davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08

get it from Robins, could be said tc
be arranged in three tiers. First
furthest toward the back, was the pre-
siding officer, the chairman. Below
him was row of men at a table.
These men we're the "presidium."
They were delegates selected from the
different groups sitting in the conven-
tion to represent all groups together
and to keep a sort of composite ncu
tral watch on the proceedings. Rus
slams seem to have passion for pro-
portional representation. At their con-
ventions they like to have a proper
tionally selected "presidum." There
it sat in a long row. 1t was the sec
ond tier. Finally, below it, between it
and the audience, was the speaker. 1t
was Trotzky.
He was walking up and down, slowly
and calmly. He was not speaking. 1t
was impossible for him to speak.
People in the audience were speaking.
They we're speaking to him, and they
were speaking severely and loudly. The
words they used were pro German"
and German agent" and "spy" and
"traitor." They roared. Trotzky
walked up and down, and stopped, and
pulled a cigarette from his pocket, and
pulled a match and lighted the cigar
cite and smoked, and walked up and
down. One man in the audience, to
Robins's personal knowledge, had a
gun with which, as he contided to his
friends, he would shoot Trotzky as
soon as Trotzky appeared. He did not
shoot. Trotzky smoked for quite a
while. Then, when there was lull, he
raised his arm and lashed that au-
dience into complete subjugated
silence.
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08

1t, on flights of passion, or flights of
the mystery of the instant weaving of
patterns of words. Trotzky has clever
ness, and he has vehemence. He sprays
the poison Of his ideas upon his hear
ers with penetrating force which
even Robins's sophisticated attention
was stunned by. Robins could detest
nobodys ideas more than Trotzkys.
The one man is an individualist and
preacher of religion. The other is
communist and preacher of material
ism. Their one point of contact is
oratory. On that point Robins is in
clined to regard Trotzky as unfortu-
nately the worlds champion performer
Facing the democratic conference
Trotzky did not even bother to refer
to the words pro German" and Ger
man agent" and "spy" and "traitor"
He paid no attention to them. He
plunged straight into Bolshevism and
into the Bolshevist programme, and
spoke for the programme; and it began
to win. Through Trotzky, through
Kamenov, through Rosanov, through
Stccklov, through hard work, through
hard talk it began to win. Before
that convention was over, among dele
gates who had started pro- government,
the Bolsheviks had almost won an
open anti-go government victory.
AS it was, they won a covert vic
tory. They succeeded in getting the
convention to vote down a resolution
in favor of coalition with the Cadets"
that is, a resolution in favor of the
Kerensky kind of government. They
succeeded in getting the convention to
refrain from indorsng the Cadet Co.
altion" idea. And they succeeded in
securing the withdrawal of the reso-
luton in favor of the war. 1t was
spirit dominated the close of the con-
ference. For Robins, for any pro-war
man, for any man as nationalistic as
Robins, it was an ending most miser-
able, most forebodng.
The audience stood, unregardful Of
national Russia. The resolution for
the war was gone. 1t was buried. The
audience stood and sang the song, the
hymn, called "The International" They
sang it for their message. 1t was their
word. They had no word for Russia.
They had no word for the army. They
had no word for the fight against the
Germans. They had "The lnternation-
AL" 1t might have been sung in Ger
many 1t is to-day being sung in Ger
many. 1t was sung that night in Petro-
grad with the souls of the singers.
1t was the symbol of the triumph,
covert and indirect, but still triumph,
Of the Bolsheviki in that Democratic
Congress Of All Russia.
Robins listened and went away ana
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08

propaganda among them, and he gives
it as his considered opinion that the
Bolshevik propaganda was indeed
urgent and active, but that after all it
was much like the case of d man blow
ing with his breath in the same direc-
ton with a full-grown natural tornado.
Unless that fact is considered and
frankly faced and admitted, says Rob-
ms, it is impossible to understand
what happened afterward or what is
happening now. A thick darkness of
misery, of mental misery and Of physi-
cal misery more than any darkness Of
propaganda, was driving Russia
toward peace. If we could even begin
to take the measure of that misery we
could then also begin in some slight
fashion to take the measure Of the
shut-eyed and hearted stupidity
which attributes the agonized convul-
sions Of peoples in Russia and in Hun
gary and in Austria and in Germany
to agtators and to pamphlets.
In Russia the industrial directing
brain of the country was almost gone.
Much of it had been German When
the war came the Germans went Some
sf them went back to Germany, and
some of them sank down into Russia
and lived submerged. In either case
they ceased to help to manage Russian
business for Russia.
Then came forward the Russian part
Of the per cent, the truly Russian
part of it, out of she nobility, out Of
the universities, out of the professions.
out of business. They volunteered to
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08
None KnOius Russia

