164 SERVIA, AUSTRIA, TURKEY, AND RUSSIA. 



by the people, with shouts of " Long live Ristitch and Russia t 

 Down with Garashanine and Austria." 



In order to strengthen his position, one of his first acts was ta 

 order a General Election for the National Assembly. At this time 

 the state of affairs was far from satisfactory. The King, who had 

 with great skill and energy played off each party in the State against 

 each ' other, now felt that his Royal power was slipping from his- 

 hands, and that he was gradually becoming powerless and unpopular. 



His formidable adversary was his Royal Consort, Queen Nathalie^ 

 who had pursued a policy of her own, and had become more and 

 more alienated from her Royal husband. 



The Premier, Ristitch, who is considered one of the most en- 

 lightened statesmen in Servia, was under the stigma of the disastrous, 

 war in 1877 against Turkey, and Garashanine was equally un- 

 popular in consequence of the still more disastrous war in 1886 

 against Bulgaria. 



The result of the elections was remarkable, for not a single Pro- 

 gressist or adherent of M. Garashanine obtained a seat in the 

 Skuptschina ; whilst the Liberals, or adherents of Ristitch, were 

 beaten by the Radicals under the leadership of Gruitch ; and thus 

 neither the Premier or the ex-Premier obtained a majority. 



It was impossible that such a confused stage of affairs could 

 continue; for the Radicals under Gruitch grew bolder in their 

 demands, and Ristitch had not the power to resist them, much 

 as he would have wished; whilst King Milan, who disliked 

 an^ denounced the Radicals, most of whom were peasants, 

 was compelled to interpose in the conflict, and for a time the 

 Radicals, in deference to the King, ceased their opposition, 

 for the King warned them that Panslavism and a Philo-Russian 

 policy is opposed to the interests of Servia, and of those who 

 wish to see her restored to her former position as a great Danubian 

 State. 



At length the inevitable split between the Liberals and Radicals, 

 took place; Ristitch, no longer able to withstand the Radical 

 policy, resigned, and Gruitch, a prominent adherent of Russia, 

 was appointed Premier, and his colleagues in the Government 

 consisted of the most active members of the Radical party; to 

 counteract their Philo-Russian proclivities the King retained as 

 his representative in the Cabinet M. Franassovitch, as the Minister 

 for Foreign Affairs, who was supposed to be a warm adherent of the 

 Austrian alliance. 



