The daily morning journal and courier., 1904-08-01

may easily read him; when he takes himself for a statesman, without ever
 suspecting the cleric. His view Is that
 the mass of men is made to be ruled,
 not merely in Russia but everywhere
 Tor at least everywhere in Europe: and
 for proof he cites the tumult and incon-
 sequence with which tue high legisia-
 tive bodies of continental Europe some
 times distract the disgrace themselves.
 As for public opinion, he regards it as
 a many-headed, unreasoning and dan
 gerous tyranny. We do not believe that
 he has ever made an exception of Eng land and United States in these re-
 spects; his real feeling possibly being that of stupefied wonder as to how the
 two English-speaking nations manage
 to keep going. M Pobedonostseff Is perfectly sincere perfectly honest in these views. He does not hold them because he wishes them to be true, but because to his certain knowledge, they lare true; and he feels only pity, and possibly a little disgust, for those who fare vain enough to think that they know better. This. then, Is the politi-
 cal theory as to the necessary organi-
 zation of the perfect state that is held | in Russia; and 1t is undoubtedly the. theory under which Nj. de Plehve work ed, although we do not know whether The held to this theory in all sincerity. as M. Pobedonostsetf does, or only be- lcause he found 1t advantageous for his lpersonal ambitions.
 We are not prepared to say, with Ei00,0OO, ,O0O illiterates in Russia, that the theory is not sound for Russia The difficulty in applying itin Russia, how Iever, and the danger, too, Is that that Icountry includes absorbed populations
 some of high civilization, and that the men of these absorbed populations, having once tasted in various degrees | the joy of free activity under less rt- ldirnentary political system, do not will- lingiy or patiently unlearn their aIlces- | tral habits Driven far enough by the Russian system-whioh is so unaffect- | ediy paternal that 1t sometimes in- Iciudes the knout for men and women Tor vividly enough recalling their ances- ltral tradition of freedom of thought, of lutterance and of intercourse, a passion late, vindictive, lawless and self-sacri- | fieing hatred comes Into the life of in- i tdividuals of these absorbed races and Assassination flowers forth almost as naturally and certainly as inevatably as roses in June. The Jews the Poles land the Films constitute the special
 danger points in this respect for the governing men of Russia, although the
 Films, by nature tranquil and having foresight, and only to-day undergoing the process of being made Russians lit was not q week ago that orders were Issued to make their, coin over into Russian rubles-are not yet fully ripe for the desperation of the assassination period.
 l It is an odd thing that M. de Plehve
 was one of these absorbed races. He
 was Pole by birth and education, and lit seems unlikely that he was ignorant lof the traditions of his race. This ori- lgin and training may have made his thand the heavier; at any rate 1t fur lnished ground for doubt as to the moves underlying his political aotivi-
 Eties. He was an able man; so plaub- lible that his explanation of the Rus-
 Isianization of Finland Is absolutely convincing unless one knows otherwise
 as an independent Judgment; and talk
 ling the sincerity of M. Pobedonostseff las a basis, he served Russia with rare
 fidelity and extraordinary capacity.
 IIow sincere he really was we do not
 know.
 | Death, however, is a sponge that
 wipes out many things in the career of
 tstatesmen; and in the case of M. de
 lPlehve, who, according to his lights or This defects, was statesman, one can
 lonly say that he served the Russian System with firrnness, dignity and eff1-
 Iciency, and that his death under that gl System was as near to a mathematical
 lcertainty-assuming that he could be icaught unawares-as anything in the
 lfield of politics can be. Tn freer lands ltiie successful opposition would have let
 lhim off with lighter penalty; but they
 lplay high in Russia, both on the gov
 Ierning and on the governed side.