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Show IRUSS NOBLEWOMAN DESCRIBES" ATROCITIES OF THE BOLSHEVIK! Hundreds of Persons Tortured in the Most Inhuman Fashion Before Being Put to Death and Their Estates Pillaged and Mansions Razed Thousands Die From Hunger All Over Country. New York. "We do not hope any longer ; we die !" The despair to which bolshevik misrule mis-rule has reduced Russia is thus epitomized epito-mized by a Russian noblewoman widely wide-ly known throughout her country, in a remarkable picture of events in her country contained iu a letter received recently in New York. Her castles and estates plundered or razed, her fortune vanished and her friends and family murdered, this titled woman is moved to remark that "three years ago, my second daughter ami her husband hus-band died, he having caught cold in the trendies. Then I was in despair; now 1 envy them." "I beg of you never to mention my name; I wrote frankly to you counting on your discretion," is the plea which fear of bolshevik tyranny moves the unfortunate woman to place at the close of her letter to her friend, a New-York New-York woman of prominent and influential influen-tial family. "Excuse the incoherences ; I write with my heart bleeding, knowing know-ing that I shall never be able to give -ou the faintest idea of the sufferings that thousands sre enduring." A graphic tale of the misery that spreads itself over Russia is unfolded in the letter. Wholesale pillaging and murder by bolsbeviki, Germans, Finns and others swer.t the land clear of its wealth. Both the noblewoman who wrote the letter and the woman who received it are well known. The danger involved tar the former makes it advisable that not only the nam.:s of the persons but the names of the localities mentioned be withheld from publication. The letter let-ter in full reads as follows: "My very, very dear Mrs. B : "At last I am able to write to you and to hope to hear from you. "I will endeavor to tell you briefly the personal eveilts of these terrible last years. But bow to begin? How-to How-to give you the faintest Idea of the unimaginable atrocities committed by the bolsbeviki? Speaking of ourselves, our-selves, 1 will tell you that we have lost everything. The bolsbeviki have stolen all our fortune, boxes of silverware, silver-ware, precious objects, personal remembrances re-membrances which undoubtedly are now destroyed. Freed to Flee From Home. "Three years ago my second daughter daugh-ter and her husband died, he having caught cold in the trenches. Then I was in despair, now I envy them. The year 1917 in autumn, we bad to flee from M , and come to the city, where we lived under the reds' regime until the arrival of the Germans. "You have probably read in the pa pers that the reds had sent to Siberia 300 Russian barons, and also some bourgeoisie; some died and the others returned two months after. "Although under our roof lived a military guard of bolsbeviki or reds, good luck kept us from sharing their lot. 1 cannot describe the last days. After the arrival of the Germans a list was found of about a thousand persons, in which we were, who were to be shot the very next day. "The reign of the Germans lasted exactly seven months; they annihilated annihi-lated all our hopes, they accumulated taxes upon taxes; carrying away all the food to Germany, leaving the people peo-ple of our cities lo starve. "No discipline, corruption everywhere, every-where, no administration. Only those who deliberately closed their eyes to evidence failed to see that a country thus plundered and so badly treated was not to remain long under their rule. But, alas! How many were blind ! "Then came the great catastrophe; the German troops fraternizing with the bolsbeviki at W ; surrendering to them cannon, war ammunition, and refusing to fight. The Germans even damaged the cannon they left to the Estlies troops, which had been formed hastily and were incapable of defending defend-ing themselves, having nothing, absolutely abso-lutely nothing ! Reds' Rule Was Worse. "Then, for another year the country was at the mercy of the reds, and it was worse than the first time. "The Bolshevik! had with them Chinese Chi-nese and Red Lettes, who were terribly ter-ribly cruel, and those formed the guard of the unfortunate emperor and bis family. "On the 28th of November we learned that W had fallen ; that the Germans were leaving us in baste; and, as the German general commanding command-ing at R , had, at the request of the Lettes, refused the formation of troops with the men of the country, we were left without any defense. "The lights of the electric projectors of the enemy's ships already illuminated illuminat-ed our shores ; from the castle's tower we could see everything ; there was not a minute to be lost. The trains were running only for the German troops ; It was then necessary to risk traveling by the inland ways, through dreadful roads and in a country in revolution, for when the Germans took possession posses-sion of the provinces they took care not to punish their friends, the bolsbeviki; bol-sbeviki; so that we were