The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-11-15
RUSSIAN COMMUNISM AND DEs-
POTISM.

The Russian commission appointed by
the Car to inquire into the causes of the
decline of agriculture in Russia and in
creasing poverty among the peasants has
finally reported, ascribing the deplorable
conditions partly to bad laws, partly TO
vexatious officials and partly to lack of
popular education. The bad laws men,
toned relate mostly to passport regula-
tons and labor restrictions. The commits
sion is a very large and representative one,
composed of men of high intelligence. and
its inquiry has been long and exhaustive.
Possibly the insurmountable difficulties In
the way of a change sufficiently radical
prevented the commission from pointing
out the fundamental and fatal weakness
of the Russian agricultural system, though
1t did point out the fact that the Russian
peasant is utterly lacking in initiative and
hopeless of rising in the world. And why?
The answer seems easy enough for US in
America, where individual initiative, en-
couraged by freedom of opportunity and
spurred on by individual ambition, has &C
complished so much for the Nation as a
whole. Communism is Russia's great
trouble. The whole Russian structure,
from the vir. or village commune. up to
the despot that rules the empire, is a sys-
TEN of socialism more complete h was
ever dreamed of by Carl Marx or the wild
est Communist that ever waved a red flag
In Paris. Individual ownership of land.
as we know ii, is unknown. There are
great landed estates, but these are really
nothing more nor less than certain privi-
leges owned by mobiles and men of wealth.
privileges to demand rentals over certain
tracts Of land. They cannot Dust the tenant
peasantry, nor can the tenant peasantry
easily break away from the soil. The peas
ant has no individual leasehold. much less
individual ownership. This lies in the vir,
or village, ruled by a number Of chosen
elders. Each year there is a reallotment
of lands or leaseholds among the peasants.
and the forests are open to all for fixed
privileges in wood-gathering. All of which
means that the interest of the nan that
works the land is Of the most temporary
character, and he starves it to death.
Hence it's poverty and his poverty. Hav-
ing no individual chance he has no indi-
vidual ambition. and retrogrades.
Going on upward the same system of So
cialism is found, with various modifica-
tions, working through everything in Rus
sian Industrial and political life. The me-
chanic sells his labor through his cartel.
and there are cartels for everything, even
for lawyers and doctors; and these cartels
arrange a sort Of communal life for their
members. Family life is known only to the
very rich.
P-aradoxical as it may seem. ali this COM
munal life and socialistic. effort leads up
most naturally to an absolute despotism.
The Gar and the bureaucracy through
which Russia is despotically ruled are mere
ly the easiest and most natural socialistic
instruments for conducting the larger af-
| fairs of a people trained for centuries to
the utter lack Of self-reliance n indi-
vidual initiative. The Car builds and OPP
crates the railroads, the lighting plants,
the water works and all public utilities.
through his various bureaus, and the dead
~ IN tAO
his people makes his absolutism easy to
maintain.
Out of this curiously natural mingling Of
communism and despotism arise two very
patent and very important facts. one Of
| which is that the Russian government, in
it's relation to the outside world, is the most
| effective on earth. It's policy is well-con-
sidered. uniform and continuous. 1t can
wait with endless patience and act with
| swift decision when the time for action
| comes. Responsible to nobody but the
| Car, it does not have to explain things,
1t is u~nhampered in it's foreign policy by
| the exigencies of domestic politics. and 1t
never loses trained diplomats or military
leaders through political changes. The
second fact is the deplorable popular con-
dition of ignorance and poverty and sod
| den hopelessness among the masses of the
people exposed by the report of the Cars
special commission.