New-York tribune., 1922-03-20
Death for 81
I'm Mock Trial.
Aim of Soviet
tContinuod from paec ene)

-
he and the Konoplewa woman had
taken part in them,
In the official announcement from
Moscow of the coming trial, it was said
that Semcneff and konoplewa had been
invited politely to come to Moscow
and confess publicly" their guilt The
fact of the matter is that this pair, as
agents of the Cheka, have been work
ing and travelling on Red expense ac-
counts. Another fact which the Moscow
government failed to reveal because
II might excite suspicion of collusion.
is that konoplcwa is really SemeneF's
wife. The Red government also failed
to reveal other facts about Semenef; !;
that after expulsion from the Socialist
revolutionary party he joined the
Extraordinary Commission during the
RussoPolish War and was sent to the
front where he deserted and joined
Savinkof. In turn he betrayed Savin-
kof and rejoinod the Bolshcviki, this
time as an agent for the Cheka.
After Semenefi's pamphlet was pub
rests Of Socialist t-Revolutionaries fol
lowed in Moscow and elsewhere.
Preparations for Mondays trial were
begun Il week ago, and now on the
testimony supplied by this double
traitor the Bolsheviki are rushing fifty
two persons to trial with the intention
of finding them guilty and executing
them
TO complete the frame-up the CEN
tral executive committee Of the Soviets
appointed special court comprising
,, i,- H. -
viii try the accused With the wit
nesscs fixed and the Judges determined
beforehand to find the accused guilty
the fate of the fifty-two is sealed un-
less the storm of protest now pouring
into Russia from all parts OF Europe
results in stay of execution.
In reply to the appeal sent broad
cast by the Berlin headquarters of the
Socialist Revolutionary party, demands
are reaching Moscow from labor or
CARNATIONS all over Europe that the
trial be taken out of the hands of the
Bolshevik tribunal at Moscow and
transferred to the joint committee of
the second Vienna and Moscow Inter
nationales. which meets in Berlin next
week to consider the establishment
OF tho international Socialist organiza-
ton that was shattered by the war
These demands have been made in
kilograms sent to Lcnine by the Ger
man Socialist and Independent Social
ist parties; the Independent Labor
party of Great Britain; the Italian,
French. Czecho-Slovak and Belgian
Socialist parties, and the French Gen
eral Confederation of Labor, as we'll
as by many individual labor organiza-
tions and newspapers throughout Eu-
rope. The German Federation Of
Trade Unions has telegra phed Lenine
a similar demand. Particularly sting
ing messages have been dispatched by
such men as Eduard Bernstein, Karl
Kautsky, Arthur Henderson, Emile
Nandervelde and Friedrich Adler. All
these protest against the trial and
condemn the case as a frame-up. Even
Anatoie France, warm admirer of Le-
nine and the Communist that he is.
telegraphed a protest to Lenine ain the
name Of humanity.'
The significance of these wholesale
protests, representing the opinion of
tens of millions of workers in all
countries, is that they reflect q COM
plete change in attitude of these
toward the Bolsheviki. On the eve of
the Genoa conference, at which the
Reds hope to gain recognition from
the European powers, this turn in the
tide of proletariat opinion against the
OoioieFihi ieAeStS ene utVelopHeHt OIL
state of mind which is likely to prove
farreaching in its effect on the rela,
tions Of Russia TO western Europe in
the future.
"Golos Rossii,' official organ in Ber-
lin of the Socialist Revolutionary
party. summarizes the case thus:
"lf the Dreyfus affair, born out Of
the injury done Jewish officer by
clique of French clercals, aroused in
its ultimate outcome political earth
quake that was felt far beyond the
borders of France, then the trial
staged by the Bolsheviki against the
leaders of the Socialist t-Revolutionaries
will have world wide historic sig
nltcance and mark new epoch in the
history OF the Russian revolution