The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-07-31
Russia VIII Prosecute SigRefs
Of VIbOfg Manifesto
SUDDEN CHANGE OF FRONT.
Former Members of Douma Have Been
Forced to Cut Hairtand Beard
to Disguise 1'iaeia-
selves.

st. Petersburg. July 30 The fun text
of the appeal to the army and navy,
adopted July 81 by the radical group in
the outlawed Parliament In connection
with the central committed Of the prole-
tariat is as follows:
Soldiers and Sailors-T.e government
has by imperial command dissolved Par
lament, and troops have been assembled
from all sides to oppress the people by
armed force. The peoples representatives
were elected from among your fathers
and brothers in order to lay before the
Emperor the needs of the people and to
obtain land and liberty.
But the Emperor would not listen to
the election of the people. He hearkened
to his former councillors, the grand
dukes, ministers, generals and the wealth.
lest of the land owners. who did not want
to give up their lands and Russia Is
now divided into two parts On one side
is the vast majority. all the peasants and
worxmen, all the poor and oppressed. the
best educated and the most enlightened
citizens, the soldiers who zee the most
clearly, the best officers and all the
martyrs in the jails including many thou
sands of soldiers and sailors
On the Other de.
On the other side is a collection of op-
pressors such as Trepoff, Pobodenostseff
and the Manchurian generals, who ran
away from the Japanese, but who fred on
the people at Moscow and Odessa and to
hif tha peffv eyovarn r,e,,t4 o4e...t.14. ~
lice spies and the whole black hundred
and these rely on their strength to beat
down the whole Russian people Will you
shoot the people, shed the slooa of the
people and transfix the peoples breasts
with bayonets? Remembg' aNs&Yoa are
the children of the peasants. that you are
the children of the Russian people, and
at the same time in the village where
you were born your own brothers, who
are remaining home. are also agitating.
are also demanding land and liberty. and
that the government Is sending other
troops to shoot and beat them.
"Why will you defend the government? :?
Do you yourselves live so well? Are not
you yourselves in state of servitude
You are in worse state of bondage than
all the others. You are given slavsh en-
ployment as officers servants you are
tormented in discipline battalions, for
every free word you are sent to hard la
Dor or shot. We, the representatives of
the people, wished to promulgate laws
providing for a reduction of military SER
vice to two years; the abolition of SOL
diers' employment as servants for the
payment of a monthly wage to soldiers
and the effevtive prevention of all insults
to the rank and file because of those
placed over them. We wished to improve
the lot of soldiers, but the great aim be-
fore us was to prevent the lot of the
whole working people To prevent all this
the government hastened to dissolve Par
liament.
Illegal Without Parliament.
Soldiers and sailors, we, the legally
elected representatives of the peasants
and workingmen, declare to you that
without Parliament the government is
Illegal. Orders which it may now issue
have no legal force We call on you:
Firstly, to cease to obey the Illegal
government and to actively oppose II
in contribution with us and the whole
of the poor people. You have taken an
oath to defend the fatherland. Stand be-
side us for land and liberty.
Secondly, any man who shoots at the
people is a criminal, a traitor and the
enemy of the people. We inform all such
In the name of their fathers and brothers
that they will not be allowed to return
to their homes, and that over their names
will hang the eternal curse of the people.
Thirdly, the government entered into
negotiations so that the Austrian and
German Emperors and German troops are
ready to invade our country to defend
the government, which opposes the peo-
pie with the power of foreign arms.
Has Betrayed the Country.
by such negotiations we declare the
government has betrayed the country and
is now outside the limits OF the law
Soldiers and sailors, your sacred duty
Is to free the Russian people from the
treacherous government and defend Par
lament Every man falling In this holy
war will cover himself with eternal
fame and the Russian people will bless
his name. In this struggle your elected
representatives will be with you. Be brave
for the fatherland, for the people and lib
erty against the criminal government"
Will Prosecute the Signers.