Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-11-10
THE GEAR AND THE THIRD DUMA

uU lulNU UUMd
combating reaction and exerting every
effort to achieve a constitutional regime.
appear to be the pFedominatinS influence
in the recent elections.
The Novoe vremya during long time
opposed the Octobrists and called them
the party of nothing the party OF
ennu." Latterly this same journal Is
manifestly partisan and publishes a
daily article m their favor. The press OF
ST. Petersburg indeed discusses the prob
able accord between Octobrists and cadets
the subject. NJ. Alexander StakhoVitch
has written an important article to the
Reitch favoring common action. and was
interviewed on that subject In the BIZ
jevya Vedomosti.
The victory in the electoral colleges of
St Petersburg was formerly won by the
cadets. but now the Octobrists are vic
tors. OF the seventy votes that COM
pose the college the coalition Of Octobrsts
and conservatives hold. since the 18th Of
October. thirty eight hence majority.
The Octobrists, placed as they are on
the left OF the parties Of the right. oc-
cupy in the electoral mass a central posi-
ton. 1t is thus almost certain that in
the duma the Octobrists will become the
center party.
The Slovo forecasts the role Of the Oc-
Tourists in the duma and says:
ITO the Octobrists belongs the duty to
fix definitely constitutional order in Rus
STA. Their role will be decisive; their
therefore. the fate Of the ukase of oc-
tober 30" The decision TO which the
Slovo refers is to know II the Octobrists
In the third duma will form bloc" with
the cadets.
-
Octobrism it should be recalled, was
constituted in the beginning by the minor
ity Of the zemstvos held at
Octobrist Moscow during the first
nine months of 1905. The
1oAAsJ' lines were drawn more
plainly after the ukase known as "con-
stitutional" was published October 30 OF
the same year. Subsequently In the con-
gress Of November, 1908. a sharp orator.
cal debate placed IN conflict the majority
become the cadets. and the minority oe-
come the Octobrists. Then the cadets
gave themselves over to the reign1ng IN
fatuation for radicalism. and formed the
most compromising relations with me
revolutionaries The Octobrists on the
contrary held aloof and maintained
strict neutrality They refused to enter
into the ministerial combination OF Count
de Witte, who offered them portfolios.
The Octobrists maintained their liberty
cured them in the first duma twenty
seven seats only. while the cadets had
1S3 After the dissolution OF July Il,
1905, a new modification awaited them.
the schism provoked by Count Heyden
and the party of pacific renovation. With
faithful to their program in supporting
NJ Stolypin but refusing portfolios in his
cabinet But the voters have not recon-
pensed their constancy and fdeiity 10
principle. They were twenty-seven In the
first duma. They were twenty-six in the
second.
After these unfortunate setbacks Is
easy to understand that the Octobrists
hold themselves in reserve and are IN no
haste to traffic with the chances which
Their prudence and their probity dictate
that they do not decide hastily. There Is
certainly strong reason that they should
work to form a coherent center. But
they should be careful that their role
shall not be that Of the sacrificed.
X X
LIE Temps recalls the assembling OF the
general congress of the zemstvos. which
was first opened in Mos
Zemstvo cow November 10, 1904
then the one Of May B.
congress. July 10. September % and
October 10, 1905. and finally the anniver-
sary congress which was held on the
10Th of November Of the same year. It
was natural. therefore, that the general
congress OF the zemstvos, which met In
Moscow on September Z of this year,
should have provoked extraordinary in
terest
The zemstvos congress, voluntarily con-
fined in its administrative attributions
was silent as long as the second dums
occupied the political stage. The ukase
of dissolution signed June 10 last was the
signal of a revival Of activity. A few
days later on June %. was held gen
eral congress at Moscow, in which the
first act was to severely censure tine
duma and address to the emperor and NJ
Stolypin protestations Of loyalty and de-
votion.
The government saw in that act rec.
onciliation between the enlightened and
powerful class composing the Russian
| nobility on the one side and the ministry
on the other. It saw indeed the shadow
of the center party which was lacking ir
electoral law-it was hoped at least
would give to the third duma.
One OF the authors of the reform, 8
member of zemstvos, M. Erchof said:
I'm the domain which Is ours we claim
the confidence Of government. We prom
Use 1t to show ourselves worthy. The
Russian zemstvos will be more than a
school Of liberty. rather workshop OF
construction and organization. The semst-
vos were at the head OF liberal progress
when the established order was not men,
aced by any one. They became the de-
tenders of government when the revolu-
ton undertook to mine the basis Of So
ciety. The storm of revolution passed, II
is now time to return to our work-the
pacific organization of the Russian land.
Under the patriotic guide Of the center
party the third duma will doubtless rally
to the principles enunciated
Rallying by the xemstvos. which are
1, principles alike Of the car
oAne' and his minister. NJ. Stoly-
pin. For the one. as for the other. the
pacific organization Of the Russian coun-
try is the first duty of the Russian pa
triot
Meanwhile the correspondent at Bel
grade Of the Taegliche Rundschau re-
ports the text Of a secret Russo-Bulga-
rian military convention relative to Mace
donna. The Austro- Russian note dealing
with the situation in Macedonia has