Evening star., 1917-11-11


ment to the army chiefs, surgeons, doc
tors. Red Gross people, the soldiers in the
trenches and the people who listened tt
the soap box orators in Petrograd itself
This returned official today said:
Despite all dispatches, it il no doub'
difficult for the average American, thou
sands Of miles away from Russia, to IN.
derstand how any government can bt
overthrown by SO small 4 group as that
now reported as in control, but the fac
IS the provisional government, the crea
ton OF the duma, was never anything
more than paper government The rea
government in Russia after the first furry
Of overturning the czar was and is the
so-cdlled Worklngmen'S and soldiers
councils or committees.
Have Been Running Russia.
These organizations formed by th,
workingmen and the soldiers and peasan
delegates, with their innumerable commit
tees, nave been running Russia. And ono.
the provisional government at the vero
start accepted their aid and gave in t
them, allowing them free access to the
army and navy the mischief was done. And
arter that all pretense of power on the
part OF kerensky. until he finally gave il
to them when he proclaimed a republic
on september 16, meant nothing. His cab
met appointments, his policies were af
lected only so long as these extraordinar,
committees approved of them. And wher
they no longer approved of him he alst
went by the board.
,ca,s As for the present policy of the rad.
would deal with the devil to get s
speedy peace. Germany, moreover, will
nave no qualms in dealing with then
SO long as they control the army ant
navy. which they do absolutely. Thi.
understand The breakdown of the
Russian offensive. with possible
armistice in sight. is due to the fac,
that since early in July the troops have
taken orders solely from the soviet,
the self-constttuted governing body oi
Russia. the soldiers and workingmen'!
committee.
Great Harm Done to Russia,
"of course. despite the fact that from
the first kerensky inclined toward tn,
radicals of the revolution OF 1905, OF
whom Lenlne and TrotZky, now in SUI
preme power. were leaders, men in tn,
the danger OF this autocratic rule o.
the committee, which some peopl,
claim has done more harm to Russis
in six months than the czarism did il
hundreds of years. But when thel
tried to save themselves and save Rus
Sia it was too late.
When 1 left Russia there was a dis
puted opinion as to whether Kerensk,
was honest or dishonest, growing ou
of what is known as the Kornilof
crisis. in which those opposed to tn,
radicals believed that Kerensky wa.
the real traitor to Russia, and not onll
showed a yellow streak, but went bacl
on his word. either because. as Is alst
believed by many. he is an extrem,
radical at heart and secretly approve.
all the absurdities of the soviet, or suf
fering from a mental breakdown, /
not an eplleptic attack, he becam
panicky and acted as man out of hi
mind. He is reported to have had sucl
an attack at the Moscow conference
conference which came to nothing be
cause he lost his head and becam
frenzied from fear that Korniloff wa
about to usurp his functions and talk
the leadership of the country
Not Rebellion at All.
and it Is absolutely impossible to uu
derstand the present situation withou
knowing the facts about the so-callet
'kornilof rebellion which was not a re
bellion at all and which has been abso
lutely misrepresented to all outside aNt
to the American public. since Kerenskr
until he fell. and the soviet censored al
the news from Russia The fact tina
Kerensky is out of power today and tha
a certain kind of civil war impends !.
due to three cardinal blunders-some II
Petrograd call them crimes s-made b,
heTenSRy. Inc HrSt was MS eXtraOrOl
nary betrayal of Gen. korniloff to tn,
soviet early in September after he hat
solemnly agreed to share the govern
ment of Russia with korniloff in an en-
deavor to end the anarchy promoted by
the soldiers and workingmen's interfer
ence with the army and the navy ant
the whole industrial life of the country
Leninites Given Arms.
.ar1, r.a,,5 ,,+ NJ f,J1,, ,,h;.., 49,.
everybody in Petrograd in a state Of
the gravest apprehension and antici.
patory terror, was when kerensky gave
the soviet crowd-the Leninftes that i:
$4,000 rifles to enable them to protec
the government Up to that time the,
dominate a city whose police force wa.
made up of amateurs and volunteers
since the old police force had beer
sent about it's business when the czal
fell. The third act, which led finally
to his own downfall. was to call te
Petrograd the worst reds of all, the
garrison of Kronstadt. composed OF
sailors who had murdered their officers
under conditions of revolving cruelty
and who were now brought in to pro.
tect' the capital and Kerensky's gov.
ernment against the menace of .korni.
lofts rebellion a rebellion. be it un.
derstood, for which Kerensky had ne.
gotiated with Korniloff when he real.
lied that the committee system Of run
ming the country was failure.
Naturally. under such a state O,
things Korniloff. who was a real pat
riot, and had no intention of promot-
ing civil war as a dictator, was put
technically under arrest and later was
taken to Archangel. But by these
three acts of kerensky, which finally
confirmed the soviet, since they con-
trolled the army and navy absolutely
as the sole rulers of Russia, he was
forced from one extreme to another
until his various relationships of five
and cabinets. which were made up OF
radicals, finally brought about the So
called proclamation Of a republic on
September 16."
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