The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1856-06-09


Emperor OF Russia, like his father, bsgins his
reign with projects Of vigorous and radical
reform. The situation which he inherited
having come to an end, he is now at liberty
to devote the whole Of his energies to the
internal concerns OF the empire, and ia them
be will ind ample occupation for even more
activity than he has hitherto evnced.
The evils under which the Russian empire
labors are two fold; both growing out of the
semifeudal institutions which were planted 10
the country many centuries ago. One is
bureaucratic influence and corruption; the
other, the distribution of society into classes
resting on the tenure of land.
The old Russian law obliged every youth
of noble family to serve the State in a military
rank for period of four or five years; and in
olden time, the custom was for these officers,
after their term of service was over, to suppl
the demands OF the government for civil
functionaries. This custom, which soon BE-
came mere nominal usage, in consequence Of
the growing unwillngness of the yoang q "a
to relinquish the sword for the pen, still lassea
long enough to lead to the creation Of ~ n
mense number of subordinate civil officers, each
entrusted with fractional portion of the civil
administration. At the close Of last century
there were In Russia even more small Offices
under government than there we're proportion
ately in France under the old regime, when
every second burgess was public functionary.
With the Napole0nic wars, the Russian army
was so largely increased that the government
did not need to dispense with the services of
the young mobiles at the close of their con-
scriptive term; those who chose to continue
in the service were promoted; and for period
of years the civil service derived no accession
of strength from this source. 1t consequently
happened that the vacancies which occurred
in the administration were filed from the pie
beian ranks; and from the moment this BE-
came settled practice, line was drawn for
the first time between civil and military rank,
which forever excluded soldiers from the for
mer. Military men began to look down upon
civil officers, who, finding it hopeless to relieve
themselves from the sense of inferierity they
gradually acquired, consoled themselves by
practising corruption and acquiring fortunes
tar beyond the reach of mere soldiers. This
was the state of things which Nicholas dis
covered on his accession. The civil service
(ncluding the administration of justice) was
in the hands Of very low class Of corrupt
men, who sold themselves to every bidder; tue
army was openly at war with them and its
officers readily following the example Of their
chief, Araktchisf, treated them with the utmost
contempt Nicholas endeavored to cure the
evil by redistributing military men in the civil
service, and by Furnishing corrupt officials with
severity; but after an attempt which lasted &C.
cotemporaneous endeavour to codify the Rus
sian laws by war with Turkey, and by the
Southern instruction and its ramifcations, he
abandoned it in disgust. The task now
devolves upon Alexander, who, it is un.
derstood, has resumed it with uncommon di-
lgence.
OF the probable success of his efforts it is
hardly possible to speak, with the limited in
formation we possess. The bureaucracy of
France needed q revolution to overthrow it;
that OF Russia is more extensive, more corrupt
and more powerful, inasmuch as it comprises the
judicial body, which the French bureaucracy
did not.
The other evil against which the new Empe-
Tor is understood to be struggling is the feudal
institution of serfdom and the imperfect ten
ures Of land. There are in Russia twenty-four
millions Of men whose condition differs but
slightly from that of the slaves of the South,
though they are of the same race as the Boy
ards, and in respect of the law and the Empe-
ror, upon an equal footing They own no land,
though they are bound to occupy, cultivate
and pay rent; their children, from genera
tion to generation for ever, fill the same sta
ton in life as their fathers; they never can
acquire real interest in the concerns or pro-
gress of the empire, and, like the Romish
priests in Catholic countries, are strangers and
aliens in the land of their residence The au-
thority Of their seignior or feudal lord over
them is bounded only by laws which are vague
and uncertain, and whose execution by serf
against noble is almost out of the question.
Hence it occasionally, though not frequently,
happens that noble will i'll treat his serfs.
The late Nicholas, who from first to last
was animated by as truly humane
spirit as MS lees vigorous brother Alex
ander, provided for this mischief by ena-
bling serfs when ill used to obtain
their transfer from the estate Of their lord t.
those of the crown. Their condition was no
altered; but they got new master, who was
rarely oppressive. Within the last quarter of
century, however, new ideas with regard to
national progress have made way in Russia as
elsewhere; and one of these u.s. that national
spirit is inseparable from Alright of property in
real estate. For several years it has been the
opinion that the empire would be stronger and
the rural districts more productive if the spur
of interest we're cumulated with stimulus of
duty, and the twenty -four millions Of Russian
serfs were enabled to hold land. That opinion
is shared by the present Emperor Alexander,
who has already tried the eynerimon4 with