Kem Camp's New Rulers — A Military Parade — A Much-Married Tchekist — Old Abuses Continued.
In the spring of 1924 the personnel of the concentration camp on Popoff Island was changed. The members of the Uslon (Direction of the Northern Camps for Special Purposes) and, at the monastery itself, all the Tchekists remained at their posts. This was what the prisoners called the "change of cabinet."
A Moscow Tchekist, Ivan Ivanovitch Kirilovsky, formerly a sergeant in one of the Guards regiments, was appointed commandant of the Kem camp in place of Gladkoff. As stated in an earlier chapter, he refused to take over until a commission was appointed by the central Government to examine the camp accounts. When the commission discovered that gross extravagance and fraud had taken place, Gladkoff was sentenced to transportation for five years for "peculation and a negligent attitude towards his exalted (?) duties." Mamonoff, who was directly responsible for the frauds, was not punished at all; and, for that matter, Gladkoff himself was pardoned two days after his sentence and given a new appointment in the Gpu at Kaluga.
Before Kirilovsky's arrival it was said in the camps that he was a decent fellow. We were soon to have ocular demonstration of his "decency." Kirilovsky is still in command of the camp, with the same assistants.
His arrival was the occasion for an elaborate ceremony. Eichmans, already familiar to the reader, whose dream was to turn the camps into military colonies of the Araktcheeff[[32]] epoch, paraded the starving prisoners, including women and children, several days in succession, and made them execute movements, obey words of command, and so on, in military style. When Kirilovsky approached the camp, we were drawn up in two ranks.
"Attention! . . . Right dress!"
The headman went up to Kirilovsky with his report.
"All correct in the labour regiment under my command."
The commanders of all the labour companies did the same. Then Kirilovsky greeted us:
"Good day!"