Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-09-23
SOCIALIST 7|NGE ).
TO RUSSIAN TREND

81. PETERSBURG, september Eve" |
cent developments make it appear as though |
| the struggle of the future will be between |
the government and the socialists. rather |
| than between the government and the rev. |
olutionists or between the government and |
| the republicans. 1t is true that the social
| lists Of the future may swing more and |
more toward a revolutionary program, or |
| more ana more toward a constitutional
democratic program Much will depend |
| upon circumstances. The thing which |
| should be remembered Is that the fight OF |
the future gives promise Of being economic
rather than political. And in the field OF
| economies the socialists claim they are
| paramount and supreme. In fact, some OF
| the international socialists in Germany.
Switzerland and France are espousing the
| cause ard sending money to .neir Russian
| brethren upon the theory that Russia-auto-
| cratic Russia-wll be the first to prove to
| the world the advantages of economic So
| cialistic freedom.
| Be that as it may it is particularly and
peculiarly interesting at this time to watch
| the trend Of events. At this moment the
| central provinces are literally a new field
| Of discovery. The statements made on the
| subject and the conclusions drawn from
! them. whether by bureaucrats revofu-
| tionaries, are based chiefly theory. An
| old melon seller came to the country house
| near Moscow where I staying, only
too eager to chatter politics. I deplored to
| him the mass Of murders throughout the
|
proceeded to cite the popular proverb.
| "Kogda less roobat stchepki letiat."
| (When you chop wood there must be chips.)
I'VE have to do it, he said. ''or We shall
| not get anything. Some hours later en-
| tered train to Moscow. My neighbOrs for
a short distance were three workmen. brick
| layers. and their aprons were covered with
! lime. Their conversation turned on the
| Kronstadt mutiny. One OF them said
why earth didn't they kill all the OFF,
GERS instead Of arresting them? The only
| thing Is to strange these blackguards."
Nor does Moscow justify the impression
that the policy Of the government is at
! tended by any speedy results in the direc-
| ton OF paci1cation. 1 found all the police
men in the streets carrying rifles and fixed
| bayonets. In st. Petersburg armament OF
| this kind is only kept in reserve. In Mos
COW this force is called 1.-The manhunters,
| and the soldiers deVout!y cross themselves
! on being relieved after their eight long
| hours OF duty and of the tension of fear
| ing the anarchists bomb or the socialists
| revolver.
| A fellow-pa ssenger In the sleeping carriage
| which brought me from St. Petersburg was
| a Russian engineer with good post in the
| Bransky iron works in the government of
| Orel. employing some 10000 Workmen.- he
had been to ST. Petersburg to represent his
firm at some trials of cannon balls ana
shrapnel in the artillery polygon, where
| the artillery of the army and navy is
! tested. The polygon is situated nine Versts
| from st. Petersburg, in the neighborhood
| of the government powder factories and
| grave menace for St. Petersburg. He add
| ed. There are several batteries OF guns
| here, from Maxims to twelve-inchers
| These batteries served by some 300
| artillerymen from the navy and army and
| by fifty officers. The men, especially the
| sailors, detest the officers. They are ready
to seize the guns any day and to turn
| them on st. Petersburg. When, a month
| ago. there a strike in the powder fac
| tories. the polygon was watched by whole
| regiment from st. Petersburg, while the
dad in.
| fantry. The artillerymen were furious, and
declared that they would join the next
strike. There they have twelve-inchers
! which could destroy half the capital in less
than half an hour"
| The engineer added that the dissolution
Of the duma had come stunning blow
| to his district and had at first spread a
profound gloom over the district. for all
the fondly- cherished political aspirations of
1 the workmen seemed crushed. This frame
! of mind had been succeeded by an outburst
of bitter passion, but the Workmen had now
come to realize that the situation was in
the hands of the peasants and that an
active rising was Impossible before the
peasants opened the sluice-gates of revolt
| That is the reason" he said why the
recent strike was countermanded. The
peasants must finish their field work before
| there is any question of mass rising"
| AS regards future elections the engineer
| prophesed that the socialists would be
turned In great force, and that the consti-
tutional democratic party would not secure
much success He himself hitherto had
been constitutional democrat. but now
he was inclined to join Count Heydens
, | party OF pacific regeneration.
l called on the governor of the Moscow
| government, who formerly aid-de
camp to the murdered Grand Duke Sergius.
l Immediately preached the land question
TO him and the following is the gist Of the
governors reply: I'm the Moscow govern
ment there is no craving for more land
on the part of the peasants, except in half
a dozen places where the former serfs re-
ceived on liberation only small plots free
of payment. Elsewhere the peasants have
, actually more land than they work,
many preferring employment in fac
tories cabmen or at other callings.
These men leave their wives to look after
the land best they The great ma
: iorty of peasants We're liberated with their
full plots of three desciatins of land-about
: ten acres. All that is wanted now is some
Encouragement of the plots of land. This
, could be carried out by effectng exchanges
and by purchasing tracts from private own
ers. Some villages certainly have INSULT
cient woodland This could be given them
from the forest lands belonging to the
crown"