J. 1r fi "" ft lw. 5 a i "I k- 8 WTCHKAREVA SPENDS Russian Joan of Arc Tellsl of Her Harrowing Ex- perience While Trying to See Her Husband, a Po litical Prisoner in ie.v-j androvsk Graphic Story of Journey of Prisoners on the Way to the Northern Fastnesses of Siberia and the Crim inals' Queer Code (Cepvrleht. ltlf. ll Frt lit nc t 4 Stoke o (Thl itory. loM by Marl Bsichktrna nt Jrmalatti an1 , Irarncribed by Imr Don i-Ttn. la ruhllhed bv the r-'rederttn, v r.-"" tympany una-r me inn "Taahka.") , THIS STARTS THE STORY In the eatly summer of 1917 the world was thrilled by a news item from Tetrograd announcing the formation bv one Maria Botchka. leva of a women's fighting unit under the name of "Tho Battalion of Death." "With this announcement an obscure Russian peasant girl made her debut In the lnternatlon.il hall of fame This 1-s her stor told by herself. The first Installment told of her early childhood While still a. child she became helper In .i little ilUage store At fifteen she became dissatisfied with her lot and procured a position as domestic In a well-to do family, whete the son of the house ulna her heart and then deserts her She marries a man In her own class, who beats her. 1 and she leaves him. He finds her working on a ehlp in Barnaul and she tries to commit suicide by Jump ing into the rher She is rescued and in the hospital is reconciled to her husband But his promises are not kept and again she leaves him I'or a j ear she works ns foreman of a concrete gang, at the end of which time her health failed A woman, posing as her fiiond pioes to bo a white slaer Mai la es capes, wanders the streets and prajs for guidance. A oung man be friends her; they love each othei they become husband and wif bv civil agreement. He Is arrested for helping a political to escape and Maria makes preparation to accom pany him to prison AND HERE IT CONTINUES AT THE Central Prison I received another shock. I wouldn't be ad mitted without, pass. I did not know that it was necessary to have a pass, I argued. But the warden in charge, a dried up old man. with a flowing white beard, angrily shouted "Xo! Nq!" at me. "Get out of here. It's j against the law: jou can't be ad mlttcd. Go to Irkutsk and come back I with a pass, and- We will let jou in." j "But I trav eled a thousand ". ersts to see him," I pleaded, In tears. "I am worn out and hungr Allow mo to eee him Just for five minutes only five short minutes. Is there no mercy In sour-heart for a weak woman?" With this I broke dow-n and be- cuiB hvsterical. The harsh little war-l den . and his assistants in the office, ame frightened. Yasha was brought became In for a brief reunion. The few m!n utes that we were allowed to pass ln each other'3 presence gave us new strength. He told me of his experi ences, and I of mine to him, and wo decided that I go to the Governor Gen eral, Knlazev, to entreat his mercy. The day was on the decline when I started back to the railway station 1 reached the river by twilight and managed to calch a ferry to the island But it was dark when I landed there, and I lost my way trjlng to cross the island to the other ferr. I was cold, hungry, exhausted Mv feet weie swollen from wandering for several hours ln a frsntlc effort to find "tho right path. When at last I got to the other side it must have been about midnight. I saw the lights across the water and called with all my remain in; strength for the ferry. But there was no response. Only the wind, shrieking through tho wqrodback of 1 me, echoing my cries I kept calling all night, but In vain "When It dawned I gathered my last fncrBiM. niooa up a.m ca.icu again. This time I was observed, and a canoo v,as sent after me. Unfortunately, It was ln charge of a boy I was too sick to move, and he could not carry me to It. I had to creep on alt fours to the boat With the bos aid, I finally found myself ln the canoe. It took him a long time to ferry me across, and I was ln a state of collapse by the time we leached tho other side. I was taken to the Kuznetzov Hospital in Irkutsk again, where I lay dangerous ly ill for several weeks. During this time I lost all of my hair and