The Alaska daily empire., 1918-07-09
SPORTS

flight by airplane 200 miles from Jassy to Odessa was the means of
 bringing about peace between the
 Bolsheviki and the Rumanians last March
 The American peace dove," as the Rumanians called him after his dar- ing flight, was Colonel Joseph Boyle. Colonel Boyle, who was formerly in the Canadian Army on the West front, was sent to Russia as the representative of the Committee of the American Engineers in London and spent several months in Ru-
 mania and South Russia. The story of his secret airplane trip is now
 told for the first time.
 Colonel Boyle was one of the few
 foreigners in Russia who had the confidence and close friendship of the extremist Russian parties from the beginning of the revolutionary period He was known among the
 Bolsheviki as a man of action, hon.
 est and fearless and anxious to ex.
 tend them helping hand in every
 work of reconstruction. On his jour
 neyings around Russia he was never
 interferred with or challenged He carried personal letters and creden.
 tials from Lenine, Trotsky and a
 host of lesser leaders and could ob. tain almost anything he wanted from the local or Provincial Soviets. He was accompanied everywhere by a staff of three Russian officers who spoke English fluently and who dis. played great personal loyalty to Col. onel Boyle.
 During the latter part of Febru- ary the situation between the Bol- sheviki and Rumanians became ser ious. War had even been declared on Rumania by the BOlsheviki Gov ernment, owing to misunderstanding about the status of certain Russian troops in Rumanian territory and Rumanian troops in Bessarabia Ac- tive hostilities, however, had been generally avoided, and both sides were presumably anxious to reach an amicable understanding.
 But communication between Odes- sa and Jassy was in a state of dis organization which made the tele
 graphs and the mails useless. Ev- cry attempt at negotiations between
 the Rumanians at Jassy and the Bolsheviki at Odessa was blocked or
 brought to naught by intriguers or mischief-makers. It began to look as if things were going to drift straight into bloodshed on a large scale.
 It was at this point that Colonel
 Boyle, who had been trying to al leviate the food shortage in Ruman- ia, arranged meeting of unoffic- nal plenipotentiaries, but how was
 he Rumanian frontier and succeed ed in putting through an agreement between these representatives, The Rumanian Government was ready to approve the decision of these infor-
 mau plenipotentiaries, but how was
 formal confirmation or even favor
 able consideration. to be obtained from the Bolsheviki side?
 The Bolsheviki delegates" were without credentials or authority, but they felt if their case were properly
 put before the authorities in Odes- ga their course of action would be approved. Travel between Jassy and Odessa had been impossible for sev, eral weeks owing to the tearing up of the railway lines in Bendari and the wrecking of several bridges and trestles.
 Colonel Boyle volunteered to be the bearer of the olive branch. to carry the peace proposal to Odessa with the least possible delay by means of an airplane which he had already persuaded the Rumanian au thorities to put at his disposal. and
 he proposed also to use his own personal influence with the Bolshevik
 leaders in Odessa to secure their approval
 Speedy action was necessary. foI it was known that orders had al ready been given to the Bolshevik
 troops to begin hostilities on a large
 scale. and it was felt that once ser.
 ious fighting had begun. the chances
 of an amicable adjustment would be diminished.
 The necessary papers were has
 tily prepared and signed. and Colonel Boyle motored to an airdome near
 Jassy whore a Rumanian pilot was
 waiting The weather on the day of
 Colonel Boyle's departure was very stormy and threatening. and several aviation experts advised him to post.
 pone his journey. He declined to be disuaded and left Jassy about noon,