ROBlNS expresses himself strongly
at this point. He wants to be
perfectly sure that he does not in any
way give the impression that the peace
movement in Russia was simply
movement of Bolshevik propaganda.
He has just one hesitation He knows.
and he keeps on saying, that the full
truth about Russia is not under any
one mans hat. The full truth about
Russia, for even any one month of the
fateful year 1917, may not be known
till after decades of research by hun
dreds of inquirers. But Robins is will
ing to say, and does .say:
"If I do not know more about the
opinions of the common soldiers and
of the common workmen who made the
Bolshevik revolution of 1917 than any
other foreign representative then in
Russia it is because my intelligence
was not equal to my opportunities"
He had the opportunities, and he did
not neglect them. When he saw that
Trotzky was a power in the Democratic
Conference he did not evade him. He
went to where he was. He walked up
to him and talked to him, just as in
Chicago, when he was head resident of
the Northwestern University Settle
ment and afterward member of the
City Board of Education and then mem
ber of the City Charter Convention
and chairman of the State Committee
of the Progressive party; he talked to
more different sorts of people, radical
and reactionary, sacred and profane.
than anybody else had ever collected
into one acquaintance. More even than
being a professional speaker and
preacher, Robins is a professional COL
lector of people and Of peoples opin-
ions and ideas. Having seen him gather
them in Chicago, all the way from the
white right wing of the City Club to
the red left wing of the Chicago Fed
Grafton of Labor, l can readily see him.
with his characteristic gait, as of an
Indian on the trail, gathering them
tlrelessly in Russia--and systematic
cally.
Every day he had before him on his
desk, translated by corps of Russian
assistants, all the opinions of all the
Russian newspapers regarding any
matter of interest to America He suf-
fered nothing in the way of printed
opinion to escape him; and he also
gave himself to the study Of that much
more elusive kind of opnion~spoken
opinion.
Ho studiedtit especially among the
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08
Colonel Roosevelt on Colonel RAYMOND Robins

~ AYMOND ROBINS comes into the
IN columns of The New York Tribune
Magazine this week with the first in
stalment of his sensational story of Bol-
shevlst Russia, narrative which is of i'm
mediate world Importance in the present
world encounter with Bolshevsnl
Colonel Roosevelt to know Robins thor
oughly and knowing him, to have confidence in
his character and his capacity particularly for such
missions the to Russia Colonel Roosevelt,
in fact, urged him to go to Russia, and Robins
setting out sent him this message:
My Dear Raymond Robins:
l pleased than l can say.
You will do great work. I
not say how glad l that you are
going Faithfully yours
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08
KorniLop's Failure

IN THE Allied embassies and mis-
sions, Robins goes on to point out,
there we're numbers of men of the
highest native ability and of immense
experience and of the finest character
and patriotism. 1t was their business
to judge public events. That was their
speciality. They we're in Russia to
guide their governments regarding the
facts of Russian affairs. They earned
their living doing just that sort of
thing. Yet virtually every one of them,
in sympathy, in policy, in influence,
was with Kornilov. Virtually every
one Of them put his money, so to speak,
on Kornilov And they we're all
wrong. They were betting the diplo-
matte favor of their countries on
horse that had no chance.
In the mean time there was in Russia
an American business man "a copper
operator. He wore an American uni
form. He had become, for the time
being, colonel in command of an
American mission. He was head of
the American Red Cross in Petrograd.
Colonel Billings, the first head, had
been obliged to return to America, He
was succeeded in Petrograd by Colonel
William B. Thompson.
Colonel Thompson never took any
stock in the Kornilov adventure at any
time at any price. He was not
trained observer Of foreign political
affairs. He was a copper man. He was
a hnancier. He was absolutely with
out diplomatic experience. Yet he
went automatically absolutely right.
Quite naturally, says Robins, Colonel
Thompson used the methods Of simple
door fact instead of the methods Of
indoor gossip and surmise. BY dwell
ing on fact he helped Robins to see
that adventures like Kornilov's were
impossible in Russia at that time.
Kornilov was appealing to the senti-
ment of law and order and discipline,
and he needed middle class. There
was no such class in Russia There
SO per cent. and there was virtually
nothing in between. The SO per cent
were not interested in law and order.
They we're interested in the land con-
troll and In the factory control they
thought they ought to have. They were
an under class, rising, and willing to
rise, by violence. They were not a
middle class, resting on acquired prop
erty and responsive to a law and order
programme. There was no such class,
and there was no such response, in
Russia. The Allies were whistling to
it, but Colonel Thompson knew it
would not come, because it was not
there.
1t might not have been expected that
Thompson and Robins would come to
an agreement about Russia. But they
did. They came to an absolute agree
msnt. They agreed with regard to the
prospects OF the march Of Kornilov,
and they agree now with regard to the
whole Russian situation in general. 1t
is remarkable, and it is also among the
most convincing circumstances in the
record. They came to the same view
from widely scparated stations of
vision. Az Robins says, they look at
life from altogether different windows
| Thompson is a man of great wealth,
of great Wall Street wealth. sup
porter and an organizer Of the effort
| 10 get tho Republican nomination for
Elihu Boot In 1915. When hs frst
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08