half of my weight. After my visit to Yasha he naturally told his prison mates of it, being proud of my lojalty Jo him, but when das and weeks passed by, and I did not re- turn, his comrades began to tease him about me. rSmm Bills -to be paid? PRESERVE your credit by borrowing money on the MORRIS PLAN. Pay your bills in a. mmp sum to tne outer leuow pay ui $1 a week on efery $50 borrowed. ine of - .147 ARC. AND CONSEQUENT WEEKS ,iiaaTra;-A?,3M?sfriig if i p , 'A line bab.i f jou 5ou ma in deed be proud of her,' thev would oi 1 ment him 'She found some other I husband A lot does -he need ou a I prisoner Thev are nil alike vouis 1 and ouis ".i.ha took such diolleiles verv much to heait. Ho wus in com I plcte ignoiance of mv wheriabouts and finally made up his mind that t had betraed him t As soon as 1 whs leleased fiom the hospital, I went to tho Governor Oen I eral In whose office t was told that ( Yasha had been sentenced to foui Scars' elle Obtaining a pas I mt 'to Alexandiovsk to see htm But Yasha would not see me Believing i his connades' taunts confirmed bv n I two months' absence he resolved that he was through with me 1 was I naturally at a loss to account for this abrupt change and wept bitterly Some of Ills acquaintances who had been brought downstairs, saw me cry and reported to him my emaciated appeal-' ance Then he came down Visitors were not allowed to come in contact with the prisoners at Alex androvsk. There were two steel grat ings in the office, separated by a dis tance of a couple of feet. The prisoner was kept behind one grating, while the pet sons who came to seo him were placed behind the other The.v could not touch each other permitted to meet Yasha. We both cried like children he, at the sight of my thinness, realizing that he had wronged me in suspecting me of faith lessness It was a pathetic scene, this meeting behind bars Yasha told me that he would not be exiled before May As I offcied to accompany him into exile, it was necessary for me to spend the several Intervening months at some work 1 also had to get per mission to Join Yasha in exile I found work with the same asphalt nn, out now as a common laborer. earning only fifty kopecks a day. At "nervals i woum go to ,iexanurovsK see asha. One time I was work- ng at a Job In the Irkutsk prison, and t was not long before the prisoners knew that I had a husband ln Alex androvsk, for there was a complete underground system of communication between the two prisons. On the whole, I was well treated by convicts, ino winter passed. -lowara taster i long-sentence convicts, in chains, who of 1913 I succeeded in obtaining per- were alwajs given priority by the un mlssion to have mjself arrested and written law of the criminal world. sent to Alexandrovsk, in anticipation of my exile with Yasha. I was put ln tho women's building, in which were detailed a number of women criminals what I endured at their hands is at. most beyond description. They beat me but I knew that complaining would make my lot more bitter. When sup per was served to us the matron asked me if I had been maltreated. I an', swered negatively, but she must have known better, for, turning to th wom en, she instructed them not to punlih me. My reply, to the matron somewhat Improved my status with my prison mates, but they forced me, neverthe less, to wait on them nnd do their dirty work. In addition to these Bufferings. thc food waa putrd. Tne bunka , , which we slept were unclean. Eight of us were in ono tiny cell I saw Yasha only once a week, every Sun. day. 1 spent twu months In this voluntary Imprisonment, but It seemed liko two years to me, and I looked for ward eagerly nnd Impatiently to the dav of our starting on the open road to exile SNARED lU BRUTAL GOVERNOR fI"AY had come. The Lena had opened and become navigable. The heavy Iron doors of the prison were unlocked and hundreds of in- I mates, including Yasha and r mustered out In the jard to me, were prepare for exile, livery ery winter the huge prison at Alexandrovsk would gather Into Its' TO WORTHY people of moderate means who wish to borrow money for useful purposes, the MORRIS PLAN offers its