Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-04-07
THIS STARTS THE STORY

iand Translated and Transcribed by Isaac Don
gtckes Company under the Title lite OF
THIS STARTS THE STORY
In the summer of 1917 Maria
Botchkareva formed the Battalion of
Death, a woman'S fighting unit in
( the Russian army, and a peasant
girl thus stepped into the interna-
: tional hall of fame. This is her
Z; story. In earlier installments she
told of the hardsbips of her child
hood, Of the brutalities of her mar
ried life and OF the realization of
her desire to become a soldier. She
Z told of battles fought and won and
of the Generalization of tn soldiers
following the overthrow OF the Car.
The battalion was formed for the
purpose of shaming The mel into
action, but in this was only par
TALLY successful and only for a
time. The soldiers a t last forced the
members of the battalion to disband
and Botchkareva returned to her
K home. She was presently summoned
= to Petrograd by Russian officers who
were dissatisfied with the way the
Bolshevists were running the gov
ernment and was sent on a secret
mission to General Kornilov. On her
way back to Petrograd, having sue
cessfully carried out her mission
she is captured by Reds, who sen
tence her TO die.
AND HERE 1T CONTINUES
Don't cry, my child" the general
bent over me, patting me. "They are
savages. Their hearts are of stone
They would not even let us receive the
last sacrament. Let US die like heroes,
nevertheless"
His words gave me strength. got
up. strengthened myself out and said: :
All right, I will die as a hero"
Then for about ten minutes | gazed
at the faces Of our executioners scru-
( tjnizing their features. 1t was hard
to distinguish in them signs Of hu.
manity. They were Russian soldiers
turned inhuman. The lines in their
faces were those of brutal apes.
my God. What hast Thou done
to Thy children" / prayed.
In a long file the numerous events
of my life passed before me. My
Childhood those years of hard labor
in the little grocery store Of Nastasia
Leontievna; the affair with Lazov
my marriage to Botchkarev Yasha
the three years of war; they all
passed through my imagination. some
Incidents strangely gripping my in
terest for moment or two. others
fitting by hastily. Somehow that
episode Of my early life, when I quar-
relied with the little boy placed in my
charge and the undeserved spanking
got from his mother stood out very
prominently in my mind. 1t wa:
nv first act of self.assertion. re
helled and escaped. Then ther
was that jump into the OBJ. 1t almos
seemed that it was not I who sough
relief in it's cold, deep waters fror
the ugly Afanasi But I wished tina
/ had been drowned then rather thar
die such a death.
Save BY Miracle
TINE investigation committee finally
i appeared in the distance. Petruk
hin was leading them. There wer
twelve members present, the two OF
sentees apparently having joined tn
other ten.
"You see how kind we are" som
of the soldiers said. I'VE are havin
the committee present at your exect
s ton"
None Of US answered.
1--WE were all to see Sablin, the con
nAnder.in.chief," Petrukhin announce
L18 HOOh ds Hc dppi oaSieu ilSoi thoas
II to Pugatchov. He said that Botci
kareva would have to be shot but ne
necessarily now and with this group
A ray of hope was lit in my soul.
"Nothing Of the sort" Pugatchc
bawled angrily.
is what Is the matter here? VII
4 this postponemeHt? The list is q
ready made up"
The soldiers supported Pugatchov
s.Shoot her! Finish her now! What
the use OF bothering with her again
cried the men.
But Just as Pugatchov sensed th
Petrukhin had obtained the dels
hoping to save me, so the latter re
Lied that words would not be sufficiel
to carry his argument He had pr
vided himself with a note from Sabli
Here is an order from the col
rnander.in.chief," Petrukhin declare
pulling out a paper. 1T says tn
Botchkareva shall be taken to n
compartment in the railway carrla
and kept there under guard
Pugatchov jumped up as II bite
But the committee here rallied TO I
support of Petrukhin, arguing IN
q orderb were orders, and that / wot
be executed later.
Not the least interested spectator
the heated discussion was mysef.
off7cers followed the argument orea
lecsly, too The soldiers grumbl
The forces of life and death strugg
within me. Now the first would
umph. now the second, depending
the turn of the quarrel.
.'Nothing DOING" shouted Pu
tchov thrusting aside the order OF
commander.in-chie Its too late
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