RUSSIA'S MAN OF THE HOUR 



31 



reaction; those who will want to van- 

 quish the front, to vanquish liberty. 



"The first word voiced by the Provi- 

 sional Government concerning the war 

 was the rejection of annexation, the re- 

 jection of aims of robbery, the rejection 

 of that which is named Imperialism. But 

 we demand, and we will make our de- 

 mands known to those who will not listen 

 to them, that we have a right to a free 

 life and a right to our place on earth, 

 which we will yield to no one. 



"No soldier, no sailor of any govern- 

 ment has the rights that you have. Out- 

 side of your regiment you are absolutely 

 free. But great rights impose great du- 

 ties. I have no doubt that you will fulfill 

 these duties — your debt to the nation and 

 democracy." 



A LEADER WILLING TO STEP ASIDE 



In spite of Kerensky's enormous popu- 

 larity with the masses, his activities as a 

 member of the Provisional Government 

 have been frequently criticised by ex- 

 tremists. The criticisms were also voiced 

 within the Council of Deputies. This 

 moved Kerensky to address the Council 

 as follows : 



"I have heard there are rumors afloat 

 among you to the effect that my attitude 

 toward the old authorities and the Im- 

 perial family is gradually weakening. I 

 have heard that there appear among you 

 people who dare to express a lack of con- 

 fidence in me. 



"I warn all who speak thus that I will 

 not permit a disbelief in me, and through 

 me insult Russian democracy. 



"I ask of you to either exclude me 

 from your midst or to give me your full 

 confidence." (Great applause and cries, 

 " Bravo!") "You accuse the Provisional 

 Government and myself of being too in- 

 dulgent with the members of the Imperial 

 family; you say that we leave them free 

 and treat them with consideration. 



"I was at Tsarskoye Selo, where I met 

 the officer in command there and spoke 

 with the soldiers. The commandant of 

 the Tsarskoye Selo Palace is a good 

 friend of mine, in whom I have absolute 

 confidence. The garrison promised me 

 to obey all my commands. 



"You doubt because there are several 

 members of the Tsar family who are still 

 at liberty, but at liberty are those only 

 who in common with you have protested 

 against the old regime and the rascalities 

 of Tsarism. Dmitry Pavlovich is free 

 because he, too, struggled with the old 

 order up to the very last. He worked 

 out a plan to kill Rasputin, and therefore 

 he has a full right to remain an officer of 

 the Russian army in Persia. 



"Comrades, soldiers and officers, re- 

 member that the work of the Provisional 

 Government is one of enormous responsi- 

 bilities. The Provisional Government 

 stands for liberty, right, and Russian in- 

 dependence, and it will stand there up to 

 the very last. The equal responsibility 

 for the fate of our country rests on us, 

 on your Provisional Government. In the 

 name of your debt to the country, we 

 must all work together in full unity." 

 (Stormy applause.) "I became a mem- 

 ber of the Provisional Government as 

 your representative and I endeavored to 

 the utmost of my power to champion 

 your interests and opinions. 



"I worked for your good, and I will 

 continue doing so as long as you believe 

 in me and as long as you are frank with 

 me ; but there appear people who want to 

 create enmity between us. Remember 

 that it is the duty of all of you to con- 

 tinue your good work, and if you will I 

 shall work together with you ; if this be 

 not your wish, I shall step aside. I want 

 to know, Do you believe me or do you 

 not?" (Great applause, culminating in an 

 ovation. Cries, "You are welcome! Yon 

 are welcome! We believe in you!") 



kerensky's speech about the 

 political crisis 



The first cabinet, as is well known, 

 came into being as a result of a decision 

 arrived at during a conference held be- 

 tween the Duma and the Council of Sol- 

 diers and Workmen Deputies. Never- 

 theless there was much discrepancy be- 

 tween this cabinet and the political status 

 of the great mass of soldiers and work- 

 men which today represents the backbone 

 of the revolution. At the time when most 

 of the ministers were representatives of 

 the Russian middle class, belonging to her 



