The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1917-11-12
MEMBER OF THE ASSOCIATED PRESS.
The Debacle in Russia

Kerensky tried to yoke anarchy with order, and
as a result he went down in defeat and his coun-
try is rushing to its doom. Unbridled license is
surging through Russia and bloodshed and arson
will continue until its people learn that no coun-
try can exist without law and order.
The Maximalists have seized Petrograd and
seemingly control the political destiny OF Rus
sa The Maximalists or Bolshiviki, meaning in
Russian, "the men who want more, are made up
of the extremists of the Council of Workmen's
and Soldiers Delegates.
The underlying principle of this party is:
"The people Of Russia were forced into the
war to achieve the ambitions of czardom The
revolution has revealed what these ambitions
were The Russian people are not in sympathy
with them. Hence it is the right and duty of the
free Russian people to repudiate all contracts
made between czardom and its allies in the war
and to strive for an immediate peace with the en-
emy irrespective of all former conditions and
treaties to which the Russian people were not
partners and in the execution of which their won
freedom absolves them from all responsibility"
1t will be remembered that in July 1917, Ke-
rensky who was Parliamentary Socialist in the
old Duma, attempted to bring about coalition
government with himself as war minister and
premier and with representatives of the Council.
Those members of the Council who accepted the
overture driven out of office by the Council,
which at that early date indicated very clearly
that it wanted to dominate the situation. Some
of the more conservative members tried to main
tain national honor and arouse the middle class
to realization of the danger of an unstable gov
eminent, but all in vain
The growth of the power of the extremists is
seen in the many cabinet changes that Ke-
rensky had to make and in the rapidity with
which the government changed from republic
to dictatorship and back again to republic.
In the meantime the Council was gaining
added strength, and Kerensky, seeing the hand
writing on the wall, issued statement in which
he appealed to the Allies for aid and confessed
tacictly that he was beaten. The quick response
of the United States with credit of $31 100000
and the assurance of help from the Entente Pow
ers caused the Maximalists to hesitate few
hours in carrying out their project of taking
the government and driving Kerensky into exile
But Kerensky was unable to stem the tide of op
position and on Nov. the soldiers began taking
over the government offices.
The foregoing summarizes briefly the events
from the overthrow of the Car to the flight OF
Kerensky.
Kerensky fought valiantly but not wisely
Himself Parliamentary Socialist, Kerensky
temporized with incipient anarchy Kerensky's
weakness was his refusal to fight the first over
ture Of the Council. Had he net the initial de-
mand of the Maximalists with show Of military
power, insisted on the Duma controlling the gov
eminent until Constituent Assembly was elect
ed dispersed the Council, and forced a test OF
strength, the intervening months would have in
dicated whether Russia prefers anarchy to
stable government. He had the assurance of the
military leaders that the army would support