Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1915-10-28
GREAT LEADER IS
NEEDED BY SLMS
Returned Military Authority
Doubts That Car Is Strong
Enough to Meet Emergen-
cy-Nation Not Beaten.

4 Enough to Meet Emergen-
Cy-Nation Not Beaten.
Lodz. Russian Poland. SpeciaI.-The
military authority of one of the allied
DoWers, who has just completed a stay
pr several months in Russia, with the
imperial armies, has furnished the AS
ISOLATED Press with a summary of the
situation at the time when the en-
oeror of Russia took personal COM
nand of the land INC naval forces OF
she empire.
TT is useless to deny the gravity Of
The situation in Russia" the officer in
question said, out it would be quite
AZ to regard Russia's posi-
lion today as desperate, or even as one
pr Imminent danger. The morals OF
the Russian forces is absolutely I'M
ouche by the long series of retreats.
Slhe Russian people are for the war to
- man. and every defeat has served
only to confirm them in their stubborn
az erminatio to drive every German
from Russian soil. Were the govern
Sment to undertake to make a separate
peace Tor Russia now, 1T would have
&to face a spontaneous and flaming in
ssurrectton in all parts of the country.
This is only one side the medal,
AhoWever. The charge in the supreme
command of the imperial armies has
chad Its drawbacks. The grand duke,
Nicholas Nicholaievitch, was never a
great tactician, nor did he eve pre-
@tend to be one. But he a the con-
&fidence OF his officers and the absolute
faith Of his men. The latter the m
&perOr will also have-perhaps even to
ssa greater extent than his great uncle
sfor the emperor of all the Russias is
salmost a religious figure to the aver
age Russian. But how much conf
Sdence he will inspire in his officers is
Sanother matter. They know that
when Nicholas Ni~cholaevitch said a
thing he meant it. He was like a rock
tally just and OF open mind. Ills Of
B ficers could depend upon him, and
they did depend Upon him. And 1T had
ian excellent effect throughout the
army.
Fear Gear Is Weak.
with the emperor the Russians fear
II may be different. In the first place,
he not only is not a soldier. but he is
: very strong advocate of world peace.
He has retained confidence in former
Minister of War Soukhomlinoff. in
whom certainly no n else has any
confidence. and who is generally re-
farded In Russia as an incompetent
who. with R%asspoutin, has la a very
sinister influence IN the emperor.
The mperor himself also recalled
to office when. with much difficulty he
had finally been got rid of, S. v. Roukh-
ION, who now occupies the most inn
!portant civil post In the empire-that
OF the ministry of communications, and
who instead of planning to transport
arTris and munitions to armies in des-
perate of them, Is intent upon
working put nationalist theories of his
own of Russia for the Russians. In
place OF accepting a very favorable
American offer to erect factories in
Russia for the reassembling of Amer
lean war materials by those familiar
with the work. Roukhloff insisted on
having the work lone by Russians to-
tally unfamiliar with 1t, in factories
which the Russians tool 10 times as
long to construct as the Americans
would have required.
On the financial side the situation
- about as bad. The minister, p. r..
Bark. 10 a mar OF no very signal abil-s
itys who knows enough, however, to be
guided largely by his French and Brit
tsh colleagues. But Chipoff, the head
sof the state bank. has given rise to
no little criticism of his capacity in
RUSSIA by his insistence on guarding
the sold reserve Of the empire intact,
Whatever happens to Russian exchange.
Russia Media Efficiency.
II ts the emperor's willingness to
Keep men like these in office under
present critical conditions which has
@ahiled the intelligent Russian with APP
preilension at the prospect OF his active
participation IN military affairs at this
uncertain junCture. No! one in Russia
~ ignorant that the emperor takes his
slrao1tional position as the father of
his people with almost devout seri-
Dusness. II Is scarcely possible 10
TO what unexpected action his
conviction that he is called to he n
second ST. Vladimir may lead him. HIS
a~gntentions are admitted to be excel
lent. u Russia could do with n little
teSs exalted purpose and a little more
practical efficiency.
The same may be said of the duma.
With h most patriotic intentions in
Tile world Of lending the full Der :
Stton OF the people OF Russia to the
stsefense OF h empire, Its members
g1satsed. at a crisis when nobody has
time TO consider them, the most COM
pick p embarrassing questions Of in
sSof the advisability of a responsible
ministry when plainly every thought is
necessary to the national License.
Sseenas almost absurd, yet that is pre-.
stsely what the Russians let the duma
sdo. and by permitting it, succeeded in
which threatens 10 ieopardise his nssl pera
nonals popularity, at the moment when
gJt Is perhaps the most valuable asset
the government possesses.
ssSs' sFrOm military standpoint there
IRE two great dangers In Russia today.
The first lies in continued and sue
cessfuiH German drive on Petrograd;
the second is 9 drive In the opposite
Airection. with q view ~to=opening a way
sfhrOugh Russia to the Black sea, 70
SE~eestabltsh the broken. communications
With the Ottoman empire. Both are
lEegArded as most unlikely Of success
y xenSif attempted; but both must be
7coslsidered IN Weighing the present sit
Seatt0nsin Russia. 5
forsases Russian Recovery.
ssas.ssft T. scarcely probable that The
13N1elan armies Will begin to receive
Elnenufsiciert quantities the smal arms
51!lldsgmppnnittons they lack much before
sM0VaI6ber. Il Is not, therefore, very.
11yAsthatst they will be ready to as
a1lll41eS a1lysaserdous offensive before the
$k16Ea0fssDec1rnber
R SS Ee9nNhfle the defensive retreat
41lk1ksSGgsp0n Genera. Rousski, who Is
G1SkSSs6SHpOn q one 81 the ablest mill
Jk@ss8c56yIaEnAnders OF the empire. has
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