Eventually, he traveled back into Romania in October 1909, only to be arrested upon his transit through Brăila County. According to his recollections, he was for long left stranded on the border with Austria-Hungary, as officials in the latter country refused to let him pass; the situation had to be settled by negotiations between the two countries. Also according to Rakovsky, the arrest was hidden by the Ion I. C. Brătianu cabinet until it leaked to the press—this, coupled with rumors that he was about to be killed, and Brătianu's statement that he would "rather destroy than let [him back into Rumania", caused a series of important street clashes between his supporters and government forces. On December 9, 1909, a Romanian Railways employee named Stoenescu attempted to assassinate Brătianu. The event, which was attributed by Rakovsky to support for his return and by other sources to government manipulation, caused a clampdown on "România Muncitoare" (among those socialists arrested and interrogated were Gheorghe Cristescu, I. C. Frimu, and Dumitru Marinescu).