The Dominion. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 1917. RUSSIA

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 40, 10 November 1917, Page 6

The Dominion. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 1917. RUSSIA

T In endeavouring to form an opinion as to the developments which aro taking place in Russia, it should always be borno in mind that events in Petrograd do not necessarily afford a fair indication of- Russian opinion generally. It docs not follow that- what those' in power in Petrograd may do will lio endorsed by tho rest of tho nation; on the contrary, recent experience has made it abundantly clear that decisions arrived at in the centre of' Government may bo without the slightest effect even within a comparatively short distance from the capital. The situation now disclosed is confusing and difficult to judge. The facta available at the moment of writing are that the Kercnsky Government has been overthrown and that its placo has been taken in Petrograd by an Anarchist group headed by the notorious Lenin, and with a_ separate peace as the first plank in ita policy programme. So far as the_ capital is concerned, the anarchists—tho Bolsheviki, as they call themselves —have manifestly gained tho upper hand for the time being, but how far their influence extends is another matter.' That their hold upon the, nation is limited appears already- in the fact t,bat the loyalists

are considering tho establishment of a new Government at Moscow, and it is quite possible that when the lino ot demarcation is drawn the extremists who have overthrown the Provisional Government may appear as a comparatively small minority, exerting authority chiully in tho capital" and hi adjacent districts. Since the earliest days of the Revolution, Petrograd has been conspicuous as a centre of agitation iind revolutionary disorder even wivli a, great part of the country thrown into a condition approaching chaos. It was in the capital that the forces were generated which upset the. authority of the first Provisional Government and undermined tho discipline and efficiency of the armies in tho field, and these same forces have thus far defeated every attempt to create a, stable Government and restore the armies to fighting, efficiency. Tho first Provisional Government had no sooner been constituted than its authority was successfully challenged by a Council of Workmen's and Soldiers' Delegates, which represented not the democracy of the nation, but the Petrograd workmen and tho soldiers of the garrison. The wageearning population of Petrograd numbers about 438,000. It is largely by working unon this limited community that the Anarchists and tho German propagandists with whom thoy work hand-in-hand have been enabled to reduce Russia to military impotence and carry her so far along the road to national disaster. Tho success of native traitors and foreign spies has not, of course, been confined to the capital. The infection, of treason and disorder has spread far afield. But it is essentially true that although Petrograd is a centre of infection as well as the seat of the maladies from which Russia is suffering, events and developments in Petrograd do not reflect "the sentiment and attitude of the Russian 'nation at large. It is impossible to say in so many words where the influence of the mixed group of spies, traitors and fanatics who now usurped authority in the capit.il terminates, but this group is to be distinguished not only from important sections of the Russian population animated by loyal and patriotic ideals, but also from a A'ery much larger section—the mass of tho nation, in fact—which has been cast into a state ■of terrible disorganisation, but is comparatively untouched by the grotesque insanities of Lenin and his gang. As far as it is possible to base an opinion on known facts, the anarchist coup in Petrograd is much more likely to precipitate civil war in Russia than to lead to the conclusion of a separate .peace.. Enough is known about the lactions, which now seem likely to bo brought into definite conflict in Russia- to. throw some light upon tho outlook. The Bolsheviki <ire best described as Anarchists. The word "Bqlshoviki" means, literally, "mbre-claimers." It was applied to Lenin ' aiicl his faction when they first advanced claims so extravagant as to involve the destruction of constituted authority, and at that timo distinguished them from tho Minshiviki, the "less-claimers," who favoured a -measure of co-oper-ation with tho Government. Of tho Bolsheviki, Mr. Geegohy Mason, the well-known correspondent of tho New York Outlook, wrote fromRussia recently:— ■

