The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-05-22
The Duma and the Czap.

There is reason TO fear that the consti-
tutional experiment nov making in Rus
sia may fail before it is fairly launched.
The presiding officer of the Duma, Mr..
MoRUMTzEFF, who on Saturday and
Sunday went to Peterhof for the pur-
pose of presenting the address respon-
sive to his Majesty's speech, was unable
to obtain audience Of the Car, though
he was told that he might transmit the
document through a member of the
existing Ministry or through a palace
official. Although the leaders of the
Constitutional Democrats strove in a
CAUCUS of their party to minimize the
provocative effect OF this rebuff, the
Cars refusal to receive the spokesman
of his subjects will profoundly dis
courage those who desire to bring about
a peaceful transition from the auto
cratic to a constitutional regime.
The technical ground on which an
audience was refused seems to have been
that under the so-called Constitution or
Fundamental Law" formulated on
May Z the president, or speaker, of the
Duma was to be allowed to submit to
the consideration OF the sovereign the
transactions of the lower house; but
whether he should do this in person was
not stated, and certainly he was not
authorized to bring with him a deputa-
ton of his colleagues, 1t is plausibly
suggested, we are told, by a Minister
disposed to temporize that the action
- tkn uA,,aa - annoiptinp n lala rnfiop
to accompany Mr., MoRUMTzEFF might
be deemed a dangerous precedent,
which might one day be stretched so as
to include a delegation Of all the mem-
bers OF the House. 1t is further pointed
out in the same conoiliatory spirit that
no slight to the Duma was intended, mas
much Us the Council Of the Empire had
also been instructed to present it's adj
dress through the hands of a Minister.
To those, however, who have wished to
see Russia attain representative SELF
government without the shedding OF
blood it will seem a deplorable blunder
to have let any technical barrier be
interpoeed between the sovereign and
tho voice Of his people. The mistake
will appear especially grievous when
the respectful tenor Of the address is
considered,
With extraordinary tact and disore-
ton the leaders Of the Constitutional
Democrats, who for the moment at least
have b,en able to control most OF the
delegates OF the peasants, succeeded
in eliminating from the text OF the adj
dress any trace Of the turbulence which
had characterized many speeches in the
course Of the debate, So far as the
wording OF the document went, there
was nothing to offend n sovereign's
susceptibilities, although undoubtedly
the changes which he was requested to
make In the so-called Fundamental
Law would 60 to the root of the mat
ter. The Car was urged to concede to
the Duma the power Of the purse by
agreeing that no taxes should be i'm
The demand should have been recog-
nized as entirely reasonable, for in
these days no constitution which should
not provide that in the matter Of money
bills the initiative must belong to the
popular branch of the national legisla-
ture could pretend to have created
parliamentary institutions. Another de-
mand put forward in the address, that,
namely, for equality Of rights, irrespeo-
tive. Of sex, nationality or religion,
which, as stated, seemed to aim at the
concession of the suffrage to women,
might without exasperating the Duma
have been reserved for mature consid-
Grafton. Then, too, many Of the men,
bers who voted for it cannot have ex-
pected the Emperor to grant the demand
OF amnesty for all crimes, even murders,
if committed from agrarian, religious
or political motives. The instinct OF
self-preservation would compel any
self-respecting governpent to refrain
from declaring that its ruler or his
'age2ts might be assassinated with i'm