The indictment read as follows:

"On the 17th of January, 18--, suddenly died in the Hotel Mauritania,
merchant of the second guild, Therapont Emelianovich Smelkoff.

"The local police physician certified that the cause of death of said
Smelkoff was rupture of the heart, caused by excessive use of liquor.

"The body of Smelkoff was interred.

"On the 21st day of January, a townsman and comrade of Smelkoff, on
returning from St. Petersburg, and hearing of the circumstances of his
death, declared his suspicion that Smelkoff was poisoned with a view
of robbing him of the money he carried about his person.

"This suspicion was confirmed at the preliminary inquest, by which it
was established: 1. That Smelkoff had drawn from the bank, some time
before his death, three thousand eight hundred rubles; that, after a
due and careful inventory of the money of the deceased, only three
hundred and twelve rubles and sixteen kopecks were found. 2. That the
entire day and evening preceding his death deceased passed in the
company of a girl named Lubka (Katherine Maslova) in the Hotel
Mauritania, whither said Maslova came at the request of Smelkoff for
money; that she obtained the money from Smelkoff's trunk, first
unlocking it with a key intrusted to her by Smelkoff; that the money
was thus taken in the presence of two servants of the said
hotel--Euphemia Bochkova and Simon Kartinkin; that at the opening of
said trunk by the said Maslova in the presence of the aforementioned
Bochkova and Kartinkin, there were rolls of hundred ruble bills. 3.
That on the return of said Smelkoff and Maslova to the said hotel, the