o.00o rouules. the
Bolshevik government guaranteed us
unmolested passage through Russia and
Siberia.
HUNS ORGANIZED ARMY Of
AGENTS re- HI.oCk RETREAT
Already. however. there were signs
that the Germans. who had regarded
our progress as naive adventure, soon
TO end In failure, were waniuG to the
realities. and were organizing an army
OF agents against ua. Moreover there
was German dominating every Soviet,
and shortly the Moscow government,
carrying on vigorous agitation 20
persuade our soldiers 10 join tn. Red
Guard, with our SUPPORT aQH the sup
port of the Let's E.-ns.e. and Trotzky
secretly felt that their position was
safe. Our men remained staadtast,
however; despite The news that Ger.
man and Magyar prisoners were being
armed IN Siberia and launched by the
Bolsheviks rs an army 10 light world
Imperialism"
SO we began our pilgrimage to the
east. There were eighty trains Of Us
was in the hrst train. which wig,
ton TO say that if our men had had
TO choose between passing through 1--WE
lines OF enemy fortihcations and pass
Bolshevik Territory. we would Instant
~ nave CHOSEN the former Eut We
patiently suffered 1t al. We were de-
term!ned ~ !e@ve Russia without n
conflict. We We're met viii, CANYONS
and machin" gums. but we- remained
quiet. Our first train. after ftty-sevcn
ing Niadivostock, where We received
a great welcome from the allied uni,s
IL, Enemy pressure: however, began to
be be- eS X, on i.enine and Tro'INy. ana
our other traihs were Stopred 50 in
miles apart. The aiming of The Der.
man and Magyar prisoners in Siberia
rim, the Bolshevik Foreign Minister
sent dispatch to them which read
Dispatch All German ana Magyar
czecho- Slovaks." Three members OF
our national council who were sent to
Y Al oscnw TO secure an explanation OF
rested. Al the same time, our trains
y began TO be attacked in different sta
ttions by Soviet troops, formed mostly
50 i will recall the lrkutsk incident
Our train with about 400 men, armed
with ten rifles and twenty hand grcn-
AIDES. was surrounded by 1900 Red
zliuards. armed with machine guns and
,dannons. Their commander gave our
.lmen ten minutes 10 surrender or be
( shot. According TO their habit. ours
.oegan negotiations. Suddenly there was
heard the German command '.Schics-
sen" and the Red Guards began firing
g1Ht the train. Our men jumped off the
train and iii Ave minutes all the ma
frch1ne guns were In their possession
the Russian Bolshcviks disarmed and
all the Germans and Nlagyars done
away with. The Siberian government,
Which CHI resides SIDE in Irkn,sk, ana which
& american and French consuis that il
was not destroyed by our rightly en-.
q.bittered volunteers
IS. To what extremes our. loyalty car
sgAlthough perhdiousiy attacked ana al.
enough we disarmcd III" Red Guard in
.11fkutsk, we sill! beg.- new ncgotia-
iltions. with the result that We surfer
ggdered all our arms on the condition
fgata al e, G e5 ans ana Magyars would
Tested. The Siberian governnen, riiap-
Rsd If I'D