Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1918-10-24
EXECUTE HERO BUT
LET COWARD LIVE
Bolshevist Leaders Execute
Naval Captain Who Saved
the Russian Fleet.
BY JOSEPH sAAPLEN.
United Press CORRESPONDENT.

New York. = Bolshevist justice
killed Captain Schastny, patriot and
hero, and saved the life of Dibenko,
coward, traitor and drunken officer.
The stories of the two men bring out
so clearly the quality of mercy" of the
~bolshevists, that l relate them together.
Captain Schastny was a brilliant
young Russian naval officer. He vas Il
socialist revolutionist of the conserva-
tive wing. When h Germans anded
troops in Finland and began their adj
vance on H~elsingfors where nearly the
entire Russian Baltic fleet was sta
one at h time, Captain Schastny.
with the personnel of the fleet reduced
one-third and none of the ships being
ready to put to sea, was given COM
mand n requested by the sailors to
do his best to transfer the fleet to
kronstadt and thus save it from fall
ing into the n of the
For a while the sailors thought they
would be unable to move the fleet from
Helsingfors in time and had begun to
make preparations to blow it up. When
the Germans heard of their plan they
published a proclamation stating that
the blowing up of the Baltic fleet by
the Russian sailors would mean the
execution Of as many of them as may
be captured.
The Germans wanted to seize the
Baltic fleet and thus make good all the
naval losses they suffered throughout
the war. The only thing left was to
the able and brilliant command of
Captain Schastny this was accom-
plished in time. When the Germans
reached Helsingfors they found most
of the Russian fleet gone.
Some three months later Trotsky,
bolshevist war minister, called Captain
Schastny for an alleged conference to
Moscow. AS the captain entered Trot-
sky's office. the later walked out, sum-
moned two red ~guardsrneG and ordered
Schastny put under arrest.
Trotsky accused Schastny of engag-
ing in counter revolutionary con-
spiracies against the b%olshevist govern
ment, of attempting to rouse the SAIL
ors of the Baltic fleet. among; whora
Schastny was very popular, to revolt
against the dictatorship OF Lenine and
| save Russia from German and other
foreign domination.
Schastny was put or trial. kri!enko.
former commander in chief of the boil
| shevist armies" was prosecuting at
! torney. Trotsky was the only witness.
In a dramatic, three hour speech he de-
manded the execution of Schastny.
Among other things he said:
Captain Schastny has performed a
brave task, but like every counter Y
l%utionist, Captain Schastny had the
II ISL w ClISdSC Va &ooilltt
ary conspiracies against the soviet
government. He had no right to play
with the fate of the fleet"
A sailor in the coartroom could not
stand for the latter. ~
"How about your playing with the
fate of Russia% he cried. Captain
Schastny, Russian patriot. republican
n saviour of the Baltic fleet. was
executed. His last words We're:
lone must know how to die bravery
in a revolution
A few weeks prior to the execution
of Captain Schastny another man, high
in the councils of the bolshevist gov
eminent. chief conlmissary Of the Bal
tic fleet, was also on trial. His name
is Dibenko. He was accused of COW
ardice. drunkenness and conduct UNI
becoming a revolutionary leader. At
the trial 1t was proved that when sent
at the head of a detachment of 1000
Baltic sea sailors to stop the German
advance on Narva, in February. he got
drunk and ran away, leaving his men
in the lucch. Such cowardice is GER
tainly punishable by death, especially
by any self respecting revolutionary
government. But Dibenko. the coward
was found guilty and simply expelled
from the bolshevist party. He is alive
today and is engaging in silly brag-
gadocio and in robber raids up AM
down the Volga.
Thus does bolshevist justice work.
Captain ~Schanstny performed a brave
task. He is dead.
Dibenko was a coward and ran away
surrendering Narva to the Germans
He is alive and free.