After several days we started through the forest on the left bankof the Yenisei toward the south, avoiding the villages as much aspossible in fear of leaving some trail by which we might befollowed. Whenever we did have to go into them, we had a goodreception at the hands of the peasants, who did not penetrate ourdisguise; and we saw that they hated the Bolsheviki, who haddestroyed many of their villages. In one place we were told that adetachment of Red troops had been sent out from Minnusinsk to chasethe Whites. We were forced to work far back from the shore of theYenisei and to hide in the woods and mountains. Here we remainednearly a fortnight, because all this time the Red soldiers weretraversing the country and capturing in the woods half-dressedunarmed officers who were in hiding from the atrocious vengeance ofthe Bolsheviki. Afterwards by accident we passed a meadow where wefound the bodies of twenty-eight officers hung to the trees, withtheir faces and bodies mutilated. There we determined never toallow ourselves to come alive into the hands of the Boisheviki. Toprevent this we had our weapons and a supply of cyanide ofpotassium.

Passing across one branch of the Yenisei, once we saw a narrow,miry pass, the entrance to which was strewn with the bodies of menand horses. A little farther along we found a broken sleigh withrifled boxes and papers scattered about. Near them were also torngarments and bodies. Who were these pitiful ones? What tragedywas staged in this wild wood? We tried to guess this enigma and webegan to investigate the documents and papers. These were officialpapers addressed to the Staff of General Pepelaieff. Probably onepart of the Staff during the retreat of Kolchak's army went throughthis wood, striving to hide from the enemy approaching from allsides; but here they were caught by the Reds and killed. Not farfrom here we found the body of a poor unfortunate woman, whosecondition proved clearly what had happened before relief camethrough the beneficent bullet. The body lay besid............