Revietc of Reviews, 1J12/lG. 



Character Sketch. 



562 



HOW THE INTERVIEW BEGAN. 



I began by some complimentary remarks upon the 

 tranquillity of St. Petersburg, and repeated some of 

 the observations I had heard in diplomatic circles 

 concerning his ministrations. General Trepoff, who 

 was courtesy itself, chatted awhile with Dr. Duncan 

 about old times. We laughed about the Trepoff 

 dynasty, and asked him if he had a son to take his 

 place. No, he had only daughters, but there were 

 other Trepoffs. Then, suddenly brushing aside the 

 conventional small talk, the General said : " Perhaps 

 Mr. Stead would like to hear my political ideas." I 

 confess I was somewhat startled. " Why, of course," 

 I said to Dr. Duncan, in English, " I never heard 

 before that he had any political ideas. Nothing 

 would please me more than to hear his views." On 

 the latter part of this being translated, General Tre- 

 poff began : — 



II.— GENERAL TREPOFF'S PROGRAMME. 



" I wish to realise that what I have to say relates 

 only to Russia. With the Ausland, the Caucasus, 

 Poland, Finland, and the Baltic provinces I have 

 nothing to do. They lie outside my jurisdiction, and 

 many things have happened there which might have 

 been prevented if I had been able to deal with them. 



HIS DIAGNOSIS OF THE CRISIS. 



" The state of Russia is very serious. It is a 

 complex situation, due to many causes, the product 

 of long years, during which many things have been 

 mismanaged and more have been neglected. We are 

 to-day reaping the harvest of the faults of previous 

 generations. We need not discuss where the respon- 

 sibility lies. It is sufficient for us to admit that, as 

 the net result of antecedent causes, Russia is at 

 present in the midst of a very grave crisis, so grave 

 a crisis that it is idle to think that it can be coped 

 with by mere repression or by any single measure of 

 reform. The evil, which is of long standing, is verv 

 deep-rooted, and must be approached on all sides. 

 Nothing will do anv good which does not recognise 

 the complexity of the problem, and which does not 

 seek to deal with all the phases of the malady from 

 which we are suffering." 



When this was duly translated to me by my Rus- 

 so-Scotch phonograph I was amazed. Here at least, 

 from the lips of the Tyrant of the Iron Hand, I was 

 hearing the shibboleth of Liberal statesmanship. Mv 

 preconceived prejudices against the ignorant Police 

 Master, who read nothing, and had not a political 

 idea in his head, received a rude blow. 



(1) THE LAND. 



General Trepoff went on : " I will divide the 

 subject into four parts. The tirst is the agrarian 

 question, the second the industrial problem, the third 

 education, and the fourth the Duma. I will deal 

 W4th each in turn. 



■■ Of all the troubles which confront us by far the 

 most important is that of the land. No settlement 

 which does not settle the land question will settle 

 anything. An influential Commission is at present 

 engaged in investigating this subject with a view to 

 immediate action." 



" Where is that Commission ?'' I asked, " and who 

 are the Commissioners whom I ought to see?" 



" The Commission is away down near Saratoff," 

 he replied. " But you do not need to trouble your- 

 self to seek after Commissioners. I can telL you 

 everything you want to know. The agrarian ques- 

 tion is one to which I have given special attention. 

 I know it down to the ground. The agrarian ques- 

 tion, briefly stated, is that the peasants have not got 

 enough land to live on, and they are suffering in 

 some districts very great hardship. This occasions 



Ganaral Trepoff Crowns Himself Tsar. 



discontent, and to remo\"e the discontent is impos- 

 sible unless wt- remove its cau.ses." 



HIS AGRARIAN PROPOSALS. 



vou a land nationaliser ?" I asked, 



like 



■ An- 

 ( lount Tolstoy ?" 



'' No," he said, " T am not ; at least, I regard land 

 nationalisation as impracticable at present. I would, 

 however, move in that direction slowly. I know 

 Count Tolstoy's ideas very well. I have been in 

 correspondence with him. He is a Henry Georgeite. 

 But I will proceed with my programme. I would 

 grapple with the agrarian question on four different 



