Nelson Evening Mail FRIDAY, JUNE 10, 1927 THE MURDER OF VOIKOFF

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXI, 10 June 1927, Page 4

Nelson Evening Mail FRIDAY, JUNE 10, 1927 THE MURDER OF VOIKOFF

THE assassin a I ion of Voikoff, the Soviet Government’s Ambassador at Warsaw, has caused that Government, as might have been expected, to try to link its envoy's murder with the British Government's dismissal of Ilosengollz, the Soviet's representative in London. There whs, of course, no connection between the British Government and the student Kowonla; neither is the Polish Government to he charged with complicity in the ciime. As has been said by M. Sublime, Russian Charge d’Affaires in London, in the days of the Czar, “Clearly Voikoffs murder is an act of revenge.” We notice that the London “Evening News” connects Voikoff with the murder of the Czar Nicholas and his family, at Ekaterinburg, pointing out that Voikoff “was president of the Ekaterinburg Soviet in 1919, and as such signed tlio death-warrant for the murder of the Czar’s family, and was actually in thn cellar when the family was shot.” We have looked up the records of that terrible crime. There are several conflicting account- of what actually took place, hut the. most reliable account is probably that of the London “Times,” gleaned from several reliable sources, and supported by eye-witnesses. Illustrating this version is a- photograph showing members of the Ekaterinburg Soviet who signed the death-warrant of the Czar and a f s family, but among their

names that of Voikoff does not appear. The name of tlin President of tho regional Soviet of Ekaterinburg is given as Beloborodoff. The Czar and his family were murdered on July 18th, 1918, and, according to the London “Evening News,” Voikoff was president of the Ekaterinburg Soviet in 1919. Of course he may have been in that position in July, 1918, but if so it. is necessary- to imagine that Beloborodoff and Voikoff are different names for the same person. It is possible that that may bo so, since under the Soviet’s regime nomenclature is liable sometimes t,o be variable. Tho actual murderer of the Czar was Yanlcel Ywrovsky (sometimes spoil Jwrovski), a small shopkeeper of Ekaterinburg, the son of a Jewish convict. Jwrovsky had under his command eleven co-executioners. The victims were herded into the basement of the Ipatier House, which was their prison, Ywrovsky addressed the Czar, telling him that he was compelled to shoot him The Czar, tho Czarina, three of the children, Dr. Botkin, and two servants wore instantly killed. One of tire girls, presumably Anastasia, the youngest, writhed and screamed, and fought the’ guard who approached and .killed her.. , Domitlpyna, the maidsei;-. vant, was not touched by the first volley, and ran about the room screaming. ’. . Within a few minutes of their entering tho death chamber all was over. So perished tho royal family of the Romanov-s. But the account does not disclose that Voikoff, or any member of tho Ekaterinburg Soviet was in tho room when tho murders’took place. He may have been, fiiid .then ,he may not have been, but as one of Lenin’s and Trotsky’s followers he was responsible, as were all the members of the Red Revolution, individually and collectively, for tho horrible murder of tho Czar and his family. Voikoff must share with all tho Bolsheviki the guilt of tho terrible crimes committed during that tragic time. Here is an extract from the account of the Rev. Courtier-Forster, who. was British chaplin at Odessa during the Red Terror:— On the Sinope (a warship, apparently! General Chormichoff and some other personal friends of my own were fastened one by one with iron chains to planks of wood and pushed slowly, inert by inch, into the ship’s furnaces and roasted alive. Others were tied to winches, the winches turned until the men were torn in two alive. Others were taken to the boilers and scald-' ed with boning steam ; they were then moved to another part of the ship and ventilating fans were set' revolving that currents of cold air might blow on the scalds and increase the agony of. the torture. The full names of seventeen of the Sinope victims were given mo in writing by members of their families or their personal friends. These were lost later when my rooms were raided, my papers seized, and I myself arrested and thrown into

prison. These harrowing details of the Red Revolution are given in order to show wliat horrors Voikoff and his fellowBolshevists perpetrated. We do not say that such horrors excuse the student Kowerda’s crime in murdering Voikoff, hut probably they explain it. It is not surprising if the Bolshevist leaders, who were responsible for the indescribable cruelties of the Red Terror; become victims of the revenge of descendants and relatives of those whom they murdered in the atrocious manner in which the Czar and his family and faithful servants were done to death at Ekaterinburg, and in the still more dreadful manner described by iho Rev. R. Cottr-tier-Forster.