The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1879-05-08
NIHILISM In RUSSIA.

~-~~O~~~
tion-Its Oath and It's PrOclarnatiOns.
from the New York Herald.
The attempt on the life OF the Gear,
taken in connection with the recent
assassination of Prince Krapotkine
and the attempted killing of Gen. Won
Drentelin. attracts renewed attention to
the secret order which now keeps the
people of Russia in state of terror
ism. A brief sketch of the rise and
progress of this dreadful society will,
therefore, be read with interest. The
birth of free ideas in Russia dates from
a few days previous to the accession of
Emperor Nicholas l., in 1925, at which
time secret society was formed, under
Che name of "Decabristy" December
ists), called after the month in which a
revolution occurred in st. Petersburg.
Citizens of st. Petersburg remember
that terrible day, Dec. 10, 1925, as one of
dreadful carnage. All the principal
streets of the capital were red with the
blood of the victims. The principal
leaders of this secret society were
Pestel, Ryieff, Betsuzuff, Roumin,
Mouravieff Apostol Gall of whom were
hanged), Ogaref, Bakounin, Hertzen
Islander, Satin and Toutchkoff.
Though many members OF the
society we're hanged and thousands
sent to Siberia by Nicholas l.,
many escaped or were unsupported, and
continued their work. The object of
the secret organization was to dethrone
Nicholas T. in order to form constitu-
tional Government, with Constantine
Paulovitch Gan elder brother of Nicho-
las L. at it's head. Followers and mem
bers of the secret society established
journal in London, called the KoloEol
(the BelD, whose proprietor and editor
was the famous red revolutionist, He1t-
zen Gskander), who died in Switzer-
land few years ago, an exile and I'M
der the death sentence of his native
country. Hertzen's ideas were exalted,
although he sometimes carried them to
extremes. Possessing great power of
language, he acquired much popularity
and powerful influence over Russian
youth, who received, secretly read and
hid his journal as some sacred relic, be-
Heving in Hertzen as in God. The
most remarkable of his productions
published in the KolokoJ were "Letters
from This Side" They contain mi
mute accounts of the most secret affairs
of the Imperial Government, as we'll as
the Czar and his family, together with
the editors views and hopes of the fu
ture of Russia. His sympathizers and
agents penetrated the seclusion of the
households of the highest circles of
chambers of officials. Kertzen's chief
objects were to bring about a repre-
;sentation of the people, to sweep from
the face of the earth every member Of
the Czar's family, the titled aristocracy
and the priests, and to make an equal
division of all lands. These letters con-
tain much valuable historical material,
from the fact that their statements are
true to the smallest details. His infu-
ence continued strong in Russia until
1848.
HERTzEN's FOLLOWERS.
The bolGness and fascination of his
writings, promulgated everywhere,
though secretly in Russia, had the ten
"dency to encourage the formation of
new societies under various names,
such as Young Russia (Molodaia Ros-
;sia), Land and Freedom, and others, all
having common sympathy and pur-
pose with Hertzen. Leaving in the
background many of his opinions and
views as belonging to a past genera
ton, these societies advanced and
adopted new ideas more in accordance
with the new era of which they be-
lieved they saw the dawn. These
ideas were first expressed through
two popular journals, Sovrenaiera1aik
and Ra1skoie SIoWo, which were
suppressed about ten years ago by
the Russian Government, and some
of their writer's sentenced to hard labor
for life in the mines of Siberia. Among
these were Czernyshevski, who wrote
the celebrated Russian romance,
What To Do" Mikhailoff Ca poet) and
others. The principal leaders of Mill
ism at that time were Czernyshevski,
Mikhailoff, Antonovitch, Dobrolubof,
Pissureff and Nietchaieff. Switzerland
gave up the last-named person in 1870,
' on the demand Of the Russian Govern
ment, under accusation of being one of
the assassins of Ivanoff, a member of
The Nihilists, who attempted to betray
their secrets. They had had oppor-
tunity to spread their Nihilistic ideas
through these journals under most ia
vorable circumstances, as during the
interval between 1858 and 1872 compar-
ative freedom of the press existed,
which had never been the case previous
8 to that time. On June 7, 1872, an order
was issued from the Gar giving power
Ito the Minister of the Interior to punish
any undue freedom of the press. Since
then there has been nothing but perse-
cution. The above men Except Met
chaief) were we'll known and distin-
guished writer's, exercising a powerful
influence in the conversion of the opin.
ion of the Russian youth.
REVOLT OF THE WOMEN.
The sympathies of the women were