Morning journal and courier., 1880-05-07
Price Four Cents
A NIhIllst Newspaper.
The 1Ox3 Sheet That a Staff of one
 Student Writes, Prints and Distrib-

A Nihil1st Newspaper.
 The 1Ox3 Sheet That a Staff of one
 Student Writes, Prints and Distrib-
 utes.
 TSt Petersburg Correspondence Manchester auard-
 iAn.l
 have just seen one of the greatest typo- graphical curiosities in the world-a Russian revolutionary paper. It measures about inches by ten, and is printed on one side of single sheet. It bears the imposing title of The Will of the People. This little sheet took such possession of me that could not rest until learned more about it. made inqui-- res Tn the proper quarter, and obtained most interesting revelation of the whole Sin Wardness'' of one of those Russian revolution ary papers which so perplex the police. The office of revolutionary journal is usually little back room in 8 very big house. The room must be so insignificant that it is, as it were, lost in the house, and policeman you'd hardly think of looking into it in gen. eral search. It bears on the door an humble business announcement to the effect that arti- hc ,al-hower making, or some such harmless handlcraft, is carried on inside. The room is scantily furnished, and the staff of the journal is just one small unwholesome looking ex- student, who has been turned out of college for insubordination and who is now living by his wits on pawning and a small allowance from revolutionary center. The staff has long, uncombed greasy hair and face which IS rarely washed with anything but it's own tears. It wears long cloak or wraprascaI
 lined with what was once fur but is now mere- ly bald surface Of hide, and the only glimpse or hint you get of neither garments IS In cer- tain frayed ends of trousers peeping out from below. Within this wraprascal is the all in all of revolutionary journal-its soul, it's spirit, it's material life. When the cloak moves the staff and the type, the pen and paper, the hn OrIr 0INOln nra1 kA@ ,~I,o n with it. It is 8 triumph of the art of packing. It is still rather inaccurate to say that the staff is 8 pure Individuality. It is dual one woman shares the wretched room, and the labors of the wretched enterprise She, too has been a student, and she is still young. She studied medicine, perhaps at Zurich or Paris, served as Queens messenger" between the home centres and the leaders abroad, un- til the policemen made Russia too hot to hold her in her own name. To the other half of the staff she is devoted heart and soul, and through him to his hobby-the universal rev olution. She is a voluntary outcast from respectable family, and she would as cheerful ly lay down her life as any petroleuse of Paris for her creed.
 The journal is not daily journal, but what may be called an intermittent one. It comes out when it can. The first business is to col leot material For this purpose the reporting staff, after scanty meal on the cold remains of last nights supper, wraps itself in it's cloak and sallies out to watch public events, It is lrreslstlbly attracted by sort of magnetic in stinct to places where there may be somebody to shoot at. 1t goes to the great square in front of the Winter Palace, or to the enyirons of the public offices. It has a pistol in it's pocket as well as pen. There is no know ing what may turn up, and the staff has generally standing order to put Czar or a Minister out of the way. With this double duty in view 1t is always sure of some result. Ii 1t cannot get near enough to kill, it still manage to obtain information of goings-out and comingsin which may be useful at soma future moment of action. In mingles with the crowd of idlers. It works it's way gradu- ally to the front, as near as the police and sol diers will allow, and finally, when the Czar or Minister drives by, with swift trotting horses and Cossacks before and behind, it darts such look of hate at him as would do the work more eHectually than knife or pistol, if looks could kill. When the reporter has brought in his account of how things are look ing in the city 1t becomes the editors turn' The leader is generally composed under the trees in snow-covered public garden. It is written on sheets of paper torn from 8 tiny pocket-book, and as each sheet is finished it is rolled up in ball, ready to be swallowed at 8 moments notice. believe there is no in- stance known in which the most vigilant de- tectlve has ever caught leader writer in hagrapte delicto. At the first sign of police man approaching the scene of literary labor down go the pills. The next stage is the set ting up in type. The staff gathers up the pills into his hands, and proceeds to the little back room. The little back room is locked and bolted, and chest of drawers is pushed against the door. The dual member lays loaded revolver within easy reach, and the printing department is in full activity. The type Is taken from under the mattress, and the leader is slowly and painfully composed, with many start at the sound of footstep, which threatens to turn it all into an inmedi- ate ''pi." How the paper goes to press is not quite definitely known. My informant on this point was wanting in technical knowl- edge, but am led to conclude that sheet of paper is spread on the "form, and that the staff sits on the sheet of paper to obtain each impression. When the whole impression is printed of the type is, as temporary meas ure, tilted upside down into the brooches pocket to form ''pi." The distribution takes place at nightfall. The first thing to pro- vide for is the supply of the honorary free list, namely, the Emperor and two or tbree of his chief Ministers, including the head of the police department. Copies are forwarded to these through the post, with manuscript i'm timation on the margin of the paper that the recipients will be done for at the first conven. tent opportunity. The letters are posted and the regular distribution begins. copy is left with every dead wall, where it may re- main all night, with a chance of being read by the moujiks as they are going to their labor in the early dawn. This part of the undertak- ing involves considerable risk and danger. Every dead wall in St. Petersburg is guarded just now, not only by the police but by wstchful house -porters, who are ordered to stand outside their doors and keep awake all night. Still the house e-porters cannot look two ways at once, and while they are looking one way the nimble staff may contrive to post up copy the other. The ornamental part of the work, the one little bit of it which is 8 subject of just professional pride, is to leave copy or two on the walls of the very police department itself.
 This accounts for about three fourths of the impression. The remainder is left (still on the generous free-list principle which marks the whole conduct of the enterprise) with the proprietors of tea shops and other popular establishments, much against their will The staff, needing refreshment after it's labors, will enter some wretched refreshment house in 8 low quarter, and, after drinking his glass of tea seasoned with lemon, and toying mean while with any regular journal that may be lying on the table, will slip 8 few copies into corner, where they are likely to be found by the next customer, and immediately steal out with all despatch into the shelter of the night. Midnight witnesses it's return to the office, where it puts the broken ''pi'' into it's place of concealment and has dreams of revolution ary murders, arson and general misrule on It's hard bed of type.