serrices. Call or write for booklet: How to Borrow Money by Means 'of the Morris Plan , MM JT ! '' morris fiMii to. PhilacWiU EVENING PUBLIC NIGHT IN WOODS Hberiin tialling Mstion walls thousands of wrecked human le- inert murdereis forgers, thieves, stu- dents officers peasants and profes- slonal persons who had transgressed against the tjiannlcal regime. Every spring the gloomv Jail would open Its' doors and pour out a stream of half-j benumbed men nnd women Into tho I wild Siberian taiga and the titiln- habited legions bordering on the- Uct,c 1I spring and sumuiei thW liver of exa-perated hutnanltv would flow through AlexandrovsU into the snov- bound north, where thev languished In unvnuurauie enmauc conditions ana Mircumoea in iaige numbers In tho land of the sK months' night Tens of thousands of them lie scattered fiom the Ural -Mountains to Alaska in unmarked graves So flnallv we were to breathe soma fresh air. There was bustle and Il,lst,e before our Par'X s formed. mere were aDout a thousand per sons In it, including twenty women. Our guard consisted of five hundred soldiers We were to go on foot to Katchugo, near the source of the Lena, a distance of about two hundred versts. Our baggage was loaded on wagons I We made thirty-five veists in the 'first da, according to schedule, stop ping for the night at an exile-station " " ge of a v illage, The Siberian roads are criss-crossed by such sta tionslarge woodenN buildings of barn like construction, with iron doors and grated windows Empty in side, but for double tiers of bunks, 1 the are surrounded by high fences, with a sentry box at each corner. They offer no opportunity for escape. We supped on food we had brought fiom the prison, and turned Infor the night Our party was divided Into groups of ten, eacli gioup choosing a trust charged with the purchasing of food Beginning with the second i day, each of us received an allowance ot twenty kopecks There were about ono hundred polltlcal3 ln the partv the remamd Ulnff ft congIomeraUo ot crlmlna. er criminals. The two sections did not get along well, and there was a continuous feud. Men and women were packed together. Besides, there was a privileged group with us. It consisted of the They would bo first to use the kettles aBBSsBsBBBBR. a f "HLLm. 7 -y MPhbw j w y 7 A)- 1 A W I LEDGEK PHILADELPHIA", FRIDAY, IN HOSPITAL to piepaie theli food I ntil they were through none of us dared approach the fire. Their word was law. They were alwajs given the rlght-of-wa. Even the soldiers and oftlcets ie spectcd their privileges. One of them was the chieftain of the paity, and if, he pledged himself. In return for more j freedom for all of us, to guarantee that there would bo no escapes, his word 'would be taken without question by the commander of the guard, and it never was broken The weather was fine the first thiee davs. AVe made thirty ersts the sec- , 0nd da and the same distance the third da , but then It began to pour and the roads became almost impassa-1 Btead of windows there were some ble The mire was frightful, but we imail openings In tho roof. Many had to walk our scheduled thirty fell sick and weio left ljlng therd versts Many in our party fell sick, without care, some dvlng. We looked forwaid to the next exile In our group was the woman Kitovii, station with keen hope, so soaked with her husband and two chlldien. weie we and so fatigued We longed Wo cooked and ate our food together, for a roof and a dry floor and nothing enduring a gicat deal nt tho hands nf else. Wo forgot our hunger, we did the cilmlnals There were quiet peo not feel tho vermin that night, for as 1'' among the latter, nnd thej suf soon as we reached the station we''ered "rom ,Ile whims ot the Icadeis dropped like dead in deep slumber. ana tnolr 'ackevs. We had a two days' rest upon our! Tnere l" case of such a mtn, arrival at Katchugo and were allowed Who llf-PPcned to cross tho path of an to bathe In the Lena when our chief- oId crlmInaI The itter did not ko tain made himself resnonslhl for ,,f,lh6 "a-"' ne Iool-ed at Illm- B,,d tllB P"- conduct. We found a small party waiting, to Join us at Katchugo. A