The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1889-01-06
RUSSIA is NOT so VERY BAD
Ex-Minister G. V. n. LOthrop Gives a
New View of the Great White Car.
Nihilists Not of Sufficient Importance to Dis
turb the Emperor-No Bullet-Proof Rooms
He Goes and Comes as He Pleases.
Special to the indianapolis Journal.

w ASHiNGION, Jan. e. WHdt aDSttTu
stories are printed about the Czar"
| The Speaker was G. V. N. Lothrop, ex-
| minister to Russia, where he spent several
| years before he resigned his diplomatic
| mission. His beautiful daughter accom-
| panied him to st. Petersburg and was
woOed and won by an officer in the Imperi-
al Guard Baron Huene. Mr.. Lothrop is
hale, active-loOking man; over sixty years
| old, and studied the Russians and their
customs when not engrossed with diplo-
NAUTICAL duties. He resides in Detroit, and
| likes to visit Washington. He was here
| not long ago and submitted to an interview.
us the Car in constant dread that an
| attempt will be made upon his lifew
mo. If everything should be true that
| is written about the Car, he would GER
tainly occupy position that no man could
envy His bOOm-proof bedroom, secret
chambers and passages for escape that are
often described in the papers are mere IN
ventiOns.
II remember little over year ago,
when the last attempt was made by the
Nlhlllsts to aSSaSsinate him, he appeared
that very night at his brothers. the Grand
Duke Vladimir. at ball, and was as calm
ana uncOncerned as an American citizen
would be at any festivity here. l did not
know then that an attempt had been made
upon his life, and none of the guests knew
| 1T: The Car did not change his intentions
being killed. He is true representative
of the ROmanOff family, and i do not be-
heve he knows what fear is. Educated as
soldier, and knowing the dangers that
far shown a bravery and disregard for his
secret enemies that can only be admired.
1.-THE idea, too, that he never ventures
outside of his palace withouta strong guard,
ing along the streets of st. Petersburg with
| my daughter, when / suddenly heard some,
one near me say, there goes the Emperor"
/ turned in time to see and bow to him. he
was in a carriage with his wife, but there
was no guard and no retinue OF hverled
servants. From what 1 learned he often
drove about the city almost unattended.
Many wonderful stories have been written
| In foreign papers about precautions taken
| at his country palace at Gatschina to pre-
vent attempts to assassinate him. Cats
china Palace is not a bristling armory and
| the Emperor enjoys himself when not at
tending to affairs of state like any Russian
citizen Of the higher class
Are there not many Nihilists constantly
| on the alert to kill the Cart"
There are NihilistS in Russia, and they
are active, too. They are Anarchists and
| Socialists. A better term for them would
call them madmen because what they at
| tempt to do is impossible. They think that
| by Killing the ruler of Russia they can do
away with a despOtic form of government:
common sense will teach. A successor to
| the Gar will always be found, and killing
| one does not bring the Nihilists any nearer
the liberal form of government that they
seem to be struggling to establish.
| 1.-The NlhlllStS are nOtuneducated people,
| being composed of students, and frequently
recruited from good families. Many women
| of an adventurous turn, and generally well
| educated, join the ranks of the plotters and
| and end in Siberia, if not perpetual exile
from Russia. They do not specially de-
| mand a constitutional government. Their
idea is to oppose the present autocratlc
form of government.
| lone would suppose from reading accounts
of the Nihilists that they disturbed the
social fabric of Russia to an alarming de-
| gree and gave no time to the people to
think of anything else but them and their
| plots. The contrary is the case, and nlhil-
of the world abroad much greater than
really exists in Russia"
Have you any criticism to make of Mr..
| Remnants articles in the Century in regard
| to Russia's bad treatment of exiles in ST.
beria"
Everything he has written is true: /
| have no fault to find with his facts, but
what l object to is the impression his arti-
| cles give of Russian society. An American
| reading his articles would naturally con-
clude that the whole of Russia was
permeated with nihilism and was constant
| ~ in a state Of terror. The. Nihilists
| in Russia occupy about as much relative
sodasts and Anarchists sS Of Chicago as do the
ours. Why, a stranger could remain in
| Russia for months and hear nothing of
Nihilists. They crop out. occasionally, like
the Haymarket rioters in Chicago, and
| when disposed of quickly, as they gener-
ally are, everything goes on smoothly. Mr..
| KEENAN, is an accomplished writer, and is
well acquainted with Russia and her his
| tory. He lectured upon Russia before he
Russian mode of civilization. His trips to
| Siberia, it seems, converted him. l do not
think he would be permitted to enter Rus
sian territory again."
eff Mr. KEENAN, has written facts, how
| was it possible to create a wrong impress
siOng"
IF foreigner should come to this coun-
| try and write book about the Socialists
and Anarchists here, giving minute de-
| tails, say of the riot in Chicago, where so
] many brave policemen were killed and
wounded by bomb, and relating history
| of Herr Most, and others who have tried to
incite an uprising, would it not be ne tural
for the people who, know nothing about
| America to suppose that socialism extended
| throughout and was part of society," De-
lightful social pictures could be given of
Russia without bringing in the Nihilist.
| Siberia is not land of promise, but it is
| HOo 30 uiCdiy III all Pal 20 oHdo hl0 W tHoSo
who are only under police surveillance is
not worth living"
"Then Russia is more progressive than
| Americans imagine?"
mo. Russia is not as progressive as it
| was several years ago. 1t is a highly pro-
| tected country; has an imaginary Chinese
| wall all around it, and the result is that the
| people are not so very prosperous, and
| everything is at a standstill. 1t is a great
| wheat-prOducing country, but owing to the
| tariff laws the wheat does not bring high
| price. But Russia is nOn-prOgressive in
other ways. Formerly strangers were well
come, especially if they were inventors, or
| added to the gain of the country in the way
of enterprise and new ideas. Now, if a
| foreigner enters Russia with patent of
any kind he is not encouraged to manufact-
ure or sell, and the government, if the in
vention is worth anything. will buy it and
let the foreigner 60 about some other bust
| ness. The result is the enterprise and
push that was constantly infused in
to Russian life by the Ger
mans and other foreigners who settled
in the country has subsidized. The native
| Russian takes things easy, and is not "-er-
| getic. 1t must be remembered that ev
| live entirely under different c0nd 8
| from what we do and therefore a lar, T.
| lowance can be made for their slowness to
| take hold of enterprises and carry them to
| successful completion. A Russian is meth
| Odicaly and sure in what he does. and is
not trammel ed by having too little time to
| do anything. / can truly attest to Musco-
vite pOliteness. At first it is all formal and
seems very rigid, and decidedly cold; but
when you come to know them we'll, and