The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1917-09-13
Neither a Man With One
Foot in the Grave Nor Die
tatOr of Russia" -

~ This is another of the series of
articles by Charles Edward Rus
: sell, staff writer Of The Tribune;
who has just returned from Rus.
. sia, where he spent three months :
as a member of the official United
States commission to the new
Russian government.
BY CHARLES COWARD RUSSELL.
Copyright, 1917, by the Newspaper
Enterprise Association.l
Every day l am asked to tell some
thing about Kerensky, the dictator
the "man of blood and iron," the
ruler Of Russia" and supposed hold
er of a. raft of other title the foolish
or the reactionary have made for him.
The great question seems to be
about his health. He is running a
race between death and position
as the "Nalopeon of Russia" death
having the inside track and being
likelier to win.
Universal Belief.
The universal belief in this, "blood
and iron" fantasy is one of te most
interesting examples l have ever
known of the possibilities of the fake
when 1t takes the form of pleasing
dream.
.Kerensky is about as much man
of "blOOd and iron" as he is of pump
kin rinds and jimson weeds. He is
about as much dictator of Russia
as you are.
Nevertheless since the world is de-
termined to have him the man Of
the hour" in Russian affairs, ladies
and gentlemen know Mr.. Kerensky
present prime minister OF Russia.
He is about 40, rather we'll set up,
about feet inches in height, clean
shaven ,thin-lipped, blue-eyed. He has
very good head, but you would
know instantly 1t was not the head of
an American because it is SO much
up and down instead of fore and aft
He has rather lightish brown hair
cut short and rising straight from his
head. He has square shoulders, much
grace of bearing and an excellent
poise for his particular job, which is
oratory. But in private conversation
he has something of Grover Cleve-
lands habit of not looking much at
the person with whom he is talking,
trick that as in Cleveland's case,
produces a certain impression Of shy
ness.
Most Retcent.
Except when he gets started on one
of his extraordinary flights of elo.
quence he is one of the most reticent
of men. 1t is hard to draw him out
on any ordinary topic and still harder
to Judge what he really thinks about
it unless he gets interested and sits
up to take notice of his surroundings.
Then his blue eyes betray him. But
at that he will never be a prize win
ner at conversation, having too much
of fondness for words of one sylla'
BILE and only a few of those.
He is an old-time revolutiOnist and
tasted all the bitterness that the old
regime handed out to me of his
faith He is a Socialist, but that is
no distinction in Russia; nine-tenths
of the people are Socialists.
He is also an idealist and at the
beginning of the revolution was as
dreamy as any. He, to, had this no
ton that the downfall of autocracy in
Russia sounded Gabriels big horn for
the Earthly Paradise
There were to be no more divisions
among men, and, of course, there were
to be no more wars. Universal broth
erhood had arrived on the midnight
train. Everybody was to love every
body else: the lion was to lie down
and the lamb was Sc. to- cease to be
chops for him. 4
It was a fine, good feeling and one
----x na<.o Throo \