S68 



The Review of Reviews. 



December 1, 1$06. 



visible sign that the new regime was about to be in- 

 augurated. When I got to Moscow I found to my 

 disgust that the Moscow newspapers were not al- 

 lowed by the local censors to publish full reports of 

 the Zemstvo Congress. At the suggestion of Mr. 

 Wilton, the Times correspondent at St. Petersburg, 

 I de.^patched the following telegram to General Tre- 

 poff: — 



Hm Excelleucij General Trepoff, St. Petershunj. 



Sept. 13. 1905. 

 I am amazed and distressed to discover this mornine that 

 the Mosco%v papers were forbidden to uiiblish full reports 

 of ZemstTO Consress proceedinss. This censorship is so ab- 

 solutely contrary to spirit of assurances received from your 

 Excellency, I feel, confident some over-zealous underline, ig- 

 norant of your broad-minded policy, is actine: in eqtial 

 defiance of your wishes and of plain common sense. I feel 



General TrepofF Decorating House Port«rE (Dvorniks) who had 

 Displayed the Required Brutality to the Revolutionists. 



aure you will be alad to he informed of this unfortunate 

 mistake, which so cruelly misrepresents the liberal pro- 

 fession I was so glad to receive from your lips.— STEAD, 

 Stavansky Bazar. 



I received no reply, but on the next day the news- 

 papers were allowed to publish full reports of the 

 Zemstvo Congress. 



HAD SAUL BEC'0.\rB PAUL? 



After the Congress closed I held my conference on 

 " The Duma from an English Point of View.'" Be- 

 fore the [laper was read I had been interviewed by 

 the Riisske ]'icdemosti on the reasons whv I believed 

 the Duma would inaugurate a new- era in Russia, and 

 in the course of the interview I natura'.lv referred to 

 my talk uith Trepoff. and declared that although 



he might have been a Saul of Tarsus, I would prefei 

 to regard him now as a St. Paul after his journey 

 to Damascus. This irritated General Trepoff, who 

 Sent me a letter in which he complained that I had 

 published a report of our conversation without first 

 submitting the MSS. to him. I replied that I had 

 not pubashed any report of our interview, the his- 

 toric importance of which I esteemed far too highly 

 to lose the chance of submitting it to his revision. 

 As for the reports of newspapers which had inter- 

 viewed me, I disclaimed responsibility. What I 

 had said I had. spoken so'.elv with a view of remov- 

 ing misapprehensions widely prevalent as to his 

 policy. 



For a few days it seemed as if General Trepoff 

 intended to carry out his promises. I was allowed to 

 hold my meeting at Saratoff without any interference. 

 .\ St. Petersburg newspaper was actually forbidden 

 by the local censor to publish an article criticising 

 me because it did not contain the necessary com- 

 pliments. But it was, alas ! soon evident that al- 

 though Milyukoff had been released, there was no 

 realisation of the necessity for immediately releasing 

 the other victims of administrative arrest. It seemed, 

 indeed, that, as the editor of the Rtissky Viedemosti 

 observed. Saul of Tarsus had been most imperfectly 

 baptised. 



A FAITHFUL REPORT. 



My own estimate of the situation on the eve 

 of the great railway strike will best be under- 

 stood by a perusal of the following letter which I 

 sent to General TrepofF on leaving Moscow : — 



To Hi-t Ed-ceUencif General Trepoff, 



ON THE VOLGA. Sept. 18, 1905. 

 I have to report to your Excellency briefly two or three 

 matters of importance. 



1. Notwithstajiding your positive assurances given to me 

 at St. Petersbure that vou would personally order the 

 local authorities to give me facilities for holding meetings, 

 public or private, the local police tried to interfere with 

 my first meeting in Prince Dolgorouki's house, and it was 

 only on positive assurances that I had your permission 

 they desisted from troubling. May I beg of yoti to give 

 instructions to the local authorities at Saratofl, Moscow, 

 .-ind Orel that your orders are to lie obeyed, and that every 

 facility must be given for my meetings '' 



2. The meeting in Moscow on Thursday was most in- 

 teresting and instructive. The speeches made after mv 

 address had been read proved that the good effect of the 

 Duma, had been suoiled by the continuance of the arbi- 

 trar.r proceedings still carried on by your police all over 

 the country, I represented the Dum.i, as an offer of peace 

 They replied : " Why then does General Trepoff still make 

 war upon us? He has released Milyukoff, When he has 

 released the thousands of other prisoners of war now iu 

 his prisons we will begin to believe that the Duma means 

 Peace." 



3. M. Grinmuth of the Moscow Gazette, and Mr. Seriakoff 

 of his staff, who are organising a Conservative orthodox 

 autocratic propaganda, will arrange for me another meet- 

 ing iu Moscow. Tliey assure me that while they are work- 

 ing hard in support of the Autocracy and the Church 

 their t.a3k is very difficult, and they are both convinced 

 that the arbitrary powers of arrest wielded hy the police 

 must be abolished. They are both for Habeas Corpus. 

 This is most significant and hopeful. 



