RUSSIA.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 13586, 7 May 1906, Page 2

RUSSIA.

(From Our Own Correspondent.)

ST. PETERSBURG, March 10. March 10, the anniversary of tiic great battle of Mukden, still finds"St. Petersburg buried in snow.. It snowed so much last night that the landscape looked this morning like an old-fashioned New Year's card. So festive is_ the appearand of the streets and shop windows that it is difficult for ine to. believe that this Kmpiro is in the throes of a revolution, and has just emerged from an epoch-making war. Swift sleighs rush no;«ielessly past, bearing all sorts of dignified personages—officers, generals, fur-clad ladies. The streets are tilled with crowds of quiet, well-dressed people who. savo for their fur caps and goloschos, do not differ much in outward appearance from the ordinary Saturday night crowd in Broadway. They arc all dressed in black, and their round Astnichan caps and the, broad fur collars, of their coats give a mild and thoughtful hue to their regular white features. In the crowd are quite a number of naval officers and young naval cadets, who do not seem to bo at all perturbed by the fact that their tountry has got no r.hips to put them into, and is not likely to have any in their iime. At the Kazan Cathedral and the other saered place.?, which one finds in every Street, many people crcw themselves devoutly. In the Cafe de Paris there is'a .regular proos-sion of filles do joie. In tho Hotel l'Kurope Tartar waiters scowl if they get less than half a. dollar by way of a. tip, and in the humble caling houses of»;Goneliainaya (Potter's street) and the BUimrbs it is impossible to keep long strings of ragged and starvod-looking people from entering and going around begging 'rom tho guest's eating at table. These wrecks of humanity are gently led out by the waiters, and I notice one of |them— a Buriat Mongol—fall fainting outside. After he comes to his semes a policeman points up the street and down the street, and tellf. him angrily to choo. : e which direction he will take (synda ce'.ee synda!, and to choose quickly, as ho is collecting a crowd. It is easy to seo that this was not a pretence at fainting, for the poor Mongol is very dearly in want of food. As n. rule, however, no mendicant in tho world knows better than the St. Petersburg variety the way in which to work upon tho imagination of. tlie charitable, Conseqontly the approaches to the churches of all denominations, are choked with beggars of both sexes and of all ages, and even the interiors of the churches are invaded by them. Among the crowds of beggars on tho streets I noticc one old man with a long, grey beard and no loss than six Wriv medals affixed to the breast of a kaftan in which in America a farmer would he ashamed to dress a scarecrow. Alas for the glory and the majesty of war! At intervals along the edge of the sidewalk stand newsboys who would hardly suit New York, I am afraid, for they never move from tho same spot, and, in calling out the names of their panel's, they seldom raise their voices above the conversational pitch. This modesty on their part led mo at'first to conclude that, they were bad boys whom the struggle for existence had reduced to the necessity of selling religious tracts, but, as a matter of fact, they were selling red-hot revolutionary literaturo which no State in tho world would for a single day allow to bo sold in the streets, and which surpassed in violence the pamphlets . that used to be hawked about the Faubourg, St. Antoipe, when tho French Revolution had got well under way. These revolutionary periodicals generally consist of about a dozen pages of treason, generally unilfuminated by any flash of wit or genius, and illustrated by ill-executed cartoohs. One word sufiiccs to describe these cartoons—Blood, blood, blood. Sometimes it is Admiral DubasofF wading through blood in Moscow. Sometimes it is St. Petersburg, wrapt in ' blood-red flames. Sometimes it is the vampire of bureaucracy sucking tho blood from/ a prostrate and bleeding Russia and at tho samo time remarking complacently: "It seems I have quieted her" (Kazhetsya uspokoil). In one pamphlet it is Witto and his friends dancing a iiew year's dance, around a volcano vomiting blood. In another ib is tho blood-stained barricades in Moscow. In anothor (the Journal of Journals) it is freedom unfolding a bloodred flag bearing the date " 1906," and trampling underfoot a writhing tanglo of serpents amidst which aro to be seen the heads of Witte, Pobyedonosotscff (as typifying the tyranny of the Church), and other bureaucrats. To Freedom's wrists hang broken chains, and behind her rises a blood-rod sun, which happens, by chance, I suppose, to exactly resemble the Japanese naval (lag. Skulls, skeletons, and such like cheerful figures are very common; but the general impression one. gets from a perusal of this literaturo is one of disgust. There is too much blood in it.