heard that Robins was to 60 to Russia
with him he revived to say: "That
uplifter! That labor agitator! In the
Red Cross mission" ?" He was not
pleased. Robins, for his part, is will
ing to say that Thompson and he did
not come to their first meeting with
any profound feelings of mutual es-
TEEN. They soon found, though, that
they agreed on one thing fully They
agreed that you could not abolish facts
by sitting and dreaming in palaces.
They agreed that you could not make
an army for Kornilov in Russia by
sitting and imagining social class
and a political motive which outdoors
in Russia did not exist.
Kornilov arrived in Pskov, on his
way to Petrograd, with only 10000
men. The next morning 10000 Of
these 100000 refused to go further.
Kornilov surrendered. Not shot was
fred. Kornilov's army was simply
poisoned and disintegrated blythe new
Soviet culture
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08

When Robins returned he went to Oyster Bay
and laid his final views Russia before Colonel
Roosevelt in person He also presented them to
him in written form. AS attesting the impression
made on Colonel Roosevelt by the national and
international facts and by the suggestions of ma
tional and international policy which Robins
brought before him and which are now set forth
here he wrote to Robins:
] shall use some of what YOU
say, and, as far as possibly can, shall
adopt the spirit Of what you say in what
| am writing the lesson of Russia for
u.s. Faithfully yours,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
The second instalment of Colonel Robins story
will appear The New York Tribune Magazine on
June %.
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08

and talk to the Soviet
and make arrangements with them.
His pockets were full of .. Kerensky
credentials. They were full Of
authorizations from the govern
ment at Petrograd. When she pre-
sented any such document = he was
treated kindly, but he was treated
rather pityingly, as if he were a child
showing a letter from Santa Claus
authorizing him to have q train. 1t
happened that Robins did want
train. He wanted several trains, to
carry his Red Cross supplies. "But,"
said people, "if you really'want trains,
you must see the men in. the Soviet"
And 1t was so. The Soviet was
MASTER now From the Soviet, not from
the regular authorities, Robins got the
trains and also the farm wagons that
he needed. II the men In the Soviet
said he could have the farm wagons,
ne had them. If they said a train
could set forward, it set forward. And
II they said it could not set forward,
it could not and did not set forward.
By proof Of fact these soviets had
authority. They had the power.
Robins went back to Petrograd much
more enlightened but also much more
disturbed.
On his way back he passed through
Moscow He had passed through Mos
COW before, on his way out down south
to Ekaterinoslav and Kharkov. The
great Moscow ALL Russian Conference
Of August, 1917, had then just been in
session. Its results now recurred to
him with redoubled force.
There were two chief results. The
hrst was seen in the demeanor of a
certain set Of delegates. They sat by
themselves compactly. They behaved
eompaetly. Alone in the great hall
'aey seemed 70 constitute a body Of
opinion knowing exactly what it
wanted and knowing Exactly how it
parposed TO get it. In the midst of a
Russia Of irresolution and Of indeci-
s'on they were clear and emphatic.
iaey were ominous. They were the
delegates from the Soldiers and
~orkmen's Soyiets.
The other result was smaller, but
more dramatic, and it had conse-
asenees more immediate
on the last day Of tho conference
mere was scene coming close to a
SaJs'eal encounter. A group Of Cos
'~ek oncers were challenged in state
nsh' BY KercnSky. They challenged
''n IN turn. There Was storm Of
.'fas' short, sharp. In it's lightning
~ Cleavage ssood clear between Korni-
~ the Crssack. the general soon to
'' q revolt for Claw and order and
s''sins," and Kerensky, the man in
,'s' The man forced to compromise
tween the wishes Of the Allies for
-. 80 and order and discipline" and tho
$3.50 of the Russian people for bread
~a land and peace.
~ the time Robins rot back 70
a"erad the KorniIoy revolt was in
=" swing-~thst il, IT was swinging
n,. "aeh as ~ ever aid or could. The
s' embassies and missions had
-" seie 70 hear II about 10 swing
.snasrinxiy through tbs whois coun-
81 I'om the Black 10 Tho White seas
u barely moved. IT. simply
tad stoppsd. AZ Robins puss
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08
Heart of Russia

