The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-09-21
RADEk IS
ADVENTURER
Of SOVIET
Sprung From obscurity, He y
Most interesting Man
In the KremIin.
BY GEORGE POPOFF.
r.s...........I,1.n n1aurn sarrlce.

Cosmopolitan News ScENAs0s
MOSCOW. Sept. 21.-The Soviet
government might well be com.
pared to & business firm resting
on such unstable foundations az TO
be compelled to dispatch an army
az drummers all over the globe to
boost its good points. without
that nobody might ever believe that
ii had any. These "drummers" are
the ordinary Bolshevik agents, dele
gates and secret f1nctionaries.
But on and off the board Of al
rectors in the Kremlin feel the
need Of getting first-hand, inside
information about the market SIT
uation," and other important sub
iects. Then they decide to send
the general manager IN person 70
make q competent report. This
general manager Of the firm Krem-
lin is Karl Radek.
An Interesting Personality.
Radek 10 one of the most inter-
eettng personalities Of revolutionary
Russia. He is the great adven-
tlirer par excellence, such as each
revolution will produce. But where
as in former centuries the revolu.
tionary adventurer needed no at
tributes except wild daring and
dashing insouciance, he of the
twentieth century cannot very Well
play his part without being en-
dowed with considerable mental
powers and comprehensive knowl-
edge. These Radek possesses to
the highest degree. !
He is one of the best educated
4 n -
time, well versed In matters OF
science and art, az in politics. He
has an extraordinary memory as
well as an enviabie facility for rea-
soning.
Nevertheless Radek is an ndvei1-
turer. OF all his Bolshevik col.
leagues, he has had the most adj
venturous pest None Of them has
sprung 80 suddenly into the lime
light. He is the liveliest, most
mercurial and keen.witted Of them
all. He is nearly always on the
move. You never know the where
abouts Of the ubiquitous Radak or
what his many secret missions are
about.
AS he talks a number of lang
uages, German, Russian, English,
Polish and others none of them
quite perfectly, but all very flu.
emily and volubly) Radek is the
man to whom all foreigners are di-
rected who come to Moscow on the
most varigated errands and at
fairs.
Master Of Subtle Art.
Radek is past master in the
subtle art of depicting all the abb
normal eccentricities of Bolshevik
life and politics as being perfectly
simple and natural"
He is an amusing talker, bright
and plausible, like an actor who
makes his audience forget the
stage, which is by no means easy
when it comes to giving a touch
Of reality to the Bolshevik illusions
Proetus-like, Radek changes his
outward appearance like a mask
to suit his personal and political
moods. He is clean-shaven one
day and again he will wear short
whiskers, only to appear with a
struggling fisherman's beard on a
third occasion.
The shaven and unshaven Radek
are two quite different beings whose
identity is hard to establish.
Wears Bolshevik Garb.
Radek has a very striking face.
His hair Is dishevelled and never
parted. His attire is the real Boil.
shevik style; short sheepskin,
gray army trousers, high top
boots, a wooden shawl round the
neck, on his head a light brown,
broad brimmed felt cap, famous
throughout the whole of Russia,
Karl Radek succeeded in tumu.
ing from obscurity into the world
arena and is residing in a place
where the old Moscovite cars used
to make history. With his family
he occupies several rooms off a
dark corridor of one of the many
minor palaces inside the Kramlin.
the 'Kavalleriski Korpus," once the
habitat of the officers on palace
duty.