Accused then admitted that ko had written the statement of tis! own free will and said that correct The Assessor:—In this statement you deny an attempt to seize the Steamer and say that you went to the Consulate to try and] locate arms. When the police entered your room at 15 Dent Road, they found several pistols, To, whom did they belong?
Accused said that he went to the)
Consulate with the third accused, Averianoff, and told officials that they had a plan to seize the ship and that they needed arms, The Consular oficial told them that they were willing to help them, if the crew were willing. Accused said that it was his impression that, roached the Consulate with in order to make sonic' money.
Accused further said that it was hhis intention to get in touch with the Consulate for his own purposes. He wished to get his wife out of Russia, Questioned by the Court, as to whether the flag, found at 15 Dent Road, was given to him at} the same time as the guns, accused) said the flag was not his.
Crosg-examined by Mr. Maitlaad, accused said that he got the revolvers at the Consulate himself.
Averianoff was there too.
Witness was examined at length by Dr. Fischer. He said that he believed that he was "double-crossed" by Averianoff, He believed that they would get a reward for obtaining the guns, but it seemed that Averianoff wanted to make the money out of them hingelf.
Dr. Fischer then put it (9 the witness that he (witness) had not cbtaived the gurs at tne Consulate oil. This the witness denied. answer to the Assessor, witness again Said that it was not true that they really planned to seize the Okhotsk. The Asseszor then Showed witness a: scheme to seize the steamer, which was found in witness' room during the police raid. Witness denied knowing about this, but suid that on tke oppos 2 of the paper was his handwriting.
The Aasessor:—Here is another goodment founda your trunk, which also' something about cocaine. What! does it mean?—All the crew were willing to join the Soviet Government ard this ig regarding the declaration: which they signed.
'A Recaatation Witness was then shown a copy of the declaration, which reads:—"To the Ambassador of the USSR, Citizen Karakhan, "Citizen Ambassador "We the signatories....consider following: 2 it our duty to declare to you the
"In the Civil War, to which wel were parties, being drawa into it, deceived or led astray by our om fault, we have been thrown out of our native land.—The years we have spent away from home have forced ut to conclude that we did wrong. Since we have had the opportunity to consider what has} taken place during these years of bloody struggle, we have been abie to examine closely the circumstances as to who led us. exclusively seek the desire for per-Zonal gain, and who atill retain some love for their native land, namely, that it was only those who fought against the Russian people, and who again with to drive them into slavery under the Czar and landlords and bring them back into the darkness and poverty to be the plaything of the rich. 3
Ne realize that we have acted criminally against our native land. We are convinced that the aims of jour leaders have been directed toward a fresh act of treason. This conviction has get us on the right path and has led us to repent sin cerely, which we herewith do, We request your forgiveness: and declare that after we arrive back at our homes we will be able to efface by honest labour all the evil committed by us against our native land, "Having fled from the wrath and revenge of the Russian people, our leaders and guides seized the steam-_ er, together with military and other, and food and the steamer has been, plundered. It provided our leaders, with years of joyful life, while lived a half-starved existence unde: regime in the expectation Jof fresh adventures. And now the! fate of the last steamer, the Okhotsk, hag come.
"To permit it to be sold would be. fresh treason.. The steamer belongs only to the Russian people, to the Soviet Government and not to the landlords and generals in concealment abroad, We have been spurred on exclusively by this conviction and rot by the pursuance of any other aims, so to prevent further pill. age we decided to make an attempt to Reize the Okhotsk, "We have succeeded. The steamer is in our possession and we are fire-pared to defend aer against all eneroachments and presentative of fe express only hope that our act will be valued as the first prot the Brllsh American Trace Ca, land on the Okhotsk. March Okhotsk."
Questioned by the Assessor as to. who wrote this declaration, witnead said that it wag-received from the Soviet Consulate. Witness was then questioned about the cocaine refer. ences in the, papers seized in fis room, but denied knowing anything of them.
At this stage the case was ad-Journed for a special hearing, which has been §et for May 20 and 21.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.