The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-08-30
RUSSIA MUST PASS FROM WORDS AND
 ACT, SAYS WOMAN
Grandmother of the Revo- lution" Makes Patriotic Speech Before Confer
 ence at Moscow

Moscow, August 29.-At the third general
 sitting of the national conference, railway
 representatives, including M Froloff of the Engineers alliance, reported that
 there existed a state of utter disorgan- ization of transportation, which, unless improved, would cease completely by No- venbe The representatives gave warn ing that the consequences would be ter rible, both at home and on the front,
 and that the army might turn on the country and commit unexampled ex-
 cesses.
 The extreme demands of the railway workers, the speakers said, played an important part in this disorganization. They called on all those engaged in the transportation services to sacrifice per sonal interests for those of the country.
 MUST HAVE DISCIPLINE | General Grouzinoff, former military governor of Moscow, told the delegates the chief problem was to save Russia from the enemy and that to this end 1t was necessary to establish army dis cipline by eliminating politics, strength ening the authority of the leaders, limit ing the power of soldiers committees to economic functions, and giving the com mander in chief power to exercise unre- served authority
 l General Alexieff, former commander in | chief, made long address, in which he recounted the history of the Russian s
 military setback and assigned their causes. He drew contrasts between the army of the old regime, poorly equipped l with mechanical resources, but strong in warlike spirit, and the present army, well supplied with food and arms, but com pletely poisoned and enfeebled by i'll in- far< ,4<,1,
 have been put forward. These doctrines, he declared, had split the army into two opposite camps, officers and soldiers, which have become almost irreconcilable. Speaking of the committees elected by the officers of the various units General Alex Jeff said they were useful to the army from an economic standpoint, but were fatal to discipline. None the less subver- sive was the influence of government comissariats, whose appointment, he as- serted, created an extremely dangerous duality of power.
 NO RESPECT OF LEADERS The general maintained that after pub llcation by the government of the decla- ration of the rights of soldiers all re- spect toward leaders disappeared, the of ficers becoming vertable martyrs and having to pay very dearly for the of fensive of August 1, and the subsequent retreat. The general cited some remark able illustrations of this. On one occa- sion, he said, when an attack was being launched, the force which advanced was made up of 2S officers, 20 noncommissioned officers and two soldiers. All the others looked on coldly while these heroes per ished.
 The general declared it would be im- possible to carry on the war to a yic- torious conclusion unless the strongest possible efforts were made by the provi- sional government and by the troops themselves to reanimate and regenerate the army.
 APPEAL OF WOMEN After Madame Katherine Breshkovs- kaya, the grandmother of the revolu- tion," had appealed to the government to pass from words to actions, and help the army conquer the enemy, Prince Pe- ter Kropatkin, who was not on the list Of speakers, was heard, at the request of the whole conference, He called upon all Russians to prevent the fatal seven- tuality of German victory and expressed the hope that Russia would not be pro- claimed a federative republic.
 This sentiment submitted to the con- ference for the first time, evoked a long continuous ovation in honor of Prince Kropatkin.
 Other speakers who declared against a separate peace were loudly applauded.