Daily Kennebec journal., 1904-07-29


| of the police, when Alexander ii. was
killed. March 13, 1881. M. Won Plehve
conducted the prosecution of the regi-
| cdes and afterwards reOrganiZed the
| police. From that time on the power
| of NJ. Won Plehve increased until 1t be-
| came only second in Importance to that
| of the Emperor.
Several plots to assassinate the min
| lister have, according to reports, been
discovered during the past two years
| whl-h h period has been marked by
| strong political rivalry between the in
terror ministry and the former minis
ter of finance, NJ. Witte, now president
of the committee on ministers.
NJ. Won Plehve was not Il scholar. but
from his youth he had been brought up
in official circles and he slowly but
| surely pushed himself ahead. Before
| the Emperor called NJ. Won Plehve to
take the portfolio of minister of the in
| terror he had already spent about 40
years in official work and at the time
| of his death was about 66 years old.
The educated youths Of Russia are said
to have been bitterly opposed to M. Won
Plehve, owing, it has been claimed, to
his turning on his own people and to
the drastic changes which he inaugu-
| rated or advocated He is said to have
regarded the common people as either
| dangerous criminals to be repressed or
as innOcents to be ignored.
| Won Plehve was largely of Polish
blood, yet 1t is alleged, no man in Rus
| sia has 50 signalized himself for Sc
verify against the Films as NJ. Won
Plehve He was regarded as in many
ways being the power behind the
throne and was dreaded on account of
his control of the Third (secreD section
of police and also owing to the fact
that he controlled the press of Russia
through the censors, who, it has been
understood did NJ. Won Plehvc's bidding
without question.
The deceased minister was laborous
IN the extreme and WAS an Indifferent
conversationalist. He was, however,
| fond of music and was accustomed to
read many French novels during his
leisure hours. In May, 1903 NJ. Won
Plehve was appointed president of the
| imperial commission appointed to carry
out the Emperor's reform decree.
| What part, if any. NJ. Won Plehve ac-
tually played in the Kishineff mas
sacres. will probably never be known;
| but his enemies have claimed that he
| mad full knowledge of the events lead
ing thereto through his political friend
| ana agent, kdOuShevan, known as the
most extreme anti-Semite in Russia
and proprietor of the Bess Arabetz, Il
| npr Il Tbo late
said TO have prepared the minds of
the people of Kishineff for trouble by
publishing series of strongly worded
anti-Semite articles. The object of Won
Plehve in this matter according to the
charges made at the time. was to di-
vert the attention of the people at
large from the government. 1t should
| be added that the allegations made
against NJ. Won Plehve have never been
| proved to have been founded on fact
and in view of the Emperor's injury
into the matter and the fact that Won
"lehve retained his Majesty's conf
dence. it is only just to assume that
the charges were unfounded.
| The last great public work of NJ. Won
/ Plehve, so far as known. was the draft
| ing of the peasant code early this year
| This is a scheme for peasant reform.
ordered by the Emperor in his recent
| manifesto.
On June 13 of this year it was an
nounced from st. Petersburg that the
council of the empire had approved NJ
Won Plehve's decree for the repeal of
the law under which Jews are forbid
den to reside within 80 miles Of the
/ ".
proved by the Emperor SO far as
| known.
| According to the official version, the
assassination occurred at $50 A. NJ.
The assassin, who was standing on the
sidewalk. tried to break through the
crowd as the minister's carriage ap-
preached, but being interferred with he
jumped into the street and threw the
| bomb at the rear of the carriage, which
was a closed one. The assassin was
severely wounded in the stomach and
over 20 persons were injured. including
the officer Of the guards previously re-
| ferred to. In the general havoc of
shattered windows and damaged fa-
cades I'm the neighborhOOd, the only
thing that absolutely escaped injury
was little chapel in front of the sta
ton.
| The minister's death was instantane-
Gus. When the body was undressed at
his residence not single wound was
found on the trunk, but the lower part
of the face was literally blown away.
| The assassin has not regained con-
sciousness, but the physicians who per-
formed the operations on him, believe
| his life will be saved
| There is no official confirmation of the
report that he took p6ison. but it is be-
lieved to be true.
The official inquiry is still proceeding.
A number of arrests have been made.
but there is no clue to the identity of
the assassin or the real nature and
cause of the conspiracy. The crime in
many respects is similar to the Nihilist
tragedy which resulted in the death of
Alexander ii.
NEWS AT WASHINGTON.