The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1905-05-10

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the nobility in the ranks of the battlers
for freedom. IN noway bound to the hated
| governing bureaucracy and animated BY
| the bright ideals of freedom and national
| happiness the young intelligent class
sharply censured he existing order, eppos-
| Ing to It the ideal Of soeastie society
worked out upon the theories OF european
socialists. The revolutionary movement
| sprang up.
The revolutionary party "fhe People 5
| WIZ spread endeavorlng by means or
| political conspiracy. 10 free the people.
| lie seventies. the epoch Of the reaction
airy movement of the government, were
| marked by am heroic fight of the hrst rev
| oluiionares. The movement terminated
! with the catastrophe Of March ], 1871 CAS-
| sassination of Alexander IL. But then
| the peasantry was obscure and deaf TO
the preaehings of socialism. The indus
trial proletariat was only Just born and
| was still weak. And the revolution was
| throttled By the government at its very
| inception Reaction again held sway
| Even the public frightened by the phan-
| tom of revolution suffered reaction ana
| for twenty-five years all was gloomy.
! The reforms of the sixties were almost
wiped out by means of the counter ma
| ehinery set in motion by Count d. A.
| Tolstoi Meantime the industry of the
| country developed Rapid capitalization
| of all parts of the national economy took
place.
Life became more complicated. The peo-
pie formed into groups and classes with
| well defined interests, organized them
selves ON the basis of these interests and
grew IN political aspirations, but the
/ forms of life We're as before. pressed in the
| Iron vice Of bureaucratic despotism, Pro-
vincial and municipal self-government
were altered till they were unrecogniza-
| BILE, and their activity was almost COM
pletely paralyzed.
Into Condition of Serfdom.
! The peasantry. by the Introduction of
the institution Of provincial chiefs Gems
ky nachalnks) was again almost turned
into condition OF serfdom. The tribunal
| Just quick, merclful aud equal for all"
was replaced almost in its entirety by
trial by administrative order Martial
law took the place of all laws almost
every where IN the empire The press.
fettered by the censor became eloduently
silent IN all languages The education of
the masses in the hands of the govern
ment, became weapon for the strength
ening of ignorance and prejudice of the
people dhe hindranee of temporal schools
and the energetic protection of the cler-
icaD and for the political deprayity of the
younger genera ton. University science
completed the work begun in the middle
schools of the so-called people In cases, .
people of System But the growing
public forces were making themselves
known. During the last ten years the
student riots have been almost continu-
Gus. The workmens' movement also grew
and strengthened. In places the starry
ing almost landless peasantry rose and
reYolted. Revolutionary parties were re-
organized, this time finding fertile soil
and impressionable material In the rapid
ly growing factory proletariat. 1t even in
vaded the peasantry, where the latter
were touched by city life as SO many
mniiks are being compelled to go to the
cities to earn their bread during a por-
tion of the year.
But above all. a LIBERAL constitutional
party was organized. recruiting its mem-
bers chiefly In provincial circles.
Is Mo Recent Thing.
The political movement which during
the past few months aroused the whole
| Russian society. really became sharply
defined two or three years ago. The stu
dent movement. which In the course of
the nineties was the only open express
sion of public protest against the exist
ing regime and therefore the center of
public attention, was irrevoeably carried
over on to political territory on February
%, 1902, by the Moscow students. The Sc
ries of political workmens demonstrations
In many cities in the whole course of 1902,
the noted Rostoff strike manifestation in
the fail of that year, the general strike
which, In the summer of 1903, paralyzed
the whole industry of the south, indi-
! Gated the powerful development of the
workmens movements led by the social
democratic party With the assassination
of Spiagin. April Is, 1902 tthe assassina-
ton of Bogolyepoff In 1901 being the act
| of an individual and not a manifestation
of party) opens the sanguinary period
of revolutionary terror At short inter
| walls of time the most prominent and
hated leaders of reaction fell by bullets
or bombs. In the spring of 1902 the peas
ant riots broke out In the Black Earth
governments.
Terror and agrarian disorders among
! bear witness to the life Of activity of the
the peasants bear witness to the
life of activity of the other rev.
dictionary party the soelal-reNolu-
timonaries. In 1901, from February
% to March ., a meeting took place In
Moscow of the provincial workers en-
gagged In aiding the population In agricul-
tural matters. At this meeting was raised
for the first time the question OF smaller
provincial units, Is a radical means oil
! drawing closer together the ZemstNo ana
| the people. This meeting, In which par
tcipated besides the chosen leaders of the
|
the so-called third element |. c., those
intelligent zemstvo workers. upon whom
In reality falls all the work OF initiating
| measures of the economic activity or the
provincial self government, was the hrst
step toward the closer union of all the
zemstVos. In 1902 the zemstvos took fhr-
ther steps in this direction In the kustar
| meeting in St. Petersburg and at tho
| fremen's meeting In Moscow In the
| spring of 1902 an Illegal meeting in Mos
COW, organized on the initiative and under
the direct leadership of the president OF
the Moscow government zemstvo board,
| ID. ~ Shipoff occurred the formal union
of the provncials. the working out of
uniform systema tically planned pro-
gramme of action in view OF Abe work to
| be done In the agricultural committees.
authorized by the government. Here was
| first made clear the prime necessity or
| reform in the existing system and mere
| was first worked out a programme.
Views Were Unanimous.
At about the same time the foreign
paper "Osvodozhdene" Gibertyo, edited
by Strive, made its appearance, Its task
| being to unite and cement the provincial
constitutional party. The work OF the
TRAVELLING TRUNKS.
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