member of this new group was recognized by some of tho exiles as an alleged betrajer of his comrade in a raid and was dragged for triaj before the entire body. Here I witnessed a remaikable scene, the trial of a criminal by crim." inais. There was as rigid a code of moials in the underwoild as in any legitimate government and Just as re lentless a prosecutlpn A call went out that there would be a tilal and the privileged criminals- In chain. were chosen as Judges. The accusers ' were called upon to state their charges in the hearing of the whole party. They told of the accused man's be trajal of a comrade In a robbery some time before There went up cries, "Kill him! Kill him! The traitor! Kill him!" This was the usual punishment for one found guilty. It was the custom of the authorities to watch the pro ceedings and never interfere with the carrying out of a sentence. As the mob was closing in on the accused Matfson 1115 Chestnut Street Opposite Keith's Theatre Announce For Tomorrow A SPECIALIZED SHOWJNG OF Charming Millinery For the Ultra Fashionable Woman Each an Exclusive Model Hat, A comprehensive display of authentic models for spring wear, reflecting every style variation of the season. Stunning large and small black HatB of shiny lisere, trimmed with burnt peacock and glycerined ostrich; mod els with entire crowns covered with an array of flowers and fruit, and the ever-popular more tailored hats. F0R TOMORROW ONLY! New Spring Millinery 7.50 to 10.00 Values, at A grouping of more than 200 of this season's mosS-iavored styles, priced very special for tills one day's selling. We advise early shopping. my heart sinking within me, tho Judges called for order and demanded that tho man be given a hearing, too. All wHtte and trembling, ho got up to telt his story ln detail. "Thcro were two of us," lie began, 'in the scheme to rob a banker. It was decided that I force my way Into the house through a window, hide there and signal to tho other fellow at the opportune moment. I found that the banker had gone for tho evening to a club and concealed my self In a closet, waiting for his return. My comrado kept guard without hear ing from mo for a couplo of hours. "When tho banker returned ho sent his valet for something In tho closet in which I was hidden. Discovering me, the latter raised an alarm, and some servants ran out to call for help Just at the moment when my comrade was about to enter the house, lie was caught. I managed to escape through the window and the gatden. I am innocent, comrades. I have been a ciimlnal for many jcais and I hav o a clean, honorablo record " He then proceeded to enumerate the major accomplishments of his career and the chiefs Under whom ho had worked nnd thosorobbers with whom ho had co-operated in tho pas,t. He must have mentioned some very Important personages ns immediately a number of voices were raised in his favor. Some got up and eulogized the lonnectlons of tho accused, while otheis quizzed him. The deliberations lasted for several houis, resulting in the acquittal of tho man. The entlio party, at the conclusion of the rest at Katchugo, was taken aboard a huge loofed barge. A thou sand people ln ono hole! Tho pilson nt Alexandrovsk, the exile station, weie paradises In comparison with this unimaginable man made burton. There was no air and no lltrht In. man was beaten and, without any ceremony, thrown ovemoard and drowned. Wo wero all locked up tor It Inside tho bargo and weie dented the privilege of going out on tho deck. It was the most cruel of punishments, worso than a long term in prison. v e cnangeu barges on the way 'spending about tvvo months on tho water, having made about thAc thou- sand x ersts upon arriving at Yakutsk at the end ot .luly. Wo were beached at night, but It was almost as light as day though much bolder Our Joy at landing was irfdcsci Ibable. Safe t7ffireT.Bfl.nTi Milk ror iniantt : Iayalids, NsCiikiai A Nutritious Diet for All Ace. Quick Lunch; Home or Ofiic. OXHET.S u 1M1 1 AXIOMS & DeMan 10 .00 5.oo FEBRUARY 28, 1919 Tho local politicals all enmo ou& to welconio us. Wo wero marched to the Yakutsk prison, whero our roll was called. Hera tho women wero Hep mated from tho men, and those who voluntarily accompanied their hus bands were set free. I then went lo the office to Inquire about tho fate of Yasha, and wns told that it was probable that ho would bo sent faither north. 