Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-08-13
KERENSKY PAINTS
PICTURE OF: RUSSIA
People Paying Dearly for Their
Ignorance and Credulity,
He Declares.

Paris, Aug 13.-In the early days of hi
stay in Paris, Mr. Kerensky made two
striking statements on the situation II
Russia and what it demands. The secon'
Of these, that which he read to the con
ference of the Unified Socialist group q
the Chamber of Deputies, has apparentl,
attracted most attention, but in the natur'
and character of its appeal, that whlcl
he made to the permanent administrative
committee of the Socialist Party at TIN
headquarters of the Rue Sainte-Croix
de-la-Beetonnene, was at least as IN
terestIng. The delegates of the party hat
that night, Just come back from the con
ference in London and gave an account o
their mission. Socialist emotions were
highly KEYED when Mr.. Kerensky came
along in the company of MIR Roubano'
witch and after being introduced by Mr.
Duhreuilh, the general secretary, began
his statement. Of which only slight &C
counts appeared IN most OF the news
papers.
HOPES TO RESUME FIGHT.
81 salute the French people. the de-
mocracy, and French Socialists, he SAID
"and ! express the hope that we shall be
! able to resume the common hight together
| have come to try to express to the pub
/ lie. and more particularly to the demo
cratic and Socialist public, what is hap
/ pening IN Russia But first | ought TO say
/ that | am not speaking in the name of
| any particular party. have no mandate,
! wish to say in INV name and not IN that
! of n party what are the interests which IN
| spirc the Russian people. | have that
! am speaking IN my own name. In face
| of tho crisis which sweeps over my Coun-
| try. of the mortal maladv which attacks,
it, il Is necessary TO forget for moment
what divides us.
A wear and half ago when the Russian
revolution had trlumphcd, Il seemed that
we had reached a turning point IN the
history of the whole world What do we
see today? Chapos, the loss not only of
all the gains of the revolution, but even OF
the conditions Of a civilized existence.
Everybody understands what were the
conditions OF life OF the Russian people
alter three centuries OF Izarlsm, after
three wears of war when Russia had eX-
hausted her national capital, when the
labor organizations had disappeared, when
the best of the workmen and the country
people had perishcd at the front. So We
have seen the most ignorant and obscure
elements rise 10 the surface
BROUGHT GRAVE CRISIS.
The revolution found everything in a
state OF disoTganzatIon, and II had to
raise NJ new culture To exert It's entire
energy to prevent the complete destruc-
ton OF the conditions of tins culture DIS
organization of the means Of transport
and Of the food supply made the crisis
very grave and almost inSOlubie, 1t Is
true that the revolution gave rise TO
new state OF feeling among the masses,
a great desire 10 live But the admins
trafive organs were shattered. 1t was nee
eSsary to seek a competent constructor
but the republic had no instrument that
would fill that need Ii found itself In
position Of being unable to satisfy the
necessities even Of life. 1t was IN such con
dltions as these that the necessity OF
national defense was presented TO It,
In the west YOU can scarcely under
stand what difficulties the Russian revo-
luton had 10 encounter In i country
where dlSorganzatI0n was extreme. The
Democratic and Socialist parties IN order
TO remain faithful TO their task had TO
make heroic efforts knowing the density
and Ignorance Of the masses, i was easy
TO win them over by promising them that
their interests should be Immediately
satisfied without taking into account at
all the actual circumstances, national
and international.
PEOPLE EASILY DECEIVED.
Il was easy 10 say to them: There is no
bread because the bourgeolsle, IN agree
ment with the provisional government has
hidden it, 1t was e,tsy TO tell the soldiers,
exhausted by the war, that they were
kept at the front to defend the interests
Of English imperialism and the French
bourgeois To which the provisional gov
crnnent had sold itself 1t was with that
simple sort Of success that the Bolshevih
associated themselves
After centuries Of the Tzarist regime,
the Id OF IZirlsIr WAS cOatu used IN tn"
popular mind with that Of the State
In such circumstances II was easy to
describe all governmental measures as
tyrannies, and to spread the belief among
the MASSES that a free people was one
which was not subjected 70 any discipline
II was easy u call autocratic the regime
which Lenine himself, on the verv eve
Of his coup de tat Duhllcly proclaimed
as the freest regime Of the whole world.
II Is a great mistake to think that there
was in Russia q conflict between the
modcrates and the purer Socialists.
All the democratic organizations had to
contend against the blind ignorance of the
IildSStiSt ana IlldI SbIAEEiC W dS tlit dlbJ
not only Of every Socialist but Of every
honest man.
GAVE tNIN EFSAI. 81 FFRAGE.
The regime instituted bY the revolu
ton Of March embraced universe suffrage
in the absolute sense Of the world, the
estab lshment Of agrarian reform and Of
extremely radical labor laws, and the
complete liberty Of the press even IN
times Of war Such regime does not
need to be defended among Socialists.
But now there does not exist single
institution which can reclaim democracy
or even the police regime Of the end of
the eighteenth century.
Consequently the whole Of democracy,
rural and urban, struggles against this
regime have come not to try to con
vince you, but simply TO tell you that all
Socialists from Plekhanof to the inter
nationalists, Martoff consider that this
regime, which, under the name Of Social
ism, practices the worst methods Of Tar
ism, is the worst danger for Socialism,
because the bourgeoise exploits the
example it sets and uses it To discredlt
our ideal. The reactionary elements take
account Of all that happens, and for eight
10 hair {CI-