South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1918-12-27

sulate in Moscow. and together with
the chaplain and several other Eng
lish men and women was marched
on foot two miles through the
streets 10 the Lubyanka House Of
Detention.
Il was separated from my COM
panions and was led TO a room i'm
which were some thirty prisoners.
mostly civilians including "a few wo-
men. writes Mr. Beringer. Il spent
1--WE days and nights i'm this room in
which there was just sufficient space
for the inmates 10 sleep on the
floor. There was no bed OF any
kind for food we had a piece Of
black bread and a few dips with
wooden. spoon irfJO a bowl of the
thinnest possible cabbage soup con
tanning some herring heads Eight
Of us had 20 share the contents of
this one bowl Many people who
We're without provisions from out
side We're Literally in a state of star
walton.
suffered Insults
Like the Russian prisoners We
were treated as helotS and We're adj
dressed insultingly in the second
person singular by low brutes
among the Red Guards
Late one nisht when some OF the
other prisoners were singing sud
denly there was deathlike hush. T
looked mp and saw Red Guard
officer and soldiers standing at tho
opening 10 the ante-room in which
the prison guards were stationed. \
list Of twelve names Of civilians and
soldiers was read out. No one
doubted what this meant II was
the lis- OF those set down for i'm
mediate execution. II included two
pairs of brothers. All the condemn
ed men rose without delay anC
shook hands with their neighbors
Not one showed the slightest fear.
THE iron folding doors between
the big room and the ante-room
were then closed. This was don,
only when prisoners were taken
away for execution. The doors re
names of two other soldiers who
had previously been overlooked
were called out. These also rose
without tremor and the foldinc
doors We're shut ~ second and las
time The condemned prisoners
were either shot i'm the easements
of the prison with their back 10 the
firing party or they were taken out
to the suburbs in motor lorries and
there told to get out and get away
Then vOlIeys were poured into them
while they We're walking or run
ming away The bodies are some
times recoverable by relatives on
payment Of heavy brihes."
Insanitary Jail.
Later Beringer was transferred 70
Butyrl5y jail at the other end of the
city which contained some 5000
prisoners. In the cell he occupied
there was a Russian ex-judge. a few
soldiers and some members OF the
middle and working classes. The
vermin was as bad as at Lubyanka
and sanitary conditions worse. There
was no possibility of taking a bath
but Beringer was allowed a half
hours exercise daily in the ward.
There he and some of the others
received assistance from Major Al
len Wardwell of the American Red
Cross who he writes literally shaved
on behalf Of the prisoners"
THE conditions of our internment
were so vilely sordid that it is no
wonder that the minds Of some OF
the more refined prisoners became
unhinged," Beringer wires.
The Bolsheyik leaders show no
mercy. In their newspapers they
hold UP Marat as the ideal friend
Of the people. They urge that his
example should be followed and
preach the determination OF the en-
tire middle class"