The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-07-09
Of his people. Tbey have publicly told him
otherwise and have had their words and his

otneTwB6 ana nave nad ther WoTuS anu bih
published to the world.
What the Zemstvo leaders now clearly
recognize Is that, while the bureaucrac y
Is necessary to the autooraoy, the autooraoy
| is not at all necessary to the bureaucracy
The Zemstvos care comparatively little
about the Gar and his family. even about
those OF them who are more or less in poll
| tics; but at every turn Of their daily lives
| they are brought against the personnel
| Of the bureaucracy. SO far the Zemstvos
have been entirely subordinated to the
Governments permanent officials, but the
latter would be disastrously weakened II
their enemies, the nom official public, got a
| share in the administ ration OF the public
revenues
The decisive battles between the two
will be on the budget. 1t will come the
| quicker II 1t is known that Japan intends
to exact an indemnity even equaling only
the actual war expenditure about
two milliard rubles. But in any case
Russia must for some time to come find
large sums OF money-to restore her in
ternal financial position, to satisfy her
foreign creditors, to rebuild the wastages
of the war, and these calls come on her
at q time when, irrespective OF the war,
! the margin Of taxation had been already
reached
The war was welcomed by the bureau
oracy because 1t was expected to divert the
big Indifferent mass Of the public from
the agrarian industrial crisis which was
acute two years ago. Just as 1t ceases
to be profitable to farm land when the out
lay exceeds what the crops bring in the
market, 80 it il useless to impose fresh
taxation when the machinery for collect
ing it swallows up more money than the
extra revenue that reaches the Treasury
That line has been reached and passed in
Russia. The bureaucracy know that 1t is
their system that will have to be sacrificed
to find the money. and they are under no
delusions on the subject. Honest govern
ment means ruin to them. They have
grown up with the present system; they
have got all their friends and relations
into it and they have organized a network
Of mutual interest throughout the country,
which. though it is strangling the national
energy of Russia, Is exceedingly strong
in passive resistance.
This struggle which may be expected
to open prosaically over the control OF
public accounts in the National Assembly
means 50 much to the bureaucracy that they
may turn and destroy the autocracy rather
than submit to it. The reactionaries pro-
cured the assassination Of Alexander IL.
by sham Nihilists when they knew no was
to grant a constitution. The large and
highly organized caste of Tchinovnks who
have been living well and saving fortunes
out OF Government money for generations
are equal to at least as much before they
let the Russian people control the national
revenue through their own representatives.
To illustrate the Tchinovnik bureaucrat's
notion Of handling public money, here are
two instances which have come to light
this week All the vodka stores in the
their walls, besides the compulsory portrait
OF the Gar, a portrait of the Minister OF
Finance. under whose department their
trade Is a Government monopoly. The
order adds that these portraits are obtain
able from Government printers for ruble
each and that the money raised u TO 90 to
the Treasury 1t has also transpired
that the peasants home industries, which
employ ~, COZ, 600 Russians in the villages,
mostly In wood leather, linen and home
spun cloth work, produce one and half
milliard rubles worth Of goods annually,
and the total amount of Government money
granted TO encourage this enormous and
productive employment for the poor masses
Of the people is 10000 rubles year. The
Government has just reported that it cali
not give more help.