Occasionally, however, the revolutionary artist rises almost to heights of genius. One famous pamphlet known as " The Bloody Hand" is now almost unprocurable, owing to the rapidity with which it was bought up. On the front cover was the Czar's famous manifesto of October 17, and across the face of that manifesto was the imprint ,of a blootlv hand, whilst beneath were the words, "And on that manifesto TrepolT laid his hand." One periodical—called the Ninth Wave (every nintli wave is supposed to be tho strongest) —bears 011 tho front cover a picture of Moscow in (lames. Amid tho flames towers the figure of a Sphynx, which is driving away a huge snake with a human head crowned. Beneath is the single word " Revolution." The last cover bears a blood-red skeleton labelled " Holy Russia," and the interior is filled with doggerel and dialogue and rude drawings, which havo convinced mo that if the Russian press has been muzzled in the past the muzzle is oertainly off now.

Another periodical bearing the title of the Mountebank has on the covet the picture of a huge hand-holding up, outside the Kremlin, the covered head of a revolutionist martyr crowned with thorns, while the cover of a third periodical— Tho Magic Lantern—represents the men of Mosoow at the barricades.

Tho most disquieting feature of tJic situation in that, the Czar has ceased to be respected. ■ : A year ago all parties united in loyalty to the throne, just or in 1789 all parties in France United in loyalty to Louis XVI. In fact, the Cza.r was treated by tho press as if 110 were divine. The newspapers dared not refer to his movements or those of any member of the imperial family, save in the dry. official statements that are given out to them. Now lie is referred to in the most contemptuous terms. He has been represented as a naughty hoy being spanned by a sturdy damsel, Russia. lie is. alluded to by his pet name Kolya. He is represented as weeping for hungry Russia, giving her the bread from his plate, and then ordering truffles for himself. One paper published a series of fairy tales in which his Majesty plays a most ludicrous, part as " the good King Bonieai." One cartoon shows the Czar (jacking up all his belongings. The King of Denmark calls to him from across the water: "Why don't you come over here, Kolya?" Wiiereunto Kolya answers, saying: "My good people won't let me." The press, including even the bureaucratic Novoo Vrem.va, openly discusses the question of whether or not the Italian people will form themselvc-s into a Republic, or will retain tho Cv.ar as a figurehead. It imisS not be imagined, of course, that the street pamphlets of which I have spoken aw the only mouthpieces of tho revolutionists. 011 the contrary they have in tho press excellent organs like Naslia Zheez.n (Our Life), and all the wit and talent is on their p.ide. The .editors and litterateurs who are tlnis stirring up Russia are generally mild, short-sighted p'ersoiis with tangled hair. One of them complained to me that his paper, the Nasha. Zhcczn, hau been suspended for publishing soma months, back a revolutionary manifesto declaring that, the national credit was gone, and urging the people not to take siny longer Government notes.

"But how is that?" I asked; " (ho Nasha Siheezii appears every dav as usual."

"Yos," lie said, showing me a copy of the paper, "but you'll notice, if you look close, thai, wo have to print another title, "National Economy," above the old one. It was just an if Scribner's had been suspended for three months, but come out as usual, except that it 'had the words "American Monthly" printed in wnail typo above the title on tho cover.

