Arizona republican., 1905-04-24
AN EMPIRES FATE
Rests on an Issue in the
 Eastern Seas
If Russia Lose, the War May End and the Internal Reforms May Then Be Brought About.

St. Petersburg. April 23.-Not only the future of the war in the far east but the fate of the whole program of international form to which Emperor Nicholas stant5 committed appears to await the issuD of the approaching sea battle between Rojestvensky and Togo. The governme t undoubtedly would be greatly streng iened at least for the moment by a 1ctory decisive enough to change the ar situation The liber- als are impaC al the delay and sus- picious of evse, move of the govern ment. They a al convinced that If vic tory comes. th bureaucracy. to which the realizatiors of reforms has been consigned by { emperor will be able despite the clamcr throughout the country to keep th- execution of these reforms in their oFn hands, which of course in their opinion would mean their eventual dissipation in a laby- rinth of endless commissions. More oVer they believe that the emperor might again be persuaded to listen to the necessity of the old style repres- sion of tho present agitation
 Practically the interior administra- tion is being co., -cted through the po- lice regime. sS sady there is every where evidences of return to Von Plehve's methods Domiciliary visits and arrests by scores and hundreds are reported in every part of the empire and meetings of all classes of the peo- pie are forbidden and broken up by the police under direction of the local gov ernors.
 Even the ZemstVO meetings at Nladi- mir I1lizabethpol. Orel, Tifis and Lii xya q fa har nF he government properly argues that it cannot fold Its arms and see the flames of revolution famed by agitators but it is noticeable that such spokesmen of the reaction as Prince Mestchers- ky (editor Of the Grashdanin) are again boldly proclaiming the doctrine of re- pression, characterizing the constitu- tionalists, and "intelligents" as luna tics.
 Russia has suddenly become a vast lunatic asylum" said the Grashdanin and unless the mad people are looked up and placed out of harms way there is no prediction where all this idiocy will end
 Should Rojestvensky be defeated, on contrary, the liberals believe that the the contray liberals believe that the peace and :l constitution would come
 
 and May day are awaited with extreme anxiety both by the authorities and public. The social democrats and re- VOlutionaries have planned demonstra- tions on a1 extensive scale and un- doubtedly manT Of them are armed with revolvers and bombs which have been smuggled into the country to fight the police and troops in case they should attempt to interfere with the demonstrations. The revolutionaries seem to have plenty of funds furnished from both abroad and by wealthy sym pathizers in Russia. The widest stor- ies of plans for blowing up the mem bers of the imperial family ministers and palaces and of pillage and the mur- der of the nobility and wealthy are current, especially in aristocratic draw ing rooms and many society people, thoroughly frightened, have already made preparations to go abroad
 Large endorsements of troops es- pecially of Cossacks, have been brought to St. Petersburg. Arrests and searches of the lodgings of suspects continue, but even General Tropoff although he is taking every measure of precautiOn, does not seem to know exactly what to expect. That he anticipates trouble anu DlcONol4Ch Io apparent run AilG fact that he has notified all the manu- lecturers to guard against incendiar- ism, and through house porters he has warned every family that the women and children must remain off the streets on May day.
 Although disorders more or less ser ious are anticipated everywhere, PO- land and the Baltic provinces probably are thestorm centers. General Maxi mouvitch, governor general of Warsaw, has just returned to his post after a conference here, clothed with almost dictatorial powers. All the Polish cities are now in a state of minor siege, but the governor general is authorized to declare martial law and ample troops will be furnished him.
 There are many disquieting reports of disaffectiOn among the troops and the names of regiments, even in the