Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1905-12-16

st. Petersburg, Russia, via Helsing-
fors, Finland and Berlin--Two mes
sengers who arrived here from Riga
Dec. ~, having walked about 1870 miles
to catch train at Plock, not only con
firm the report that a provisional gov
ernment has been set up In LiVonia,
but they say that many of the troops
have gone over to the insurrection-
lists.
Dvina fort, commanding Riga har-
Dor, is in their possession, and the
governor and other Russian officials
are prisoners.
The messengers add that the pro
visional government exercises author
ity throughout Livonia and part of
Courland.
The new government had declared
the separation of the Livonian people
from the Russian Empire. They have
chosen new local officials and have
declared the closing of the spirit shops
and breweries and the annulment Of
contracts between the peasants and
the land owners.
There is a general uprising of the
native peasants who are travelling in
armed bands, attacking the estates
and driving off or killing their owners,
Some of the land owners have or
ganized volunteer battalions to protect
their property as the authorities are
powerless to afford aid, but the ma
jority are fleeing in terror. The peas
ants forbid the owners to sell grain
or lumber and formally declare that
the forests and estates of those who
have departed will be cOnfiscated.
The position of the peasants in these
provinces has been the most deplor-
able of any in the entire empire Con
ditions almost approaching those of
the feudal system have been contin'
ued down to the present time. They
practically have kept the peasants in
a state of vassalage, placing them at
the mercy of the German barons, from
whom they rent land and purchase the
right to cut wood and fish in the wa
ters of the gulf.
The Russian officials are being eX
PEELED from the provinces, and many
of them have been killed in the streets
of the towns.
There is reign of terror at Riga.
Women and children are living in the
upper stories of houses and the for
eign merchants are winding up their
business or abandoning everything, in
order to escape.
1t is doubtful whether the promise
of local self-government, contained in
today's imperial ukase, will have much
effect, at least for the present, but 1t
furnishes ample proof that the gov
ernment realizes 1t is helpless to re-
store order without granting heavy
concessions. The partial concessions
granted to the people of the Baltic
provinces are bound to encourage the
Poles, Georgians and other border peo-
pies.
Little is known of Gen. Sollogub,
who, it is reported, will be appointed
governor general of the Baltic prov
inces, but he is said to be man of
energy, with fairly liberal ideas.
The bourse again weakened on re-
ports OF commercial failures every
where in the provinces and also in
sympathy with the extreme panicky
condition of the Moscow exchange.
Runs on the savings banks continue.
The Almary, a private bank capital
lied at $250,0O0, has closed its doors,
being the first bank failure in st. Pet
ersburg. The state bank, In order to
reassure public opinion, opened two
additional windows to accommodate
the frightened holders of paper who
desired to exchange 1t for gold.
The League of Leagues has issued
an address, declaring that the recent
acts of the government proved 1t was
attempting to suppress the emancipa-
tion movement and demonstrated that
political freedom could only be OBJ
tanned by an armed struggle in which
all the progressive elements were in
Vited to join.
The Nasha Shishn claims to be in
possession of information to the effect
that at a conference of grand dukes
and court officials held at Tsarskoe-
Selo. 1t was decided that Count Witte
had proved failure and that the time
had arrived for the adoption of firm
measures which could be employed
with less opposition under a man like
Prince sviatopolk-Mirsky, former min
lister of the interior. The paper de
clares that further conference WIZ
be held soon, at which Count Witte
will not be present.