J. Lukša Daumantas's memoirs about partisan Christmas

Like every day in Lithuania, Christmas was not without bloodshed. During the holidays, the Bolsheviks were especially active. It was clear to them that every partisan, guided by Lithuanian customs, tried to visit his family on the occasion of the holidays, to feel the festive warmth in the cozy atmosphere of his relatives. This encouraged the Bolsheviks to sneak more strongly to the deciphered partisans' homelands during such holidays.

In connection with this, the partisan leadership issued an order prohibiting fighters from visiting their families on major holidays. However, it sometimes happened that fighters ignored this order and, longing for their families, risked their lives.

Viesulas spent Christmas Eve together with most of the men of his company. A few days before, food confiscated from communist officials or collected through donations was delivered to the pre-determined location. Guests from neighboring units and relatives of partisans gathered at the Christmas Eve table.

On the night of Christmas Day, Viesulas, Tigras and Gaidys set out to visit a neighboring unit for the holidays. Having reached the village of Pašventis and still not knowing the exact way, they stopped by farmer Z. to ask questions. In Lithuanian custom, he seated the partisans at the Christmas table and began to treat them.

As they were walking to this homestead, someone was watching them through the curtains of the next-door neighbor's window. It seemed to Tigr that it was a Russian in uniform, but Viesulas and Gaidis denied it. They almost paid with their heads for their indiscretion that evening.

Fortunately, they did not stay long at this farmer's. The feast was over within twenty minutes. The partisans were already preparing to go through the door. Someone was standing outside by the door, and when the owner asked who was knocking, no one answered the question, only ordering the door to be opened in a commanding tone. He spoke Lithuanian, but the voice was unfamiliar.

The partisans prepared their weapons. Gaidys and Viesulas had only pistols. The cautious Tigras was armed with a German MG 36 machine gun. He was the only strength and hope of the trio.

After asking the owner to move away from the front door to another room, Tigras found himself at the front door with a machine gun. In the yard, a few meters from the door, he noticed armed Bolsheviks. Tigras, without waiting, pulled out his machine gun.

A series of machine gun shots answered from outside. It was fired by Kruglov Arkady, an interrogator of the Prienai NKGB, who was standing at the door. But it turned out that the Tiger's skin was too tough. The bullets that penetrated the door left Tiger in his crotch, none of them reaching his body. The Tiger answered with a new series of machine gun shots. The machine gun gnawed a hole in the door for a good dog to pass through. Interrogator Kruglov stood next to them. The finished ribbon was replaced by another. Now Gaidys fired with illuminated bullets. He opened the door. The Tiger fired another series into the darkness of the courtyard. Not a single shot was fired in response from the Russian side, only the Russian curses of the wounded could be heard in the courtyard.

The partisans ran out into the yard. They still didn't hear any shots. The Rooster asked who was shooting. Again, nothing. Then he ran to his sled and brought back a supply of ammunition. The Rooster armed himself with an automatic rifle taken from the killed Kruglov. Only now several automatic bursts poured out of the straw cone. The hare scratched the tiger, who, angry, headed for the cone. The Ruskels fell silent again, this time the Rooster was helping the tiger.

After this shootout, the partisans abandoned their horses and retreated on foot.

As it turned out later, the Bolsheviks were silent because with the first shots the Tiger had killed three former commanders of the NKGB unit: Capt. Kruglov, Lt. Marcinkevičius and another Russian officer. After the entire leadership was eliminated, the surviving NKVD soldiers could not figure out how to continue the attack without commandos. They allowed the partisans to retreat unarmed.