Evening star., 1927-05-15
London Police Believed
Searching Raided Offices
for State Document.
VALUED BRITISH PAPER
MISSING FOR MONTHS
Many Days to Be Required to De-
code Tons of Notes Seized
From Russians.
By the Associated Press.

by the Associated Press.
LONDON, May 1.-THE Soviet
House was still in the hands of the
police tonight; they will be working
there continually over the week end.
The search of the premises is far
from complete, for the whole base
ment is honeycombed with secret
drawers and small but strong inner
steel safes.
Some of the documents removed,
and there were tons of these, were
tonight under investigation at an i'm
portant conference at the home office,
in which representatives of the war
and foreign offices participated in ad.
dition to Sir William Norwood. com.
missioner of metropolitan police; Sir
Wyndham Childs and other heads of
the detective force.
DECIDING to Take Many Days.
No information as to the nature of
the documents is likely to be made
liam JoynSon. Hicks, home secretary,
will make another statement in Par.
lament, and even then it is doubtful
If much will be forthcoming, because
the work of translating and DECIDING
the seized documents will occupy
many days.
A new turn was given the affair
today by a. circumstantial statement
that the raid was made with the hope
OF discovering an important state doc
ument, which has been missing for
several months from the govern.
ment's Office. and which the most ex.
haustive searches have failed to dis.
cover. The police seem to have OBJ
tanned information, or supposed that
the missing document has found its
way to the ARGOS premises, but it was
stated tonight that the document had
not been found.
Immunity Question Raised.
1t is now evident that the raid be.
comes q basis for a problem in diplo.
matte immunity and that it also
raised the question of the advantages
OF coordination between the various
government departments.
The Russian contention is that din.
iomatlc Immunity should have pro.
tected the trade delegation from such
treatment. while on behalf OF the
British government it is contended
tnat diplomatic immunity covers ONLY
individuals and that in the Soviet
house it was difficult to define where
the Arcos' premises ended and the
trade delegations habitat began.
Opposition Is Sarcastic.
With regard to the governments
position. the Liberal and Labor news
papers are sarcastic at the expense
OF government where the foreign
ONCE processes complete ignorance
OF what the home Office ia doing in
a matter certain to involve the most
awkward diplomatic contentious.
Taking the governments state
ments at their face value, it seems
that the home Office acted without
any attempt to consult with or In
form the foreign or other ministerial
departments. The reply of Sir Aus
ten Chamberlain, foreign secretary, to
the Russian charges protest at the
raid is being drafted and it is ex-
pected to be chiefly directed at an
exposition of the exact diplomatic
status of M. Khinchuk, head of the
Soviet trade delegation, according to
the governments Interpretation of the
trade agreement concluded by the
late Labor government.
Strong Protest Expected.
The note will also contend that Ar.
cos as trading company has no more
privileges than any other trading
firm.
A strong protest is expected from
the Moscow government, and it is
possible that Sir Austen will await
receipt OF this before replying to the
note Of M. Rosengolz, the Soviet
charge in London. The Soviet EN-
bassy's press bureau tonight issued 3
statement relating the difficulties
First Secretary Bogomoloff had in get
ting into touch with the British for
eign secretary, and also pointing out
that the manner in which the raid
was conducted afforded no guarantee
that documents and materials which
the police might have alleged to have
found on the premises were really
there before the raid was made.