New-York tribune., 1903-03-13
pEFoRMG IN RUSSIA.

REFORMS IN RUSSIA.
.-.r,ov 1vsa confidently expressed few
a.r. seo at a gathering of prominent literary
NON IN st Petersburg that Russia was on the
verv verge of great political, social and IN
a,e+rfaI reforms. To-day that opinion appears
m no vipdfcated in IN imperial decree when
NAV without exaggeration be regarded as the
most irnportaut Of its kind since the e1nanclpa-
tion of the serfs. The manner In wnlch tne
decree has been made is somewhat REMINISCENT
Of tbe "ben trovato" story OF the way IN whlch
the first Nicholas dictated the route OF tue
railroad from St Petersburg to MOSCOW. some
Of his ministers favored one route, some an
other: and the road was not built one oay
Nicholas called for q map ruler ana
drauehtsman's pen. Drawing q straight lne
from the one capital to the other he salo'
.srhat "a the route of the railroad!' Whereupon
the road was built.
For some time there have been two 1actlons
IN the ministry Of Nicholas II. One. headed ny
Mr. Uitte the Finance Minister has favored
liberal reforms especially among the agricult-
uraI classes. The other, ledzby Mr. de Plehve,
Minister Of the Interior, has been bitterly op-
nosed thereto. 1t is not improbable that the
Iatters reactionary conduct has moved the
Gar to issue this decree. 1t will be remem-
bered that some time ago, moved by the evil
dent decline of agriculture in Russia, the Car
directed that local committees everywhere
should fully discuss the causes Of that decline
and of the prevalent distress, and should frank
Iv and fully recommend such reforms as tneS
thought necessary, their reports to be made 10
provincial committees, which In turn were 10
report to a central committee Of which Mr.
Witte is chairman.
Against all this NJ. de Plehve set his face
like flint He harassed the local commit
tees, forbade them to discuss any but the most
empty and colorless topics, and used all the
machinery Of the government to make their
work a failure. When the Investigator
reached the provincial committees, he employed
the same tactics with them. He explicitly Tor
bade the committees to discuss any topic which
had or might have a tendency toward liberal
ism or reform. He meant, Of course, that the
report which would be made TO the central
committee should contain nothing Of practical
value and the whole investigation should be
a failure.
While reforms were thus being omctally re-
sisted, there was also actual retrogression In
places where some degree Of enlightenment for
merly existed. Two years ago the Russian
military conscriptfon law was arbitrarily ex-
tended to Finland, without being submitted to
the Parliament of that country for ratification,
as the constitution required Last year the
conscrfptfon was q failure, the young men al
most universally refraining from presenting
themselves The Russian Governor General
took the Finnish provincial governors TO task,
and ordered them to take strenuous measures
to compel enrolment. The governors replied
that the young men ignored the conscrtpton
because the law had not been constituhonally
imposed, and that the only way In which to
secure respect for and compliance with the
law would be to submit 1t to the Finnish Par
Lament They added q request that their re-
ply should be laid before the Gear. Whether 1t
was laid before the Gear, or merely before Mr..
de Plehve, is not disclosed, but all the govern
ors were forthwith arbitrarily dismissed ard
their places were filed with Russians.
Now, however, Nicholas II takes matters into
his own hands, with something Of the auto
cratic spirit Of his great-grandsire and name
sake. There shall, he says, be reforms There
shall be freedom Of creed and Worship-nct
only, we assume, for Catholic and Protestant,
as well as for Orthodox, but also for Jew as
well as for Christian. There shall be no more
slavery under the name OF forced, labor"
There shall be reform in church and state, and
especially in the village communes, which are
the foundation of the empire. These things
the ministers and other oncers are peremp-
torily commanded to execute. 1t Is great
decree If IT is sincere, as we are bound to
assume, and If It Is indexibly enforced as We
are bound to hope and to expect 1t will effect
the first stage in that benehcent evolution of
Russia which seems to be the only alternative
to revolution.
For a change must come 1t would be
simply impossible for Russia to go on forever,
or much longer, in her old repressive, reac-
tionary, barbaric style.
The people will come to their ofn at last
God is not Knocked forever.
It was an amazing anachronism that Rus
sis got through the nineteenth century and
into the twentieth with political, social and
industrial system belonging to the Middle
Ages That system cannot much longer en-
dure. Reform must come, or revolution; and
the Gear seems wisely and bravely to have
chosen that 1t shall be reform. In his efforts
for the welfare Of his people he will have the
hearty sympathy Of the world, and II he is
successful In them he will have a place in
history not second <to any in all the line of
Rurik.