COOL RUSSIAN WOMEN

Auckland Star, Volume LXXV, Issue 106, 6 May 1944, Page 7

COOL RUSSIAN WOMEN

SELF-SACRIFICE AND DEVOTION The Soviet Press frequently carries the pictures and biographies of women who have distinguished themselves in action. Dasya Shirkova flew up to give combat to a Nazi bombing a Soviet aerodrome and sent him crashing. Senior Lieutenant Vera Salbieva led her soldiers under machine-gun fire to force a strategic river. Nina Onilov with her machine-gun stopped 500 Nazis as they attacked the Crimean naval base, Sebastopol. Girl parachutists armed with automatic rifles fly to the Nazi rear.

Liuda, a cavalry woman in a detachment of volunteer horsemen commanded by a Don Cossack, lay in ambush in the snow for two days in order to fulfil her assignment. Her comment on this act, incidentally, is indicative of the motivation that leads some of the Soviet women front line fighters into the area where the fight is hardest and the danger greatest. She said she kept thinking of paying the enemy back for the death of her husband, a Red Army commander killed at the front, and for the lives of other Soviet people taken by the Nazis.

No description of the Russian women's self-sacrifice and devotion would be complete without mention of Vera Badiria, head nurse of the Red Army, who was born in New York City. This 29-year-old girl was at the front with a detachment of three machine-gunners. They were able to hold on to their position on the road until a shell exploded, putting the machine-gun out of commission and killing two of the gunners. Vera and the other survivor were wounded in the explosion.

The Germans, hearing no further opposition, advanced toward the road. An officer shot the wounded man and then handed his revolver to a soldier, ordering him to shoot the nurse. The soldier at close range-took aim. But he did not fire.

Vera Badina raised herself from the ground, leaning on her left arm. She laughed scornfully and said: "You scoundrels—give me the revolver."

At the officer's order the soldier obeyed. The girl put the revolver against her temple and fired.

The manner of her death was made known through a German prisoner captured afterwards.