The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-04-21
BY MISS ANNIE FERGIE.

Miss Annie Fergfe, a Glasgow
 muse, who has lived in Russia
 for eight years, has just reached
 this country after a daring es-
 cape from the Peter and Paul
 Fortress in Petrograd, where she
 lay under sentence of death as a
 British spy. Below she tells the
 story of her adventures.
 Copyright 1919, By He Internation- al News Bureau, Inc, Boston, Mass.)
 Glasgow, Scotland, April 16.-I was arrested in the middle of the night and taken to the Peter and Paul Prison, used as the headquarters of the Bolshevik police and the Terror ists. I was accused of being a spy for the British Government, and men had never seen in my life be- fore came forward, and swore they had heard me boast of being an agent for the British. and of how I had de- nounced "comrades'' still in London. was then told my trial was conclud- ed. though there had been no at tempt at cross-examination of wit nesses, and I had not been allowed to call any one for my defence or give evidence on my own behalf.
 I was taken back to a cell, and thrown in with six other women. One of them was 8 delicate girl of the upper classes. The rest were very common creatures, and two of them were suffering from terrible disease. We had to live in the cell, which was only about 20 feet square, for over six days. The girl had been there for some weeks. All her family, who be- longed to the nobility, had been kill ed by the BoIsheviks, and she herself was in hourly expec ation of being condemned to death because her beauty had aroused the wrath and envy of Madame Sternberg Zakovlia, the Terrible Red-cloaked Woman who had been installed as Executioner-in- Chief by the Bolsheviks when they Set up their reign of terror in Perograd.
 You Will DIe.''
 l had been in the prison for three days, when this awful woman appear ed to interrogate me. As soon as the wardress told me of the visit the young girl, who had first mentioned the name, burst into tears, and flung herself on my neck. "Oh, I am so sorry for you" she said. You know what that means You gre young and good looking. This woman cannot hear to see anything young and beaut- tful, especially if 1t happens to be well-bOrn or not associated with the reVOlutiOnaries. She will have you condemned to death for certain"
 Further reflections were cut short by the arrival of madame herself She had a ferocious look on her face something like what you. would ex- pect to see on a. tiger before it sDrang at it's prey why have you come here to spy on us ?'' she said to me by way of greeting. T have not come to spy,' I replied quietly. ''I have been in Rus sia for eight years carrying on work that you as a woman ought to be thc first to regard as sacred.
 You lie" she retorted. you are an agent of the British, who would rob us of the fruits of our victory You will die the death you deserve and I hope it will be a warning tc those who have been tempted to take the gold of our enemies"
 Not till then had she seen the young girl who had warned me. She gave a snarI of rage, and alnos H7ng herself on the now terrified girl. "Tou are still aIive!' she hiss ed. ''That will not be for long:' ! Then she left the room and the pool girl fell to weeping.
 \ Girl Executed.
 Within an hour the vampire re- | turned She was accompanied by two other T'omen whom I learned were 1 A-1azons of the Red Guard. They l led my unfortunate friend from the ! cell, and on Q scaffold in view of the cell window she was hanged. The l sight was one of the most terrible ] have ever seen. I was forced tt { watch, because, in the first place they dragged rce to the window, and made me stand there to see; and, in the second place, I was glued to the spo with the horror of the sight, anG l could not turn away.
 Two days later I was told my OWL ] fate was to be that which I had wit messed. I made up my mind I woulj 1 attempt escape. for I knew that once | outside the prison l could soon req cf 1 friends who would see me out of the ] country. and I had no fear of my ] ahiItty to pass for Russian and z 1 BoIshevid if need f 6
 ] The chief trouble was to get away l During the time I had been at ths ! @elI window I had observed that On 1 of the bars was loose, and I though 1 that if I could force that out it would 1 be possible to get through and droI to the ground, not more than 10 fee 1> x