The Sun and the New York herald., 1920-05-09
SEMINOFF, WHO
LED COSSACKS,
NOW REFUGEE
TOO Drunk Most of Time to
Be Responsible Says
Defender.
WORST CHARGES DENIED
Confidential Report Dis
covered by Social RevOlu-
tiOnists at VladivOstOk.
WORST CHARGES DENIED


YoRK HERALD.
Copyright. 1870, BY THE suN AND New YoRK
HERALD.
TOXIC, April 10.--Ataman Seminon'
who lorded It over eastern Siberia as
the chief of the Cossack triumvirate,
hated by the Russians, despised by the
Americans and in frequent clashes
with the Czechs, and who is to-day
somewhere in the Siberian hinterlands,
being hunted down by the Russian
Reds, has finally found a defender,
This Is Lieut. Beliakovsky, for
merly OF the Russian intelligence serv-
ice. who was detached to watch Semi
noff and make confidential report on
his activities TO Gen. Rosanoh Tor
mer commander of the Vladlvostok
fortified zone, who was. 1t is worthy
of note in passing a direct subordi-
nate Of the man he was securing
report on,
Lieut.. Beliakovsly exonerated Semi
noff of some Of the worst charges
against him, explaining that this re-
cent commander-in-chief OF all the
forces of the three Priamur Provinces"
was too drunk most OF the time to be
responsible for anything.
The confidential report on Seminoft
was found by the Social Revolutionists
of Vladivostok among the documents
left behind him when Rosanof made his
hurried exit aboard a Communicated
steamer when the kolchak government
crashed and the Partisans seized the
seaport with the various expeditionary
forces looking on. 1t describes SEMI
noff as "a good man. even perhaps nom
est and a gentleman, but extremely weak
and vacillating and easily Influenced by
others. He Is an ambitious. fanatical
Cossack who has surrounded himself
only with Cossacks."
Surrounded by Criminals.
Naming the immediate circle sur
rounding Seminoff the list led with the
name of Gen. Major Afanasiev. the mill
tary assistant. "a criminal leader OF
arch-criminals," and ended with that OF
''Aiashka, the GYPSY" Seminoff's mis-
tress, an ex-cabaret singer. who paid
frequent visits to Toxic. Pekln and
Shanghai, where she lived in regal
luxury and claimed to be Nine. Semi
noff. Lieut. Beliakovsky explained;
These people have surrounded Semi
noff closely with a vicious circle to pre-
vent any outside influence reaching him.
and they are drawing him to the edge OF
a precsplce. taking the fullest advantage
| of his weaknesses and faults. To them
belongs the blame for the trouble that
has arisen between Semlnoff and Kol-
chak while, realizing that their own po-
sitions are possible only in the orgy OF
seditlon, they are prolonging as far as
possible the disturbed conditions ard
playing upon the false ambitions OF
| their chief. BY pretending to have un-
Is kept in ignorance, while they have
! isolated Seminoff from the outside
world, so that even in urgent cases 1t is
impossible to see him.
"A mad waste of tremendous sums OF
money in orgies and extravagances IN
carrying out the fancies of Mashka Is
also being accomplished by these pro
tectors' of Seminoff, who frequently get
their leader drunk in order to secure his
signature to monstrous orders of eXecu-
tions and seizure. orders of which he has
not the least suspicion when his debauch
Is over. Many of these have placed large
sums of public money to their own ac-
count in Japan, and more than one mas
already disappeared from the circle tc
land in Japan for protracted stay, with
illness advanced as an excuse.
killing Foes ms BOlsheviki.
| Some Of the members of the inner
circle, suoh as Tirbakh, Lvov, Kryjanov-
sky and Stepanoff are pure and simple
executioners and hangmen. Under the
claim that they were Bolsheviki these
men have executed many loyal adherenti
of Seminoff whom they did not happen
to like.
"Seminoffs intelligence department
was headed by a certain Friedrichs,
man notorious in Chlta as a pervert wnc
arrests men and women for the purpose
of torturing them to crafty his low de-
sires. Finally even Seminoffs bandits
found this man impossible and they ar
rested him and forced his dismissal.
| Such. according to this confidential re-
port, was the Ataman Seminor,
dictator, who held the power OF life anc
death over q population Of many hun
| dreds of thousands In all the vast terri
tory between Lake Baikal and the
Pacific. a man who came within
mea surable distance Of establishing hi'
own kingdom in that rich section OF the
world under the protection OF the army
Of Japan and who, at one time
threatened to involve the Kolchak force:
IN a war. first with the Americans anC
then with the army Of the Czechs.
To-day he is being hunted from ONT
| refuge in the Baikal Mountains to an
other, with his forces dwindling, while
his mistress, "Mashka, the Gypsy" ha!
| lust been placed under arrest at Harbl'
on a charge of attempting to smuggl'
gold bullion out Of the country. Thi!
modern Jezebel, escorted by a body
| 0uard of the former Seminoff ring
tried to slip past the customs guart
with a thousand pounds avoirdupois o
the precious metal distributed among hei
various pieces OF baggage. this being
part of the loot taken by Seminoff iron
Omsk. Against her own violent protest.
and the indignant exclamations OF ne
escorts that q lady should be treated
with such indignity, the Soviet official
at Hardin insisted upon searching ne
various trunks, locating five little boxe
with the bullion.
A shore time ago when Seminolf'
star was in the ascendant. 1t was re
ported on reliable authority that he ha'
on deposit In various personal account
with Toxic banks total OF thirty mill
ion yen, sent to japan as sheet ancho
against misfortune. From all appear
auces Just now Seminoff will never liv
to draw q check against penny OF thi
kfortuns.