1 wns caicd for by tho local politicals, who sheltered me nnd gave mo new clothing nnd money with which to purchase, food and cook dinners for Yaslii, Yakutsk is such a distant placo that tho prisoners thcro are allowed con siderable fieedom. I was nicely treated by tho officials when I took the dinner pall to Ynsha, ana wits ir mltted to remain with him as long as I desired, even in privacy. Shortly afterward Yasha was ln foimed that he had been Assigned to Kolymsk. within a hundred versts of the Arctic Ocean, whero the snow never melts and the winter never re laxes Its grip. Tho news struck us as a bolt from the blue. To be burled nllve ln some snowbound hut! What for7 To live liko beasts In that unin habitable region from which only few return to this world! There was still ono ray of hope. Gov ernor Kraft, of Yakutsk, had the repu tation of being a very kind man, and he might reassign Yasha if I begged him. Yasha had been advised to ap peal to tho Governor, and he sent me 011 this mission. Tho Governor'-) ofllce was In his home Ho lecelved mo ,ery kindly. even shook my hand, and Invited mo to be seated. He was a tall, erect, black-bearded man of middle-age, and Mason & DeMarvy III5 Every Fur In Stock Must Be Sold During Our Great Removal Sale! Prices Are Reduced One-Third, One-Half And Even More Than Half We will not carry a single fur of our present stock to our new store, at 1215 Chestnut St. In order to sell every fur without let or hindrance we reduce prices without regard to cost. This meam an even greater saving than it seentSj for these furs will be bought chiefly for wear next season, and identical furs next season will cost in some cases double in other cases almost double what they do today. Purchases Will Be Payment of a . (282) Fox, Colors are Taupe, rn.oo 1450 The ''tUtlillltillTi UlinilllUliiiitlllKlUHHMIillUllllUlllItlllUlm'IIJl UlUlltallliiliiJlllllullllliUluauUiiiiuJiakiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiiiitiiEiiUia ijitiiiiiii-iii-iiTui i'iiii-ujitiuiiiiiiiuuiiiiijijiiiiiTniiiiiitiiiriiauiiiruiiuTiituii:-ii luiiuiiiiiiiii'iiiiiiiiiugiiiiiiuiuuiniwwwuili Natural Nutria Sets 23-00 m " Brown Wolf Sets 49-50 Marmot Coat 36-inch sport model of very fine well-matched skins. Long roll ing shawl collar and deep cuffs. ' Muskrat Coals Three-quarter-length full model; large shawl collar- and deep cuffs of muskrat. Well matched, selected skins. Nutria Coats 30-inch sport model, in natural nutria. Large shawl collar and deep cuffs. Australian Seal Coat 40-inch sport design, with full back effect. Urge shawl col- lar and deep cuffs. Natural Raccoon Coats , , 40-inch loose model of selected kin. Large shawl collar and deep -tiffs. Natural Nutria Coats Three-quarter - length models, Selected skins Large collar and deep cuffs. Important! Every skin. Caracul, Hudson Seal, Silver rox, Hudson- Bay aaDie, Blue fox, Urosa rox, Skunk. which are unqueauonaoiy he showed every consideration for mo a I told my story. I proposed to him to open a sanitary butcher-shop ln Yakutsk If ho allowed Yasha to re main there, as tho local butcher-shops wero Impossibly filthy. Ha at first refused my suggestion, but, apparently on second thought, bade me follow Intb his apartment, vvheio he seated me at a table, and, filling two glasses with wine, Invited m0 to drink with him. I declined, wondering as to tho reason for this extreme friendliness. He drew nearer to me, laid his hands on my coat and removed it. Uefore I recovered from my astonishment ha seized my hand and kissed It. Startled and indignant, I Jumped to my feet. "I will glvo jou a thousand rubles, room for a butcher-shop in the market, and keep jour husband In Yakutsk, If j'ou will agree to belong to me," the Governor declared, trying, to calm me. t lost my self-control. "Scoundrels! beasts! you men are all alike! all! all! all! High and low, jou are all de praved." Grabbing