The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-11-27


tieff's idea OF a zemstvo parliament to sit
as a consultative body Is worth recon-
sideTing AS the LOGICAL development Of
zemstvos which would be = ready made
| electoral college for the land parliament.
In my opinion it would be preferable TO
have two houses. OF which the higher
should take the place of the present cOun-
eli of the empire, a part of which should
be elected and part appointed; and the
lower house TO be composed of members
each representing a large constituency
Otherwise the population of 10000, 600
would necessitate too unwieldly lower
house.
i am not in favor of granting repre-
sentative rights in some OF the outlying
regions. like the Caucasus or central
Asia, the population Of which. an alien
race and not IN sympathy with the rest
of the empire, IL is advisable to leave on
the same footing as the territories of the
United States until it is ripe for admis-
sion TO what We may call statehood. My
belief is that the changes should be in
PRODUCED gradually. The first phase
should be the introduction of the elected
members TO the council of the empire,
which would be a useful initiation of our
statesmen and people TO representative
institutions.
Lack of Craftsmanship.
Americans cannot realize the difficulty,
even danger, OF suddenly introducing rep
resentatiVe institutions into eur country
Even our statesmen are not versed in the
arts OF government NJ. PlehVe gave an
illustration of promoting counter-revolu-
tonary associations of working men, with
the result that the associations were util-
lied by the very movement against which
they were directed. the outcome Of the
experiment being continuous strike riots
al Moscow and POltava. The fact is we
nave not had the opportunity to learn the
art of government. The whole of our in
telligent classes naturally are inclined 10
liberal ideas. but they have not the eX-
perience in applying them All this suf-
Lclenty indicates the necessity or great
est prudence and caution in the manner
OF introducing the representative system,
and the great danger in adopting an ill
digested western constitution wholesale.
Provided caution Is exercised, L cannot
see how the autocracy-which. l repeat,
must remain the keystone Of our system
will be imDeriled b. the Introduction OF
a representative system. There Is abso-
lutte necessity for the safeguarding of the
autOcracy, in consequence Of the views
and ideas of the peasantry. Peasants have
not the slightest idea of the meaning OF
a constitution. All their thoughts and de-
SireS are centered in the land. They
believe the land ought to belong to them.
ana they are convinced that the httle
father alone is able to satisfy what they
regard as legitimate aspirations. They
look upon bureaucrats. landlords and
zemstVOs as part of the machinery which
is preventing them from obtaining more
land 10 enable them 10 mitigate their ter
rible poverty.
Count TOlstOi shares the opinion OF the
peasants on the land question. He told
me- when last l saw him, that he would
not fail before he died 70 write personal
letter to the car advocating the doc
trine of Henry George. The absolute
fidelity of the peasants TO the car,
therefore. is based upon an unsuitable
foundation. I am persuaded 10 believe
that the intelligent classes also are loyal.
There is not the slightest ground 70
believe in the success of d revolutionary
movement in Russia. Indeed, since the
advent of Interior Minister Prince SviatO-
pOlk-Mirsky and his appeal for mutual
confidence the tendency among influen-
tial and sober minded members of the
community is all the other way. Polit-
ical demonstrations which formerly
elected sympathy from the people now
call forth general condemnation. A recent
incident was at Kharkoff A small crowd
of students and working men attempted
TO parade the streets with red flags. but
were dispersed by the public without as
Sistance from the police.
Whatever the future may have in store
1 am convinced that a diversion TO the
Plehve system is impossible. Public opin-
ion has developed so strongly under our
present Universities that stern repression
is 10 longer appreciate. ] am still con-
fident that the winter of the bureau
craCY, which, like the Russian winter,
condemned US to a long period of in
activity. is giving way before the advent
of spring as / prophesied last year, al
though no one then believed me. and the
Russian Springtide season is marvelously
quick in growth"