The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1906-03-26
REACTION STILL
A POSSIBILITY
Cool Heads Needed to Guide Russian
Ship of State When As
sembly Meets.
GOVERNMENT is SECURE
RIOTOus OUTBREAK SURE TO
REACT.

1T. Petersburg. March 25.-The Asso-
eiated Press is able to give the results
OF an important conversation with
high parsonage regarding the situation
IN Russia. Neither the name nor the
position of this parsonage can be in
dicated, but his competency to speak
upon the situation can be vouched for,
The conversation which covered a
wide range, left the distinct impression
That the assembling of the national par
lament. would bring a crisis, but not
the one anticipated abroad. The gov
eminent evidently is absolutely con-
WINGED that an armed revolution or a
general uprising which would menace
its life is no longer possible and that
that the danger is not that the gov
eminent VIII be oVerthrown but that it
VIII be driven to abandon its path of
reform.
Governments Grip Firm.
THE guerrilla warfare which the rev.
olutionists at present are conducting"
said the parsonage referred to, cannot
succeed Acts of terrorism doubtless
will continue vengeance may be
wrecked upon governors general and
police masters; Count Witta the pre-
mier, and Minister Of the Interior Dur
nOvO may be assassinated; banks and
buildings may be blown I'D, and there
may even be riots here and there-but
attempts to produce widespread risings
In the cities or a repetition of the rail-
road strike are doomed to failure. The
government has a firm grip and every
measure TO prevent excuses viii be ia
ken.
Conditions Have Changed.
Besides, the situation has been COM
pletely altered since last fall, waen
practically the whole of the urban pop
ulation Joined the protest which led the
emperor TO grant the manifesto of DC
tOber 30 The government then was un-
able TO cope with the extreme revoIu-
tionaries- The army in European Rus
STA was at a low strength and filled
with TeseTvfsts bordering on mUtiny ow-
In to their anxiety to return to their
homes and TejOin their families, and
new recruits everywhere We're prevent
ed from Joining the COlOrs. Since then
all Is changed. The Teservists have
been discharged and the recruits have
been drilled and Joined the ranks. Reg
iments which then consisted of 400 now
have 1000 men. Two army corps have
returned from ManChUTia and more reg
ulars are arriving daily.
NO matter what is said to the con-
traTy il is certain that the army Is
faithful 10 the emperor. There may be
individual cases of dislOyalty but the
reliability of the army as a whole is
UnquestiOned. The weight of troops
alone renders a revolution impossible.
Peasants True to Gar.
Should there be eagrar1an disorders
In the summer they Will not be revolu-
tiOnaTy in character, for the peasants
of Russia are true tOfthe emperor. The
danger lies in another direction.
1T is not a question of the fall of
the government but whether reform or
reaction will pTevail-whether the pres
ent struggle to supplant the old regime
and secure larger liberties ror the peo-
pie viii enter the present parliament
phase or a counter revolution viii sweep
away the entire programme on which
the government has entered The en-
perOr is sincerely and honestly desir-
Gus of meeting the wishes of his peO-
pie and has given them his word to
this end But this TeactiOnary party
exists. 1t is composed of the aristOc-
racy with a powerful backing in high
places and above all it enjoys the sup
port of the military faction, which in
a country like Russia is an immense
factor. The military is naturally reac-
tionaFy. An officer prefers to receive
a Napoleon rather than Il parliament.
After thirty years as a republic a
strong rOyalist faction still exists I'm
the French army.
Nevertheless, at the present moment
the reactiOnary party is weak and pow
erless. II lacks the public following
without which II dare not. 1t is easily
conceivable, however, that the situa-
lion might suddenly change should an
opportunity to strike come.
Would Be Swept Away.
should the parliament attempt to
"a kA the b1lIl ny the horns for the demo-
sition of the emperor and the destruc-
lion of the whole fabric of govern