The New York herald., 1922-05-14
LENINE AND TROTZKY
ESCAPED ASSASSINS
Plots to Kill Moscow Soviet
Leaders Now Revealed by
Secret Police.

Moscow. April 1S Correspondence OF
the Associated Press) Particulars of
the attempts TO assassinate Premier
Lenine and Leon Trotzky in 1918 have
just been revealed in a pamphlet which
has been published here by NJ. Semenoff-
Vasilieff, formerly head Of the fight
ing detachment of the Social Revolu-
tionary party, organizer OF the attempted
assassination and now an agent of tho
secret police.
It was owing to Semenoff's revela-
tions and charges that a number of
members of the Social Revolutionary
party and other suspects were arrested
and imprisoned by the State Political
Department and also that members of
the central executive comrdttee of the
Social Revolutionary parry are now
sbout to be tried before a Bolshevist
tribunal The trial has been set for
May %.
The coming trials evoked numerous
protests from the Socialist Party Of
Sweden, of which Premier Branting is
The head. and also from the ..msterdam
and Vienna Internationales and Arthur
Henderson, head OF the British Labor
party.
The attempts to assassinate Lenine
and Trotzky were the signals for the So
called Bolshevist Red terror" which
cost Russia thousands OF lives. Lenine
and TrotzlSy escaped, but two other
| Bolshevik officials. NJ. Voiodaraky, Com
missar of Press Affairs, and N. Ourtzky
Commissar of Elections, were murdered.
Semenoff tells in his pamphlet of the
military and fighting activities of the
Social Revolutionary Party in Russia in
1917 and 1918 and denounces well known
persons of the opposition parties. many
of whom have been in the Cheka prisons
Tor nearly TWO or three years.
Semenoff says that in the ho ginning of
1918 it was decided TO remove" Lenine
and Trotzky in Moscow and G E. Zinc
vieT. president Of the Third Interna-
tionale: Volodarsky and Oarttzky in
Petrograd. 1t was first resolved to kill
Lenine and Trotzky by administering
poison in their food or by sending up
physician who would inoculatc them with
an infectious disease. rails plan. how
ever. was abandoned owing 20 some diff
sficulties of technical character
a new plan to kill them by shooting
was arrived at after prolonged discus
sion and full arrangements were made.
Both Lenine and Trotzky were watched
for a long time as to their movements
/ and habits. Lenine was overtaken when
, he left a workmen's meeting at factory
outside the town and shot al with
poisoned bullets by a revolutionary,
Fanny Kaplan.
IA bullet recently was removed from
! Lenine's chest. and the German surgeon
who performed the operation said an
other bullet was still imhedded in the
Soviet Premier's arml
The attempts upon TrotZky failed.
He was several times ambushed at the
Moscow railway terminus at the time OF
the departure of his train, but at the
very last minute he always changed
his mind and went from a different sta
tion than the one fixed beforehand. One
attempt on his life ended by derailing
one of his trains 20 Kazan. II, which he.
however. was not present.
appropriations of money from private
persons as well as Soviet institutions.
were organized by the fighting detach-
ments as means TO carry on their work.
Their chief aim. however. to prevent
the Germans carrying OFF the gold pa d
to them by the Bolshevlsts under the
Brest-Litovsk treaty. has not been car
ried through. The plan was TO derail
the train which carried the golo to the
border. The plotters, thanks to the as
sistance of one railwayman, made all
necessary arrangements. For the pur-
pose OF derailing they selected a hilly
spot several miles from Moscow But
the engine driver failed to slow down
the train 10 allow lne attempt 10 take
place as il was prearranged.
In the summer Of 1920. at the time
of the war with Poland, Semenoff. the
informer, who at that time was a mem
Der Of the minority section of the Social
Revolutionary party, offered the services
of his little group for disorganization
work at the rear of the Polish army.
The Cheka helped him to get through
the front. but he was soon arrested, and
under the threat Of capital punishment
was sent to the Varsow fortress.
Semenof then wrote to Gen. Boris
Savinkoff, formerly Russian Minister of
War and a. member of the central eXecu-
tive committee of the Social Revolution
airy party, and thanks to Savinkoffs in
flu ence Semenoff was set free. this time
for disorganization work in Soviet Rus
sia. In December of 1920, Semenoff left
Poland for Russia charged with the task
of killing Lenine. But Semenoff be-
trayed Savnkon and instead OF carry
ing out his mission he went with a re-
port to the, Cleka.