REWARDS FOR KILLING.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LIII, Issue LIII, 16 April 1908, Page 3

REWARDS FOR KILLING.

General TolmachefiE, our new Gover- J nor-General, has just issued two very remarkable proclamations. In the first ' ;sf these the general announces the dismissal with disgrace of a police officer accused of cowardice in failing to effect the arrest of certain armed robbers. His Excellency remarks that' ' service in the Odessa police force, under present conditions, is quite as honorable and fully as dangerous as war service. He orders all policemen ' to carry their Brownings ready for instant use, and to fire before suspected i persons have time to draw their weapons. He prints the following in large letters: "All criminals ought to be ' killed. Any policemen allowing a prisoner to escape, alive will be severely ! punished." Three persons having been killed and a fourth severely wounded by policemen within forty-eight hours, ' the general promptly issued a second proclamation approving their conduct, • and awarding them gratuities of 25 roubles each. The tariff seems to be ' 50 roubles per man killed, and' half , that amount for severely wounding ' anyone. j Executions continue to be frequent, and a batch of four men have just , been hanged within the walls of the Odessa prison. In spite of all meas- . ures, robberies and murders by armed J gangs continue, Jewish shops and ! houses being especially marked for at- j tack. To do General Tolmacheff jus- •' tice, he is evidently anxious to punish . attacks on Jews with the utmost severity. The revolutionary propaganda amongst the Odessa garrison is being actively continued, not only amongst the men, but the officers also. The situation is causing much uneasiness amongst commanding officers. A sys- i tern of wireless telegraphy is now working between Odessa and Sebastopol for the use of "the naval and military, authorities. The police have made a very extraordinary find at the Villa Stapelberg, ' near Sebastopol, .where they discovered some guns, a large number of rifles i and revolvers, besides quantities of I ammunition and explosives. The guns ■ were those taken from a torpedo boat ' in Sebastopol harbor some time. since, ] the rifles and cartridges were stolen ' from one of the forts; The inhabitants • of the villa were -arrested prior to the ' discovery for " being implicated in the manufacture of bombs. — Odessa correspondent Tribune.