Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-08-15
.S0V|ET'S ATTITUDE
MAY LEAD TO WAR
American nsul-General at
Moscow Demands Safe Con-
duct From Russia
ALLIED C0NSULS ARRESTED
Entente Military Missions Held,
Although Promised Right
to Leave.
iBy Associated Press.


been going on in Moscow. and r.vo,,oa
an amazing train Of events
Consul-General Poole after ,vi,,o,.
ing the violation of the F-.,.h
British consulates and tho ,-ro.,s
the consuls-generai and th.ir .t,r,
destroyed his code book and n,r.r,
and turned the affairs of tho Amor,
can consulate over to the Swedish con-
sui. at the same time demanding ..f.
cohduct from the country for himself
and his assistants
French and British citizens b,ye
been arrested. and the Boisheviki b.y.
announced they would hold them as
hostages because OF the attack on tho
soviet government by British and
French troops at ArchaneeL
Members of the French and Rri,,sb
were refused permission to leave the
country. in spite of previous promise
OF safe conduct
II is possible that since the sending
of Consul-Gcneral PooIc's kilograms.
which began on July % and continued
Until August 6. the situation may have
changed. because il is r.poctcd that
Lenine and Trotzky. the Bolshevist
4
ernment in Moscow may have heen
oFer'hrown. In that ever. Mr.. Poole
and the entente missions may Grd
themselves in a better situation
WILL. NOT AFFECT
STATUS OF C0SSULS
But should the situation he un-
changed. the American consuI-generars
action in turning his Office over t.
Sweden. will not affect IN, status of
other American consuls in Russia, as
they have been working with the To-
cal governments throughout Russia
where proally feeling is strong.
The story is told in sequence in the
state Departments Official announce
ment Of its adviccs from Mr.. Poole 1t
follows:
The Department of State has now
received several kilograms from Con-
sul-General Poole at Moscow concern
ins recent events in that city. Follow
ing is summary of the kilograms:
one OF the teleErams. similar in
character TO previous message re-
ctlved through other channels, states
that on July % Lenine declared rcpeat-
edly before an official gathering of the
SoTiets that state OF war existed
between the Russian republic and the
allied powers. Because of this. the
diplomatic representative in Moscow of
Great Britain and the consular repre-
Scntatives OF France. Italy and the
United states visited the commissariat
Tor foreign affairs and inquired If Le-
mines declaration should not be con-
sidered declaration OF war involv-
ing the rupture of de facto relations
and the departure Of the consuls
Tchitcherin said that it need not be
so understood; that it was n state of
defense rather than state OF war, and
that the government desired TO con-
tinue its relations with the entente as
it did with Germany under analogous
circumstances.
DEMANDED STATEMENT
FROM HEAD OF GOVERNMENT
The consuls demanded that to be
acceptable. any explanation must he
publicly made by the head of the gov
ernment himself. They also pointed
out that the question was inseparable
from that of the departure of the for
mer military mission. After having
agreed to facilitate the departure Of
these persons. in accordance with in
ternational law. the government, they
aid. had raised absolutely inadmissible
objections. The foreign representative
also stated that they could not see in
this attitude anything but conhrma-
tion of Lenine's declaration of the ex-
istence Of n state of war. Tchitcherin
said that he would give reply in
three days.
'On the night of August .. a reply
was received from Tchitcherin. 1t
stated that inasmuch as Lenines ut
terances were made behind closed
DOORS in meeting at which an agent
Of the allies could be present only
owing to a special courtesy on the part
Of the Soviet government, public ex-
plantations could not be given about
nonpublic utterances. AS to the MEM
bers Of the military missions, Tchit-
cherin said that negotiations had been
begun with the German authorities to
procure safe passage from Petrograd
10 Stockholm for these officers. pas
sage through Archangel being impos-
sbIe because British cruisers had al
ready begun the bombardment OF the
islands covering Archangel.
BRITISH AND FRENCH
CITIZENS ARRESTED
"A third report from Consul-General
Poole refers to the arrests of British
and French citizens at Moscow. On
the afternoon of August there was
conference between Tchitcherin and
the consuls-general of Japan. Sweden
and the United States. with the fol-
lowing results:
"Firsl. the Soviet government gave
solemn assurances that allied persons
having diplomatic or official character
would not be molested: second, Tchit-
cherin stated that the allied military
missions would not be allowed to de-
part as had already been promised;
third. that civil persons arrested were
hostages for the lives Of oviet NOM
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