El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1915-10-16
GAR SBLUHIE4S
HANDICAP RUSSIA
IN GREAT CRISIS
People Wildly Aroused and
Nation is Far From Be
ing Whipped.
AMMUNITION NOW
GREATEST NEED

n tinguished military authority of
one OF the allied powers. who
has Just completed a stay Of several
months in Russia, with the imperial
armies. has furnished the Associated
Press with a summary Of the situation
at the time when the emperor O. Rus
STA took personal command If TIE land
and naval forces Of the empire.
1T is useless to deny the gravity Of
the situation in Russia" the officer
in question said. but it would be quite
as erroneous to regard Russia's posi-
tion today as desperate. or even as
one Of imminent danger. The morale
OF the Russian forces is absolutely IN
touched by the LONE series Of retreats.
The Russian people are for the war to
a man. and every defeat has served
only TO confirm them in their stubborn
determination to drive every German
from Russian soil Were the govern
ment to undertake to make a separate
peace for Russia now. IL would have
TO face a spontaneous and flaming in
surrection in all parts Of the country.
This is only one side, however. The
change in the supreme command of
the imperial armies has had its draw
backs. The grand duke Nicholas Nicho-
laieVitch was never a great taCtician.
nor did he ever pretend to be one But
he had the confidence Of his officers
and the absolute faith of his men. The
latter the emperor viii also have-per-
haps even to a greater extent than his
great uncle-fOr the emperor Of all
the Eussias is almost a religious fig
ure 10 the average Russian But how
much confidence he viii inspire in his
officers is another matter. They know
that when Nicholas NichOlaievitch said
a thing he meant it. He was like a
rock in his decisions, and withal fun
damentallv Just and Of open mind His
officers could depend upon him. and
they did depend upon him. And it had
an excellent effect throughout the
army
Emperor Not soldier.
with the emperor, the Russians fear
il may be different In the first place,
he not only is not a soldier, but he is
p very strong advocate Of world peace
He has retained confidence in former
minister Of war SoukhomlinOff in
whom certainly no one else has any
garded in Russia as an Incompetent
who. with Rasspoutin, has had q very
sinister influence on the emperor.
The emperor himself. also. recalled
TO office when, with much difficulty
he had finally been got rid of. 5. V
who now occupies the most
important civil post in the empire
that Of the ministry Of communications.
and who instead OF planning TO trans
port arms and munitions to armies in
desperate need Of them. is intent upon
working out 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 Ame- l
rican war materials by those familiar
with the work. ROukhloff insisted on
having the work done by Russians, to Z
tally unfamiliar with IL. in factories I
which the Russians took ten times as I
long to construct as the Americans I
would have required.
Financial situation Bad.
son the financial side the situation !
Is almost as bad. The minister. P. L. !
Bark, is a man Of no very signal abil- !
ty. who knows enough. however, TO I
be guided largely by his French and 4
English colleagues. But Chipoff, the /
head Of the state bank, has given rise !
to no little criticism OF his capacity i
IN Russia by his insistence on guard I
ng the gold reserve Of the empire 4
intact whatever happens to Russian I
exchange
1T is the emperor's Willingness to
keep men like these in office under /
present critical conditions which has
Tiled the Intelligent Russian with ap-
lrehensiOn at the prospect Of his ac-
y D
his uncertain juncture.
From a military standpoint there I
ire two great dangers in Russia today. ]
The first lies in a continued and sue
.essfuI German drive on Petrograd: the
,econd is a drive in the opposite direc-
ion, with a view to opening q way I
through Russia TO the Black Sea. to Z
establish the broken communications
With the Ottoman empire Both are
egarded as most unlikely Of success
wen If attempted: but both must be
Considered in weighing the present sit
latiOn in Russia.
1T is scarcely probable that the Rus
ian armies will begin to receive in
ufficient quantities the small arms
nd munitions they lack much before
november. It is not therefore very
kelly that they will be ready to as
ume any serious offensive before the
irst Of December.
Retreat Must Continue.
Meanwhile the defensive retreat
lust go on Gen. Rousski who is
BOXED upon as one Of the ablest mill
airy commanders Of the empire. has
he defence or Pctrcgrad in hand. The
important defensive works which he Z
as caused TO be constructed about !
'skOv are thought to be as nearly i'm
regnable as any entertainments have