The Revolution in Russia 



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continuous ; only his master has been 

 changed. 



The provincial government is adminis- 

 tered by "zemstovs," which enact and en- 

 force laws for local purposes, assess and 

 collect taxes, provide schools, build roads, 

 look after the poor and the afflicted, and, 

 under the censorship of a governor-gen- 

 eral appointed by the Throne, perform 

 the functions of our state officials. 



THE CHAOTIC IMPERIAL GOVERNMENT 



The imperial government is adminis- 

 tered by the Czar with the assistance of a 

 council of state corresponding to our 

 Cabinet, and a Senate, which corresponds 

 to our Supreme Court, with some addi- 

 tional jurisdiction. The Czar issues edicts 

 which have the force of law, upon the 

 recommendation of his ministers ; the 

 Senate formulates the imperial will into 

 statutes and promulgates them. The 

 Czar seldom sees his advisers together, 

 but confers with them separately ; so that 

 there is no unity, no cooperation, no 

 team-work, and continual friction, in- 

 trigue, misrepresentation, and misunder- 

 standing. 



The Prime Minister is nominally at the 

 head of the government and is supposed 

 to frame and direct its policy, leaving the 

 details to his associates and subordinates, 

 but in the past they have often tried to 

 undermine and betray him and counteract 

 his influence with the sovereign. Thus 

 there is always a struggle going on 

 around the Throne between conflicting 

 interests in the cabinet, the members of 

 the imperial household, and the Czar's 

 own family, his mother and his wife tak- 

 ing an active part. His Majesty is pulled 

 and hauled this way and that by the vari- 

 ous factions that are able to reach him, 

 and the person who has exercised the 

 most powerful influence over him is his 

 former tutor and the tutor of his father, 

 an aged lawyer named Pobiedonostseff, 

 for many years the actual head of the 

 Russian church. He is the most reaction- 

 ary man in Russia, a type of the fifteenth 

 century statesman, the most conservative 

 of conservatives, who resists all innova- 



trary to the well-being of man. He is 

 convinced that the best form of govern- 

 ment is an absolute despotism, and con- 

 tinually admonishes the Czar that he has 

 no right to share the government with 

 the representatives of the people, because 

 God has conferred the duties and respon- 

 sibilities of an autocrat upon him and he 

 must retain them or offend God. 



NICHOLAS II KIND AND VACILLATING 



The Czarina was formerly very liberal, 

 but since the birth of her boy, two years 

 ago, her opinions have been reversed, and 

 she is now quite as determined as the 

 Czar's old tutor in support of the autoc- 

 racy, because she desires to hand down 

 to her son all the prerogatives and power 

 his ancestors have exercised. 



Nicholas H has a gentle disposition, a 

 kind heart, and a desire to promote the 

 welfare of his subjects. We have been 

 told that a certain place is paved with 

 tions and believes that progress is con- 

 good intentions ; and he has an abundance 

 of that material, but has no fixed purpose. 

 He is a timid opportunist and usually acts 

 too late. He vacillates as different people 

 talk to him, and the last person he sees 

 usually controls his actions. Instead of 

 strengthening himself by attracting the 

 support of the liberal elements, he has 

 continually discredited his own sincerity 

 and has placed himself in antagonism to 

 the interests he promises to serve. He 

 excites the distrust of his ministers and 

 his supporters, instead of winning their 

 confidence. Every concession he has 

 made has been wrung from him by fear. 

 He formally declared it to be his "inflex- 

 ible will" that Russia should have a con- 

 stitution and a parliament, but as soon as 

 the words were uttered he began to devise 

 means to prevent himself from carrying 

 out his own promises or limiting their 

 fulfillment as much as possible. Conces- 

 sions that would have been received with 

 universal gratitude at the beginning of 

 the present year would now be rejected 

 with contempt. 



Naturally he is inclined to be liberal 

 and tolerant. At the same time he is de- 



