The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-03-22
II.

Alexander ii. was by no means of &C
stern stun as his father. The diarist
attributes to him much Of the weak.
ness and irresolutlon which he fnds
contolned with even less respectable
and amIable qualities In the character
OF the present Gar.
He was, We are here told. vlndictlve
and vain. and he had the still worse
defect. for the purposes. OF an abso-
lutte monarch, Of being Of the opinion
Of the last speaker. OF the sincerity
OF his purpose to modernize and lib
cralizc the government Of Russia there
can be no question. but neither the
public estimation of his acts to this end
while living nor the tragic manner al
his taking or was calculated to inspire
his successors with a desire to follow
in his footsteps. The emancipation Of
the serfs by the decree Of February,
1861. was Of course memorable event
which insured the monarch whose per.
sonal achievement II was a place in
the history not only Of his own country
but Of the modern world. But 1t seems
doubtful whether the lot OF the Rus
sian serfs has really been ameliorated
by it. 1t seems certain that the scrfs
In general expected much more of IL
than could possibly he obtained. As
much might be said OF the emancipa-
ton Of the slaves in the United States
three years later. But the emancipa-
ton Of the negroes was avowedly a war
measure, constitutionally warranted
only. as Lincoln owned. upon military
necessity" Had 1t been done in time
Of peace. as was the emancipation of
the serfs In Russia, II would doubtless
have been preceded by a campaign Of
education" which would have dispelled
or tended to dispel the too sanguine
expectations OF its beneficiaries.
No such campaign was attempted in
Russia and the peasantry entertained
hopes the disappointment Of which
embittered them against the Car. whom
they held responsible for II. On tho
other hand tho landlords considered
that their vested rights In their own
land as we'll as in their own laborers
had been infringed. Even those OF them,
Of whom there were many. who would
cheerfully have coopeSated In a scheme
for gradual emancipation were ag-
grieved and outraged by the summary
act OF the Car. which they regarded
as cOnfscatiOn. SO that In fact the
emancipation OF the serfs brought no
popularity to Its author from any quar-
ter. His unpopularity was aggravated
by the character OF his private life. II a
Car can be said TO have any private life.
Russian opinion ever since tho time Of
Peter the Great has been tolerant Of
marital infidelities on the part OF the
ruler. There IL a touching story here
OF how on his deathbed Nicholas /.
asked for Barbara" and how the Fin.
press herself led the mistress, Mile.
Nclidoff, to the bedside, receiving from
her dying husband Thank you, Char.
lotte." But this was the only irregu-
lar connection which Nicholas was
known TO have maintained, whereas his
son was Of much greater versatility.
He had successive relations with the
Princesses Dolgorouky. who az chill
dren had been. entrusted 10 him by their
dying father: tho younger. who bore him
three Children and whom he quite openly
visited daily In st. Petersburg. followed
him about Europe. once staying with
him at the Russian Embassy in Berlin,
to the great disgust OF the German I'm.
press Augusta. when the spread OF
Nihilism made 1t dangerous for him to
80 to her house In st. Petersburg he
installed her In the Winter Palace with
their children, In apartmsnts immedi.
sioiy above thoss of tho Empress, 81.
Petersburg 10 not easily shocked. but