The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1905-02-21
PROFESSORS AND STUDENTS AS.
sEMRlE IN MASS MEETING
At ST. PETERSBURG.
DEMAND REFORMS AND END OF WAR.
SPIRIT OF LIBERTY PERvADEs
TIE AIR AND AUTocRAcY is
FIERCELY AssAlLED.

st. Petersburg, Feb. 21-The spirit
of revolution had complete possession
| Of the great meeting of professors,
students and directors Of the ST. Pc
tersburg university which assembled
during the day to discuss the question
Of Joining in the general strike inau-
gurated by similar institutions in Rus
sia and decided to close the university
until fall. In anticipation Of trouble
when the meeting broke up sauadrons
OF Cossacks again paraded the streets,
especially the NeVsky Prospect and
the neighborhood of the Kazan cathe-
dral: which is always a point for stu
dent demonstrations.
1t was the first joint meeting of stu
Cents and professors ever authorized,
but in view OF the gravity of the situ-
alton it was hoped the presence Of the
plete sympathy with the liberal move
ment, would exercise a restraining. in
f1uence. The meeting was held in the
auditorium OF the university, sprawl
in2 pile of yellow buildings on Basil
island, Neva hall being mparatively
small and incapable Of holding one
fifth OF the 1900 students assembled.
The auditorium was packed to suffo-
cation with earnest looking young men
and women and the doOrways and
windows were banked with students
who held others on their shoulders.
It was a strange gathering. Most
of the students were poorly clad and
all were III state of intense excite
ment, their very eyes burning with
zeal. A small rostrum in a corner was
occupied by the speakers. A bell, with
which the student who presided tried
to stop the thunders Of applause with
which the orators were greeted, was
completely unavailing. From the out
tion Of the auditors
AfIame With the Spirit of Liberty,
unsparingly denouncing the course Of
the government, declaring that prom
ises could no longer avail and that the
only satisfaction would be freedom Of
speech, conscience and the press and
the cOnvOcation of a national assem-
bly,. The majority coupled their re-
marks with a demand for ending the
war. Almost every orator went back
to the French revolution for parallels.
Again and again was Russia declared
to be on the eve of revolution.
With burning words one of the stu
dents described the affair of Jan. %,
which, he said, had at last SOlidified
the interests of the liberals and those
cheers he announced that a continual
tion of study was impossible while
such struggle was in progress and
said it was the duty of the young men
there assembled and others like them
to return to their homes in the prov
inces and spread the agitation.
Some OF the professors tried to stem
the tide with moderate counsels, ad-
vising the students to go back to their
studies, but their advice was howled
down.
When Professor Speranzi, one of the
speakers, revealed the fact that Gov
ernor General Trepoff had threatened
not to permit any student who left his
studies to re-enter any of the big uni
veTsities the statement was received
with a verttable howl OF rage.
Murder of Grand Duke GIorified.
The speeches in, the auditorium were
mild and temperate compared with
those delivered at the overflow meet
ings in the classrooms, where even
the murder of Grand Duke Sergius
was glorifed. An attempt of few re-
dictionary students to hold an opposi-
ton meeting was abandoned.
The few foreign newspaper CORE
spondents who were admitted to the
university were amazed at the incen-
diary character of the meeting and
the absolute freedom which the stu
dents, knowing that the auditorium
was filled with government spies,
boldly made themselves liable to the
charge OF treason. In the minds eye
one could almost pick out the Mira
beaus and Desmolins and possibly Dan
tons and Robespierres of the future.
1t seemed strange, with the soldiers
outside ready to crush anything in the
nature of a street demonstration, that
such meeting was allowed. 1t is
necessary to explain, however, that
under the law once a meeting is author
lied the police cannot stop it unless
the university directors call them in.
Towards the end the speeches grew
more and more rabid. An address
| from Italian students was read de
| nouncing the tragedy of Jan % and
the general tyranny of the bureaucracy
and expressing sympathy with the Rus
sian aspirations for liberty.
When, shortly after 3 O'Clock, a re
| cess was taken the whole student body
began singing the Russian "Marseil-
| laise.'
Warsaw Students Arrested.
|, Warsaw, Feb. 21.-A number of the
older pupils of the high schools, who
had been inducing children of the
lower forms to absent themselves from
school, have been arrested by police
and soldiers.