What the Bolsheviki lack in numbers they make up in venom. . .^. They have no programme of construction, unless a vaguo declaration favouring tho government of Russia by local communistic committees can be called a constructive programme. In social complexion they are father mere intellectual than our Industrial Workers of the AVorld, rather less industrial. Although they are quite largely recruited from tho ranks of the workmen, they contain a considerable perconrage of Returned "emigres," radicals who have spent years abroad in exile slewing in their own unhappy reflections. They havo lost balance; they have been so busy hating tho old order in Russia that they can trust no order. So far as tho evils now taking shape in Petrograd arc concerned there is probably .no distinction of practical importance to be drawn between tho Bolsheviki and tho Maximalists. Tho original_ object of the Maximalist organisation, iwhichwas formed years ago, was to promote a general strike, with a view to establishing the government of tho proletariat. Since the Revolution tho Maximalists have figured as an extreme faction, devoted to crippling the and spreading disaffection and disorder through the civil population and .the armies. Lenin, the leader of the' present revolt,- is charged with being in German pay, and only the extraordinary feebleness of successive Governments explains the fact that he was not long ago arrested and put upon his trial. His return to Russia in April last was facilitated by the German Government, and it has never been seriously questioned that he has worked from tho first at tho instigation of Germany in the interests of a separate peace. In his dual -haractcr oE traitor and.paid agent of Germany, Lenin accurately typifies the movement which has now culminated in Petrograd. A German propaganda, supported by amplo supplies of German gold, has played a big part in the corruption and demoralisation of the Russian democracy, and there is no. distinction to be drawn between the enterprising activities of German spies'and tho agitation of Anarchists of Russian nationality. The enemy agents who havo invaded Russia ; n thousands give, of course, their full support to the exhortations of the Bolsheviki, of which tho following citation from an article in their official organ is a fair example: —

If tho Russian soldiers fight now, they will be fighting for tho English capitalists instead of for Russia. To prosecute tho war is to kill tlie Russian Revolution.

The men who have assumed control in Petrograd arc a mixture of wreckers and traitors, easily to bo •recognised in that character. Their movement is in do sense national, but it is calculated to put the fato of Russia to tho test. If the ills of Russia are not past remedy, this Anarchist bid for power should stimulate a reaction against tho forces of unbridled fanaticism and treason. The news that M. Kerenskv is intent upon Betting up a Government at Moscow is not in itself particularly hopeful, for tho ex-Premier has signally failed to justify tho hopes that were formed when ho was raised to power. It is probably not unjust to say that his irresolute policy has had the effect of accentuating tho evils under which the country _ is labouring. But provided tho right leader can bo found, it is still possible that tho forces of anarchy may bo overcome, and a stable Government created. M. Miliukoff, who held the portfolio oj Foreign Affairs in tbo firsfc Provisional Government, declared not long- ago that sooner

or later a reaction against tlm extrcmisls was iiicvitublo, "and all we can hope," lie added, "is Ilial, things will not go so far to the Left that the reaction will go over our heads and beyond us, perhaps oven back to monarchy." The cx-Miuis-tcr expressed a confident belief on the same occasion that the influence, of the peasants, by far the most numerous and powerful section of the Russian nation, was going to to on the conservative side. "Of course," he observed, "the peasants would like to have more land, but this bait held out to them by tho Uolshcviki is not so alluring as it might be, for the peasants are afraid to seize land now lest they start a reaction which would result in their losing not only what they might seize, but what they now hold by right as well." Under a series of feeble Provisional Governments Anarchists and enemy agents have been given extraordinary scope, and late events at Petrograd are the natural sequel. But the middle classes and intellectuals, who thoroughly understand what would bo involved in breaking faith with the Allies and submitting to Germany, have still to be reckoned with. In a contest for supremacy such as now seems inevitable they could count certainly upon the support of the Cossacks, a compact military community of five million souls, and it is possible jit least that the greater part of the population may welcome and approve a Government pledged to a moderate home policy and to the restoration of military efficiency. There are terrible difficulties to be overcome, not the least serious the tendency of different sections of Russia to away from the- parent body, but the Anarchist usurpation in Petrograd dons not necessarily mean that Russia is fated to desert her Allies and drive headlong to ruin.