The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-01-21

subsidiary coinage, legal tender only up to
50 rubles, and free coinage of silver was
to be stopped.
Such were the chief features of Whites
elaborate plan of financial reform. 1t In
volved the accuunlation of an immense
amount of god, and Witte himself added
100000 600 rubies to that surplus in the
first three years of his incumbency. Fur
thermore, he put an end to speculation In
rubles in the Berlin Stock Exchange. thus
steadying. the value of Russian paper. He
himself caught the foreigners mapping,
bought in a vast quantity of paper rubles,
and returned them to st. Petersburg,
greatly TO the disgust of Berlin finan-
cierS.
1t was his idea that 1,121,O00 in govern
ment paper should be replaced by bank
issues, the government giving the Bank of
Russia $50 100000 in the new gold coinage
and stipula ting the bank should have a
gold reserve equal to half its circulation
up to S00,O00000, and ruble for ruble above
that amount.
But there were other serious problems
for the wizard of finance. II was neces-
sary to raise the wind. The peasants were
starving No additional revenue could be
ground out of them. Witte-now become
de Witte-exhibited genius in increasing
the internal revenues, and made CONNER
cial treaties with Germany and Austria
by which Russia's foreign trade swelled
prodigiousiy.
All this progress was resisted holly by
officialdom at large From Grand Dukes
down, powerful and aristocratic, Russians
of the old school fought for tradition and
stroVe to ruin the upstart who was over
turning everything. In particular the war
party hated him because he was for peace
peace during which his country might
win commercial greatness.
Then there are the merchants. They
hate him. too because they foresee that
the introduction of foreign capital will re-
duce the Understanding power of the ru-
bic from it's present 20 per cent.-some-
times even twice as much--to 10 per cent
at the most. And the manufacturers hate
him because he has limited at free trade
From all of which 1t may be seen that
Whites fight has been made against great
odds, which make mis- advancement TO
high position and title all the more re-
markable.
Both the dead and the present Car en-
tertained the highest opinion of his hon
esty, and it was Alexander III who con-
ferred upon him the title of Count which
in Russia is of much higher value than
that of Prince. For, with the exception
of the German aristodracy in the Baltic
provinces of the Cars empire, there are
few Counts indeed, in Russia. In fact,
there have been hardly more than two
dozen Muscovite creations of Count, all
told, whereas Princes are as plentiful as
| blackberries, the title being much the
same as that of the English squire. and
carrying with it no official or even social
prerogatives.
A story that is curiously characteristics
of NJ. de Witte is told in connection with
the publication of NJ. de Cyon's M Witte
ct les Finances Russes," book which
threatened at one time to cause great ex-
citement in Paris. NJ de Cyon Katkof's
perhaps the most vindictive of the Rus
sian minister's many viudictive enemies
and his book is one long fierce attack On
him and his policy. What gives Importance
TO the work and renders it the more dan
gerous, is that il is direct appeal 10
France to refuse to lend money to Russia
so long as NJ. de White is Finance Min
lister
NJ. Cyon tells the French nation roundly
that De WHITE has deceived them again
and again; that he has deliberately played
on their love of Russia to eXtort money
from them, betraying them to Germany
the withdrawing Germany at the ex-
pense of France.
1t CHANGED that just when the book was
on the point of appearing-in January, 1895
a presidential crisis occurred in France
Whereupon NJ. de Cyon gave orders that
the publication should be stopped, MOI
wishing as he said. TO add TO the emba =
rassment Of the French government by
bringing the Franco-R Russia alliance into
discredit At the same time he sent, con
fideulially. copies of the book to four
members Of the Russian State Council, in
the hope as he somewhat naiVely con-
fesses. that one of them might fall into
the hands of the Gar.
Instead of that. one fell into the hands
of NJ de White, who siraightway sent
word to its author that if he did not pub
Itch his hook i'm Paris and at once he De
Wtte. would publish it for him in St Pc
tersburg; aye. and would distribute copies
of it gratis all round. He sent, 100, an
announcement of his intention 10 the F..
caro-, and the result was that the book
was hopelessly discredited before ii was