my coat, I ran out of the house, leaving the Governor speechless. (CONTINUED TOMOTtROW) , Speed Departing Member Members of the Association ot Manu facturers' Representatives gave a ban quet last night In the Bellcvuc-Strat-ford In honor of Ralph It. Whltmore, one of the organizers of the associa tion, who will leave Philadelphia to morrow to become general manager of the lijKnu I'otlsh Manufacturing Coin panj', of Pittsburgh. Theie were sev eral hundred members ot tho associa tion and peisonal filendi of Mr. Whlt more present. Chestnut Street (Opposite Keith's) Reserved in Our Storage Vaults Until Next Fall on Deposit. Payments to Be Continued Monthly During the Spring and Summer Wolf .id Lynx Scarfs ' Brown, Black, Poiret, Kamchatka 6c Georgette 19.50 24-50 29-50 34.50 Values lire Most Extraordinary! Hudson Seal Sets 30-00 Black Fox Sets 33-00 Taupe Fox Sets 69-50 Beaver Sets 69-50 '''iioiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiii'iiiiniiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiwiiiiil 58 00 ed quality, collar and or beaver. 74 M 96 .00 - .., 25 A very effective mpdel of Scotch moleskin, with large collar and deep cuffs. Squirrel Coat 45-inch coat of selected skins. 1 Large shawl collar and deep , cuffs. Natural Mink Coat 30-inch sport model of well matched skins. Effectively trimmed at bottom with tails. 125 .00 155m luxurious garment in m . !-. -.... - ------ .s H0 m -sale. ioats or eastern Mink. Broadtail. Scotrh M1-.V Siberian Squirrel and Persian tne most remarKRDic ever quoted MISS GOULD IN PUBLIC DANCE Makes First Appearance on Stag in New York Tonight New York. I-Vb. 28. Miss Gloria .T. Gould, twelve vears old and jounsest ot the accomplished daughters of Mr and Mrs George J. Gould, will mako her first public appearance tonight in Car nereis Hall ns a solo Interpretive dancer. The occasion will bo an entertainment by the riiallf pupils for a fund fo Bel glan children made orphans by the war. Mr. and Mrs. Gould, from one of tho boxes, will witness this ambitious step by their t-relvs-year-old daughter as an amateur en'-crtalncr. This will not be Mls Gould's debut before a critical audience, although her other appearances have been In private entertainments. More than two years ago, when ten jears old, sho showed that sho had Inherited the dramatlo In. Ft I nets of her mother, who was Miss Edith Klngdon, of tho stage. In July. 1016, slii wrote a fantasy In onn act. called "The Lost child." In which sho showed Imagination surprising ln one so young. Tho plajlet was given at Georgian Court, her parents' home In 1-akcuood, N". J , for tho Red Cross. She not onl played the leading part, but coached her companv of other children nnd managed the performance. She nteo recited In French, German and Italian as wel las In her native tongue Automobile School Complete, practical instruction given in repairing and overhauling all makes of cars Pupils do actual work under competent instructors. Large, well-ventilated rooms mod ern equipment. Afternoon nnd evening eU-ist, .(. Klnnlng Monday, March. .1. Fees moderate. Call or phone. cnNTitAr, Y.M.C.A. Auto School 717 North Broad St., or Instruction Office, 1421 Arch Street The tens of thousands of dollars' worth of furs now in stock, including coats, sets, muffs, wraps, scarfs nd coatees from the most ex pensive to the least costly, go into this sale., Not a single piece is reserved. ' Taupe Wolf Sets 36-50 Mjnk Sets 98-50 OLiniiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiraniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii? Hudson Seal Coal A snappy 30-inch sport coat, with large shawl collar and lfiX.00 deep cuffs of nutria. J-Utf Hudson Seal Coals A smart sports model of select- ' ' skins. Deep shawl wide cuffs of skunk 195 .00 Hudson Seal Coats ,' , Plain and trimmed models in various lengths developed in the )A tZ.OO smarlest styles. & Scotch Mole Coat 275 m 295 .00 345 .00 our stock is includorl ;n tk; S' Lamb. Seta and scarfs of 1 Mink and Lynx, at price-v tor turs qr similar Qui Bi . i lCHAMUDttS4 " rT ' I "V . clr. -' '!' m 1 W,f6p-?rW W fts,. jjk ,.. .,-' ...I. I . . illaW 1 1 .