The corridors and editorial rooms of these newspaper offices are as crowded as a busy railway station, many'of the . callers being ladies, Tchinovniks, and military officers, for the most surprising' thing about this revolution is the slightne-ss of the opposition it encounters at the hands of Government officials. The great majority of these officials do not sympathise with it, but they buy the revolutionary papers and laugh at the disloyal jokes, in them with tlie same disregard for the proprieties wliieli they displayed by enjoyinu themselves in disreputable cafe on the night that St. Petersburg was ringing with the news of Tsushima.

All this flood of seditious literature of which I havo just spoken is the result of the Czar's manifesto of October 17. It will l:e remembered that in this manifesto the Emperor promised freedom of speech lo his, j/ooplo, but his people did not wait for tho promised freedom to be given. them by due process of law—they took it. We

a>-o still really under the old press laws, bill the police" dare not enforce those mws. The same manifesto and tlio events which

pitculed it arc responsible for an awako|i-in-.j among the Russian people which ?. in some respects sublime, in some rcspects U'dicious. , As a manifestation of man's innate love of liberty, as a protest against the despotism of centuries, these strikes of postmen, coachmen, printers, mum cooks, etc.. were almost impressive, but there was not much disinterested patriotism in them. I had I bought nl. first that there was when I hoard lhat these portly, uniformed functionaries who -Jill the porches of •■lie hotels, who insist on helping yon on with your grcfltcoat as if vou woro n. toi {•oriug invalid; nnd who subsist entirely 011 tips, lwd gone 011 strike. "Bravo!" I said (o one of tnoin. "yon are getting rid of (lie .stink of slavery which poisons tlie very air of Russia, ami which is nowhere moro en evidence than in the crowds cf people who earn a degraded livelihood by moiiey which is flung to them like bread io a dog."

"But we don't object to lips at all, sir," ho replied obsequiously. "We struck because we wanted lo lx> paid by thehotel proprietors as well as by the guests." In the same way Ihe waiters in one of the biggest restaurants here—men who, from one source or another, get 10 times us much money as any waiter in New York-went on' strike Intel,v because I hey were not geitiug money enough; in the same way Ihe fanners only see in the revolutibn an increase in Iho size of their farms.

1 was riding Iho. other day with an izvoschcel; (carriage driver), a comfortable, witrmly-clad individual, whom I asked what his grievance was. "Well," be said, scratching his head, " there shouldn't by right- be any tax on my izvoshchik."

The madness lhat has come over this people is so great, that even the very functionaries whose heads will fall as soon as tile-revolution gains the upper hand have.managed lo'persuade themselves Unit the collapso of tho present regime will, in some indefinable way, benefit them. The Russians seein to think that a revolution will euro everything from earthquakes to loothaclie; but most- of the. evils which they imagine it will abolish are due not to the Czar, but to original sin.

Nevertheless, there is something extremely attractive in these dreams of the enthusiastic, unselfish youth of Russia; and there aro, God knows, in this country enough remediable grievances lo justify and to consecrate this agitation.' At present there arc at least six large parties. Tho principal among them aro the Monarchists, who want the Czar absolute and 110 duma, the "Union of tho 17lh of October," which believes that the country can get along very well for a-time 011 tho Imperial manifesto of that dab;; and the' Constitutional-democratic party. None of'these aro bent on tho overthrow of the existing regime, but the Socialists aro bent oh such a mi'asure. They consist of the Social-Revolutionists and the SocialDemocrats, and seem to be under the direction of Jews, who have no more respect for tho religion and tho integrity of Russia than the Irish Fenians used to have for the religion and the integrity of England. If those people'gain the uppe-r hand in this country, as small parties of well-organised extremists sometimes do in troubled times, the army will be disbanded, and Poland, Finland, tho Caucasus, and Sibe-ria will be allowed to cut themselves adrift.

It is as yet impossible to say anything of the relative strength of these different sections. There can b« 110 question, however, about their relative degree of activity. Tho Revolutionists aro feverishly active, but the Reactionaries are not quite dead. They sometimes hold meetings, at which, by way of stimulating the orators, who certainly seem to need stimulating, a band plays the national anthem every 10 or 15 minutes.