The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1918-07-05
CAREER OF russ
CAR CUT SHORT
r eports Apparently
Confirm His Death
and the Romanof
Dynasty is Checked
After a Long Period

| After a Long Period
AMSTERDAM, Holland. - The
Wolff bureau, semi-official German
news agency, says it has learned
from Russian sources that Romanofl
was murdered on a train while leav.
ing Yekaterinburg, Immediately
after the city was captured by
Czheco-Slovak forces, and also re-
peats the reports that Alexis, the
former Russian crown prince, died a
fortnight ago, following long ILL
ness.
Nicholas, son and successor OF
Emperor Alexander III, was born in
St. Petersburg May 1S, 1868, was
educated under the direction of Con-
stantine Pobedonostselff, procurator
general of the Holy Synod and re-
ceived military training but had no
personal tastes for soldering. Be-
fore his accession to the throne, he
| was sent on a tour of Greece, Egypt,
India and Japan, where he narrowly
escaped assassination by a Japanese
fanatic. In that incident, it was said,
the Russian heir-apparent gave evil
dence of timidity.
He succeeded to the throne on No
vember 1, 1894, at the death of his
father and within few weeks there
after married Princess Alexandra
Alix, afterwards known as Alexandra
Feodorovna, daughter of the Grand
Duke of Hesse, by whom he had four
daughters, the Grand Duchesses
Olga, Tatiana, Marie and Anastasia,
and one son, the Grand Duke Alexis,
heir apparent to the Russian throne
up"t the time of his fathers adbica-
ton. Emperor Nicholas coronation
at Moscow year and half later
was attended by festival in which
1000 persons were trampled to
death.
The autocratic ruler of many mil
lions of Russians were twenty-six
years old when he succeeded to the
throne His lack of experience in
the rough affairs of the world and
the limitations of his early training
in the secluded Russian court had
failed to qualify him in any way to
fill the role of an autocrat. Instead
of welding the sceptre with firm
hand he succeeded at once to the
Supplying influences of the bureau
cratic forces which dictated Russian
policies.
He alienated the love and loyalty
of the Russian people within a short
time after his accession as emperor
by rebuking a delegation from the
Russian Zemstvos who gather at the
Winter palace to greet the new SOW
erign and brought memorial in
which they suggested that the law
be enforced with equal justice to all
and limited at an extension of con-
stitutional rights to the people.
Prompted by Pobedonostseff, or
other bureaucratic mentors, the en-
peror denounced these suggestions as
idiOtic dreams. From that time
Nicholas was to large extent under
the control of his ministers. He had
alienated the support of the Russian
people which might have enabled
him to assert himself in conflict
with the bureaucrats and imperial
relatives who thwarted him.
Five years after his accession to
the throne, Nicholas startled all
Europe by calling in 1899 the first
peace conference at The Hague to
discuss the principle Of disarmament
and arbitration. Altho it did not
lead to the result he anticipated, it
yet forms the basis for hopes of men
turnout the world of erecting struc-
ture for the maintenance of peace.
By some Nicholas was held largely
responsible for the Russo-Japanese
war on the ground that he permitted
his favoyites to develop the aggressive
policy in Manchuria and Korea
which aroused Japan to hostilities.
He was accused of hindering prepar-
ations for the war, of meddling with
General Kuropatkin, his commander,
but is credited in some quarters with
having by his firm insistence saved
Russia from paying an indemnity to
Japan after peace was proclaimed.
Adoption Of policy of fostering
the development of Slav nationalities
in the Balkans led Nicholas into
clash with Austria-Hungary and
when the German emperor aligned
himself beside Austria Gin shining
armor," Russian ambitions suffered
check. To what extent Nicholas
dictated the policy of challenging
Austrian aggressions upon Serbia
which led to the great war that be-
gan in 1914 is not revealed, but he
is said to have insisted that Germany
should not be permitted to awe Rus
STA second time.
Soon after the beginning of the
war the emperor proclaimed the
of reunited Poland and
in this, as well as in his resistance to
German aggression, he was in line
with the development of Russian lib
eralism. After months of continuous
disaster to the Russian arms, Nicho-