The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram., 1921-02-24
SCHWARTZ DESCRIBES
RED PRISON METHODS
FOLLOWING RELEASE
tBy Associated press)

=
BERLIN, Feb. 24.-Bolshevik prison
methods lack all elements of decency
and civilization, says M. Schwartz.
California socialist and labor leader
who with his wife was thrown into
Bolshevist prisons insNoscow for four
months after he had failed voice ap-
proyal Of the Bolshevist government.
His wife died of the effects of a
hunger strike started while in prison,
as he Has made known in previous
statements.
MY first two months in prison were
the worst" Mr.. Schwartz said after
arriving in Berlin. my wife, who
could not speak a word Of any Ian
guage but. English. was taken from
ME. did not know whether she was
in the same prison. or what had be-
come of her. I could not get a word
of satisfaction from any OF the prison
officials.
pisobeys Warming.
There was a small peephole in the
door of my cell which opened into
the main corridor. This had a little
slide over it and there was sign in
Russian warning the inmates Of the
cell that they would be placed in soli-
IL
into the corridor.
MANY times day footsteps passed
the door Sometimes there were light
steps and I imagined women We're
passing. To the horror of other men
in the cell with me, I occasionally
moved the slide the least bit in the
hone of getting a glimpse of nv poor
wife. I became bolder and bolder.
The corridor was so dark It was diff
cult TO recognize the people who were
passing.
T"Finallv. in sheer desperation, I
pushed the slide far back one dav
when light footsteps were audible. To
my horror the eye of the guard AL
most touched mine. He opened the
door and asked me If could read
Russian, I admitted 7 could and ex-
rlaired to him that nv anxiety about
my wife was responsible for the viola
tion Of regulations.
Given Solitary Confinement
81 was Immediately taken to dark
cell in the cellar. it was full of
hungry rats. Water and sewer pipes
ran all around the walls ard there was
SO much gas that felt was choking
! began pounding on the door bur the
guard warned me~not to and threat
ened 70 nut me- into a still lower cell
If I didn't keep quiet.
AT the end Of three hours I was so
badly overcome hy the gas that
pounded on the door in desperation
and asked to see the commissar who
was in charge of the prison. The
guard was apparently uneasy about
nv condition and called the COM
missar
81 told, the comn1issar nv ANXIETY
about my wife and asked him if he
would not have peeped through the
hole under the same condition. He
was moved hv my appeal and asked
me If would promise not to repeat
the offense if he let me back into my
old cell. -E
sa"You may be sure promised. and
kept my promise I had companions
in my old cell and there weren't any
rats and gas there. ] can't tell Won
how horrible it is to be confined
alone. Even il ones companions have
no common language. human compan-
ionship makes cell more endurable.
Solitary confinement. such as my wife
endured for two months. is the most
horrible punishment that can be in
i.icted
Think Of cultivated refined
American woman being treated as she
was by the Bolshevists. 1t is no
wonder that her constitution was so
undermined by her Jail experiences
that she died shortly after we were
released. But her blood is on the
hands Of Lenine and Trotzky and
Chitcherin (Foreign Mfnisterl She
appealed to them repeatedly for a
hearing and so did l.. She finally eff
fected our release bv her hunger
strike, but her strength was not suf-
ficiont to survive the awful agony she
endured"