THEREFORE,, with some confidence,
he ventures to say that he knew
something about the peace move
ment among the Russian soldiers, as
we'll as something about the Bolshevik
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08
Soviet Victory

1T WAS the soviet, not Kerensky,
= that won. Kerensky was in the
palace. The soviet was in Smolny
Institute. Kerensky issued a procla-
nation, and effectively ceased. Smolny
vigorously acted. 1t was from Smolny,
not from the Winter Palace, the
orders issued which brought sailors
down to Petrograd from Kronsta and
bivouacked them in the Field Of Mars.
1t was from Smolny, not from the
Winter Palace, that the energy came
which dug trenches in front of Petro-
grad and lined the tops of Petrograd's
buildings with machine guns. 1t was
from Smolny that Bolshevik sailors
went to the Winter Palace and dis
missed the Cadet Guards there on
watch and took their places and
guarded Kerensky himself. Finally,
and overwhelmingly, it was from
Smolny that the arguments went out,
the propaganda, the words, the philos
ophy, which disintcgrated the dispersed
Kornilov's army more than rifles or
threats of rifles.
Even the Mahometans took part
in that combat of words. Robins has
led life of amazements, but there
has been no more amazed moment in
ecutive committee of the All Russian
Mahometan soviet was taking a hand
in repelling Kornilov by going out from
Petrograd through delegates to have a
little philosophical chat on class-con
sciousness with the Savage Division"
of Mahometans in Kornilov's army.
These methods, taken together, were
successful. Kornilov's soldiers did not
fight. 1t was a bloodless folk-victory.
1t was a victory for the revolution. 1t
was a victory for the soviet.
Thereafter mems eyes turned in
creasingly toward the soviet and to-
ward Smolny. Smolny, in Petrograd,
was seen to be the nursing source and
the radating centre of power. But
whatever helped the soviets helped the
Bolsheviki. Just as the soviet was more
energetic and definite than the rest of
Russia so the Bolsheviki were more
energetic and definite and purposeful
than the rest of the soviet. And
Robins soon had a new and disheart
ening exhibition of their constantly
charging power and skill
BOIsheuik Tactics
AN ALL-RUSSIAN congress was
n called. 1t bore the name of
Democratic Conference. 1t did not
represent simply the soldiers and
workmen and peasants. It represented
other groups as we'll. 1t had dele
gates from the Zemstvos and from
the food committees and from the CO.
operative societies and from the mu-
inequalities 1t met toward the end
Of September.
At first the government got on quite
we'll with it. Kcrcnsky made it a
speech and was enormously applauded.
The conference seemed to be for tho
government. 1t seemed to be for the
war. But then the gcncralship Of the
Bosheviki began to tell. In the notes
Robins mnde Mt the time I find he
jottcd down the "platform general
ship" Of the Bolshcviki and their real
work with Delegates" They worked
rcally, realistically. They were not
content with orations. Thew argued
man to man, on the floor, getting votes.
They we're trclcss on the floor as we'll
ms on tho plntform. And there, on
that platform, Robins had his first
sight OF Trotzky.
Trotzky WAS walking up and down.
| Tho hncctaclA of thatf ulatform. a. |
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08

mas Deen almost part OIL MS
occupation to listen to speakers, to
seek them out in order to listen to
them. He has listened to them in
this country and abroad Besides
himself practising the arts of public
speaking on street corners and in
ward conventions and in the pulpits
Of churches on Sunday mornings and
in world tours for the Men andre
ligion- Forward Movement and in trade
union councils, and elsewhere. he has
professionally watched those arts in
others. Even his enemies will admit
him to be judge Of speaking.
gather from him that he is obliged
to mako a professional bow to Trotzky.
He says that as speaker he has never
secn Trotzky's equal in the conqucring
Of an audience. In the cnrrying OF Of
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08

went to work. He went to work against
the Bolshevki Or, rather, he went
to work against the peace movement
in Russia.
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08
Chapter II

