ABSTRACT
All that remained of Admiral Kolchak were freezing bloodstains on the ice while below, his body, submerged in the darkness, and tugged at by the current, was taken away into the depths of the Republic of the Ushakovka. The battalion train took on two additional coaches; one allocated to Kolchak and his staff and the other, a guard's van, to Prime Minister Pepelyayev. One act more than any other would serve to colour any prospect Kolchak might have anticipated of a sympathetic and humanitarian reception. The Russian returned and escorted the Czech into a dimly lit compartment where Kolchak stood. Attempts to lead Kolchak into agreeing that the villains of the piece had been the Tsar and the political leadership were all deflected by a man batting with consummate ease and confidence and - unusually for Kolchak - calmness and patience. If the Committee had anticipated some last-minute admission of guilt by Kolchak for White atrocities, they were disappointed.
