The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-07-07
.DOUMA DISSOLVED
ON CRUDE PRETEXT
Government But Awaited the Op-
portunity Of Stultifying the
Promises Of the Gar.
a CHILDISH MANIFESTO
ST. PETERSBURG, July

ST. PETERSBURG, July y.
st. Petersburg IS taking the dissolution
very quietly. 1t apparently does not real
ize yet that q coup detat has been eff
fected. Few troops are visible and there
has been no attempt at disturbance.
] The Douma members long expected the
/ dissolution, and are meeting 1t philo-
sophically, convinced that the govern
ment has put itself SO plainly in the
wrong that the country will thoroughly
understand the situation. No parties are
issuing proclumations, but several have
decided without attempting to hurl futile
defiance at the government to issue full
report Of their work In the Douma.
All the events of it's closing days seem
to have conapired to vindicate the Douma
as against Its persistent aud unscrupulous
accusers. The government Is unfortu-
nate in its choice of pretext, and the
charges 1t made against the Social Demo-
Gratis proved on examination by the
Douma committee, to be based not on
fresh evidence, but on hackneyed COM
monplaces of the party's policy, which
were familiar when the Social Democratic
candidates stood for the Douma, and
were reiterated again in deputies
speeches.
Hypocrisy of the Government.
AS If to maintain judicial demeanor,
the government permitted the Douma to
refer the question to a committee, and
sent its representative to the committee
with material, but when. owing to the
amount of time involved in the vertical
ton OF the evidence, the committee pro-
tractcd Its labors, the government lost
patience, threw off its judicial mask, and
showed by dissolving the Douma before
the comm.ttee had had time to arrive q t
decision on the merits OF the case that
its whole object in suddenly preferring
charges against the Social Democrats was
to find q crude ana rather Unnecessary
preteXt FIR dissolution.
The majority of the members of the
Douma committee had convinced them
selves that the evidence presented by the
government was insufficient to warrant a
prosecution Of more than one. or at the
very most two. OF the Socialist deputies.
by precipitating the dissolution, the gov
ernment showed. first, That 1t realized it
had an execrable case; secondly, that it
did not mini very much whether or not
II had 7retext Tor overriding It's own
laws; and. thirdly. Sunday, as a whole, is
more convenient day for dissolution
than any ether.
VI A Childish Manifesto.
THE manifesto issued by the government
contained SUCH q. wt!ful and childish dis.
tort!on OF gtacr that 1t hardly ,,ritates a
people accustomed to being browbeaten
by lis government, and the reasscrtlon Of
autocracy contained In the phrase about
The emperor's power to repeal any law
ne Eas given-cven fundamental Iaws--is,
after all, only formal admission Of
what most people knew 10 be the real
1rind OF the government 1t has Ions.
been known that an alteration or the
electoral law was in preparation. The &C.
tails were not made public. but, as Tar
as the general features or the new law
gre known, surprise is expressed that The
changes are not more radical The re-
duction IN the number Of deputies from
alien na'!onaiitles Is probably INTENDED
az a snpb to the Poles for their pro
posal OF autonomy. and to the CGucasians
as punishment for having sent chiefly 50
,c!alists TO the Douma. Those parts of 81
IBERIA whore political exilcs are in larg,
numbers are also deprived Of great par
OF their representation.
IT seems improbable IN spite of al! 1T
1aw-breaking that the government vii
even now succeed in assembling a reao
tionary or even Il prcdominantIy con
servatiYe Dcuma. NJ Stolypin has sur
rendered to the reactionaries perhaps (,
the hope OF saving few fragments o
constitutional semblance from the wreck
perhaps because, not understanding con
sttutonalism. he Is willing to max,
partly IN good faith, dsgracefu conces
slons TO the reacaonaries.