:: : !; +: e: : :; :::' 6: :. :: 6:
has been almost part Of his
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08
Bv William Hard

it. the Indoor Mind had guessed wron,
again,
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08

Continued on mert page
New-York tribune., 1919-06-08
ChaptersI

w THEN Robins wanted to get
M anything really done among
the Russians he had TO go
and talk to the Soviet
Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1919-05-15
WANT WHOLE ROAD APPROVED
Delegation From Herington Appear
ed Before Commissioners.

l.. l.. Gates, II. c. Kent, DR.. w VI.
Rooms and b. L. Thompson of Her
ington appeared before the commits
sioners this morning with a petition
for the approval of q mile of hard
surfaced road from Herington to the
Morris county line on the north
route to Council Grove. There are
two roads running from Herington
to Council Grove, one the old Santa
Fe trail on the south and one few
miles north.
The Santa Fe road from Council
Grove to Mcpherson has been APP
proved with the exception of y
mile in Morris county and the north
road by way of Parkerville has been
approved by the Morris county com
missioners but the Il mile in Dick
inson county is yet to be approved
by the commissioners here In order
to obtain a continuous route from
Harrington to Council Grove. The
commissioners here took no action
but have the matter under considera-
ton. Both highways have been APP
proved by the state highway com
mission which has allowed 20 per
cent federal aid for each.
Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1919-05-15
About 90 Per Cent Kansas.

The 353rd Infantry, all-Kansas
regiment OF the Eighty ninth division
will return TO Camp Funston early
next month, about go per cent Kan
sas. Maj. Gen. w. NJ Wright, who
was In Topeka yesterday, and who
commanded the Eighty ninth divis-
ion In its fighting. made this esti-
mate. lie states that requirements
and transfers in this regiment have
changed about 40 per cent Of the per
sonnet during the fighting in France
Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1919-05-15

Mr. and Mrs. ]. W. Carney and M.
A. wengert, Kansas City, NO.; i. n.
Wltten, Trenton, Mo-; Mr.. and Mrs.
w. II. Haynes. Emporia; Mr.. and
Mrs. G. A. Rockwell, Junction City
Mrs. A. Zahner, Topeka; Mrs. Eu-
genia Platt Henley, Lawrence; r. ),
Crane, Topeka Thos. l.. Bond, Sa-
lima; NJ. NJ. Smith. Clay Center; Il. c.
Hood. Pittsburg; George w Collins,
Belleville, Il. l. King, Logan, Kansas.
Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1919-05-15

Miss Edna Lohrding has accept
ed position for next year as head ~
the normal training department Ia
the Salina high school.
Floyd Shepard of Chapman paid
$40 fine and costs In the Justice
court Friday for removing a license
tag from an old car and putting II
on a new one.
Geo. Brann has been appointed
Justice OF peace to take the place OF
c. @. Hutchinson, who resigned that
office last week.
Marriage license Bert A. Ram
sew and Gladys NJ. Baker, Herring
ton.
The biggest assortment of lace and
embroidery ever shown In town goes
on sale next Saturday at Duckwalrs
Variety Store. 15dt3w1
Don't forget Duckwalls big lace
sale 16d3w1
D. J. Baer will rebuild his sale
barn on North Buckeye and will com
mence operations the middle Of the
month. The new structure will be
larger than the present one and will
be constructed OF tile brick.
If your stomach Is cOntihuAlly
kicking up a disturbance; you feel
bloated and distressed; II yo'ssbslch
gas and sour food into your m0ntn,
then you need Mona stomach tab
let's Guaranteed by J. M. Glelssner
4 Son.
Mr.. and Mrs. G. +. Bath an
bounce the birth Of baby girl
Eleanor May.
Kodak finishing; send your orders
to Carlson & Jeffcoat's Stationery
Kodak store, Abilene, Kans. Oppo
site Ward Jewelry store, Service is
our hobby. wl5t4