compelled ,o see and to live with the people who bad stolen and pillaged our properties. The Germans did nothing to find out the revolutionists and to protect us, nothing! "After having packed in haste the strictly necessary things, our small caravan started at five o'clock in the morning; it was dark and the roads were frightful. "We arrived at R on the second of December. We were able to stay four weeks at our home, then in great haste we bad to embark on the boat sent to Finland for the fugitives and we arrived at Helsingfors. Lassitude, troubles, and emotions of all these weeks overwhelmed at last my poor husha ml. "Fortunately we found two rooms in a hospital ; there we lived for two months, being often hungry, and when we could get some food it was execrable. execra-ble. "The high prices of living in Finland Fin-land are unbelievable. A pound of tea. I which ordinarily cost from live to lif-I lif-I teen kronen, cost from one hundred to a hundred and fifty marks; a kilogramme kilo-gramme of sugar one hundred marks, etc. Also Finland tried to get rid of so many people she had to feed, and, as the bolsbeviki who come up to 28 kilometers from It had been repulsed re-pulsed by the Finn troops, which had at the last moment come in aid to the Letts and to the volontaire corps of Balthes-Germans, the Finns then ordered, or-dered, all fugitives to leave the country within six days. However, we received, re-ceived, on account of my husband's bad condition, permission to stay until he would get better. "Going back was an impossibility, the situation being still very grave; a second expedition was no longer possible pos-sible for the strength o? my poor husband hus-band ; moreover, we had nothing left. Our large city house was taken and turned into a hospital by a Russian volontaire corps. M devastated and plundered! First by the bolsbeviki, bolsbe-viki, then by the Esths, whom the Germans left unpunished ; then by the white troops and the Finns, who were fighting the reds, German properties being left unmolested. Family Lost Everything. "Last year our estate had suffered, but our magnificent castle with all its dependencies bad been respected. Now all have pillaged it. The Finns being more civilized stole the most beautiful things paintings, bronzes, antiques, etc. Finally the 30 masters' rooms and the 11 servants' rooms were plundered. What they could not take away they smashed or burned. We lost everything. every-thing. Not a sheet, not a plate or a glass exist, and when ouy iutendant complained to the minister of state (a Tbesthe), be answered him that naturally nat-urally in war time everybody wanted to have some souvenirs. The whites pillaged, as I hear, 80 estates, and they were supposed to be our defenders ! ' "Friends here obtained for us the permission to come to K , where we found two rooms in a family. We hope soon to find some occupation, and sell some furs that I could take with me, for unfortunately my beautiful laces are also in Petrograd. "I do not know whether ywi have an idea of what the bolsbeviki have done everywhere whenever they bad to. retire. re-tire. At W they killed S2 people; we have lost friends, acquaintances and our excellent and noble doctor. Almost Al-most all were tortured before being put to death. Before shooting Doctor L they broke his two legs. To the old Baroness H., seventy-two years old, aftei having opened her stomach, snatched out her intestines while alive. They killed priests, doctors, nobles, merchants, women, children and peasants. peas-ants. They made several persons dig their own graves, forcing them to undress; un-dress; a carriage was waiting to take away their clothes. Then they tor-lured tor-lured every one, breaking arms and legs, crushing the limbs, snatching The intestines, gouging out the eyes, scarring scar-ring the cheeks, and they even burned two persons alive. "There were three large pits; they tossed pell mell in one of them Hie living and t lie dead, and then these monsters jumped into the pit and trampled under foot the unfortunates until they were lifeless. "Twelve persons were so crushed and disfigured that they could not be recognized. And all that Is true! "After the corpses bad been exhumed ex-humed the doctors and the officers of the state took photographs of each, after af-ter having examined everyone of them. Russia Awaiting the Allies "At D , al W . etc., whenever the Reds were repulsed note. I pray you, that I say 'everywhere' the same tortures were indicted to the unfortunate unfortu-nate ones. I shall not try to describe the horrors of other places, for It has been the same everywhere. "Al D , hundreds have been thrown under Ihe ice of ths river, ye. a clement death compared with the others. "Thousands die from hunger In all Russia ; bolshevism reigns everywhere. We had hoped to be delivered by the Germans, and they having failed we hoped for (he allies; now, as an officer offi-cer who has escaped from Petrograd was telling, we do not hope any longer, we die! "Russia Is anxiottsly awaiting the help of the allies, for she alone cannot POBSj'ier the terrorizing bo'nW'vikl." |