HELD IN ZERO WEATHER

Evening Post, Volume CVII, Issue 24, 29 January 1924, Page 5

HELD IN ZERO WEATHER

BONFIRES THAW FREEZING CROWDS ■

MEMORABLE SCENES IN MOSCOW.

(UNITED PRESS ASSOCIATION.-#OPYRIOHT.) (SIDNEY EUN CABLE.) (Received 29th January, 11 a.m.) LONDON, 28th January. "The Daily News" Moscow correspondent estimates that, a million people viewed Lenin's body during its lying in state for | four days, including peasants from all parts of Russia. It was intended that the public view should terminate at midnight on Saturday, but at that hour there-were still two queues entering ,at different parts two miles long. No emblem of the Church adorned the body or the coffin, which -Was surrounded liy large palms. Outside the building crowds of peasants and soldiers warmed themselves at huge fires which had been lighted in open spaces in all the city streets. Scores ot men and women, overcome by the cold, were carried half-conscious to the fires to recover. '

The temperature was 30 degrees below zero when the coffin on Sunday was carried from the Trades Union Hall to a. catafalque erected in the open air in the Red Square close to the Kremlin wall. The coffin-bearers were frequently relieved, the intense cold making the. carrying difficult. Deputations, walking twenty deep, saluted beside the coffin. They dared not uncover for an instant foi' fear their ears would be frozen.

Over fifty thousand filed past the coffin.1 A funeral march composed by a Pole, Monetßhko, was the only music. Numerous bands played throughout ( the day in uniform and the throbbing drums diew tears from thousands, which speeds ily turned to icicles. The Kremlin bells tolled amid echoing sounds of guns as'the coffin was lowered into the vault. The coffin will always be visible through vaults of glass covering it. If it is decided to embalm the body, the head also will be visible.