RUSSIAN EXILE

Waikato Times, Volume 127, Issue 21198, 22 August 1940, Page 8

RUSSIAN EXILE

ATTEMPT ON LIFE LEON TROTSKY STABBED CAPTURE OF ASSAILANT

(United Press Assn.—Elec. Tel. Copyright) MEXICO CITY, August 20 Another attack was made on the life of M. Leon Trotsky, the exiled Russian leader, in his home to-day, and he was seriously wounded in the head. According to the hospital physicians, he might not live through the night. Trotsky and his wife both narrowly escaped death on May 25, when men with machine-guns riddled their bedroom with bullets. When a representative of the United Press telephoned Trotsky’s house for information, a member of

the Russian’s bodyguard said: “We ! have been attacked, but I cannot say j anything further at present.” Most of the guards were then at the hospital with Trotsky, the extent of whose wounds could not at first be determined. Subsequently, one of the guards said the attack occurred at about 4.20 p.m. It was made by one man, who had been allowed inside the villa shortly before. The guard said he believed that the man went directly to Trotsky’s study and stabbed Trotsky with some sharp instrument like an ice pick. Trotsky immediately cried out, whereupon two guards rushed in and captured the assailant, who is being held. In Serious Condition Trotsky was hardly able to talk and could not describe what happened. The guards later said they found the assailant holding an unfired pistol, which they wrested from him. He admitted that he intended to shoot his way out if necessary, but apparently he lost his courage after hitting Trotsky. The assailant has since been tentatively identified as Frank Jackson, j who is believed to be a Russian in spite of his name. Lie speaks French fluently. He is reported to have been an ardent follower of Trotsky, and to have been admitted to and received hospitality at the villa for almost a year. Jackson, it is said, struck Trotsky on the head with a heavy “climbing tool” resembling the half of a pair of ice tongs, the blow fracturing his skull. Previous Attempt on Life Between 30 and 40 men, armed with machine-guns, attempted Trotsky’s life on May 25, but he escaped with only slight injuries from flying glass. The assailants, after binding five policemen stationed in the grounds of' Trotsky’s villa, machine-gunned the bedroom for a quarter of an hour, and also hurled in bottles of an incendiary liquid, starting two fires, which Trotsky’s wife, Natalia, extinguished with blankets. He alleged that the attack was “ organised by the O.G.P.U. under Stalin’s direct supervision.” The police who were guarding Trotsky were arrested for questioning. Trotsky, whose real name is Bronstein, was Lenin’s right-hand man, and People’s Commissar for War in the Soviet Union. Trotsky lost popularity when Lenin died, and, following his constant opposition to Stalin, he was expelled from the Communist Party in 1917 and exiled.