ourselves once more the guests of Commissar
Kokko and his wife. We were obliged to wait
for the Finns till nearly five, so again a jolly
party foregathered in the tiny dining room of
their cottage. Here I saw the one and only
diamond ring during my stay in Russia. A
young woman acting as adjutant was the
wearer. She could speak a little French and
English, so we were able to talk. The British
soldiers enjoyed the hours of waiting and were
able to understand a little how the Bolshevik
army was managed. While we waited an
alarm was raised that a few hundred yards
away the Finns were attacking. It turned out
the White Finns were only engaged attacking
birds.
The same formalities took place crossing as had been gone through when I entered Russia, except that the Finnish officers resolutely refused to allow the British soldiers to cross. Very reluctantly I went over alone and was driven to Raijoki, where I telephoned to the Commander-in-Chief of the District and secured permission for my friends to join me. The three of us on meeting at once went to the refreshment room, where I am sure we injured our digestions mopping up tea with milk and lovely white rolls and butter. The rolls, being new, were, of course, very nice and very indigestible. I ought to mention that when I went up the bank of the river and left my
