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About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 5, 1904)
BEES Tim Commoner j" JBRUARY 5, 1904. a u RUSSIA AND HER CZARy fCoDvriKht 1904. bv New York Journal.) '. The man of Russia makes the otb.6r nation 'Europe look insignificant by comparison. Mos fe'w in called "The Heart of Russia." and yet tho Kins-Siberian railway Irom Moscow to Vladivos- Mc is auout u.uuu miles long, nearly one-iuurm i ch'fiiimferencR of the elobe. From St. Peters- ferg to Sebastopol is more than 2,000 miles, and Bt Kussias cermory extends mucn nirtner nuim tan St. Petersburg and much fartner soutn tnan ibastopol. In a book recently issued by author- of the Russian government some comparisons i madfi that eive an idea of tho immensity of Eussia's domain. For instance, Siberia is about io and one-naif times as largo as lMiropo, so mea aa lame an Germany, and covers one-thir tenth of the continental surface of tho globe. ides having great timber belts and vast prair i; Siberia has a hill and lake region ten times , large as Switzerland, . and it is claimed tnat ne of the lakes are as beautiful as those of faio Mountain "Rfinnhlic." Lately the EOVern- iBsnt has been encouraKine immigration into tho jguntry opened up by the trans-Siberian railway lid the success of tho movement is shown by the ET , . -. . . . j ji.h net tnat tne numoer or passengers carnuu on iuo wi . . . Mf -i 1 j?- i-. n A AAA r.estern sectirn or tne roaa mcreuseu, irum j.uu,uuu 1896 to 379,000 in 4898, and on tne middle sec in from 177.000 in 1897 to 470.000 in 1898. with Esimllar increase in freight traffic. The govern ment gives a certain area of land to eacn setiier, id when necessary advances sufficient money n hnilrl homes and barns for the storage of crops Sid for the purchase of agricultural implements. he territorial greatness of Kussia is me uret Sim? that impresses the tourist and the second P'thnt. it r as vet so snarsely settled that it can Kthout fear of crowding accommodate a vast KnrnnRA in nonulatlon. ffc Russia embraces all varieties of-climate and sources. My journey was confined to -the northeast fftnn t nntprp.ri the rinuntrv below Warsaw. Son- moot fr ATrcfnw then north to St. Petersburg i'nri then pa RontheftBt to Berlin. This, with tho. ir.nrHrm nf mv visit to Tula, cave me. my only Opportunity to cee the people of Russia. They limpressjsd me as Doing a.naruy race aua mo uw ressities of climate are such as to G.ompeimuubuy Und activity. I never saw elsewhere such universal preparation for cold weather. As yet Russia is Faimnat Antirp.lv agricultural, but manufacturing lfoTitoTnri3Pa nm pnntinuallv increasing. The ueas- lants live in villages and for the most part hold .. . . i j . 4-l-.nl n fViatr nolntiir to itneir lanas in uuiumuu mau id, mv,j mwwUC, .. tho commune or village as a whole and not to the fttrwuirfriufii wh(n Alexander freed the serfs tho Hand was sold to them jointly on long-time pay ments. These payments nave m oniy a lew w stances been compietea, wnereiore uul muuy u !i, moQonta own land individually." There is '. rn-or muoh discussion in Russia about the F method of holding land. Some contend that com- Emunal holding tends to discourage inrut ana eu- jterprise, and there is some agnation in tuvor jj. rindividual ownersmp. Tivmow tho largest citv of Russia, has. a trifle larger' population than St. Petersburg, tho capital, which has more tnan a minion, Moscow, tn,T.inii ia ViA pommero.ial center of the empire. jfeives the casual visitor a much better idea of the Characteristic lire and arcnuecture 01 .ttussm luui FAnn at TotprRhnrc. St. Petersburg, however, is Slald out upon a broader, more generous plan, has rwider streets, more impressive public buildings and private residences, ana mere is more evi dence of wealth in the capital than in the cora- ..tni nnntnr Toth el Hen nosRonn admirable museums and art galleries . The chief gallery of Moscow devotes nearly all its wall space to pic tures by Russian artists, and they are sufficient in number to prove Russia's claim to an honorable placo in the world of. art The Hermitage at St. Petersburg, which is an annex of tho emperor's palace, contains an ex traordinary number of masterpieces of modern and ancient art. The museum of the academy of sciences possesses a remarkable collection of fine specimens of prehistoric animals, among them mammoths, the largest and best preserved of which was found only a few years ago in-tho footjof a Siberian glacier. . VTho visitor, to Russia comes away with con flicting emotions. He Is impressed by the won derful possibilities of the country, but is op pressed by' the limitations and restrictions which the government places upon individual action and activity. As soon as the traveler reaches the border Of Russia his passport is demanded. It is again demanded the' moment he arrives at his hotel, and it is demanded, and inspected "at every. place he stop. When he is about to leave the country h must send his passport to tho police office and have it Indorsed with official permis sion to depart. Not only is a passport demanded at ovory placo from tho foreigner, but native Russians, high and low, must also bear passports and bo prepared to submit them for inspection upon demand. Not oven officers of tho army are exempt from this rigid rule. Tho censorship over tho press and over pri vate mail is very strict I brought away with me a copy of Stead's Review of Roviows which had been posted to a subscriber in Russia and which had passed through tho hands of tho censor. Its pages boro abundant evidenco of tho care with which he scrutinized forolgn publications, for ob jectionable cartoons, articles and even paragraphs had been mado illegibilo b an obliterating stamp. The government of Russia, as tho world knows, is an autocracy. All power is vested in tho emperor, and all authority emanates from him. Being an autocracy, Russia has, of course, no legislative body, such as is now a part of tho government of nearly every civilized country on the globe. It has not trial by jury and it knowtf not tho writ of habeas corpus, Tho custom of ex iling or banishing without trial persons objec tionable to the government is still practiced! A large number of Finns, -mony of them persdtts of prominence, have been deported from Finnland since the decree of 1899, which limited tho self government which tho Finns had enjoyed sine Russia annexed their country. While in St. Petersburg I was, by tho cour tesy of the American ambassador, Mr. McCormick, given an opportunity of meeting and chatting with tho czar of all tho Russias, Emperor Nicholas II. I found him at his winter residence, the palace of Tzarskoje Selo, whic'i is about an hour's ride from St. Petersburg. Of all the emperor's paiaces, Tzarskoe Sclo is his favorite. It stands in a, magnificent park which at this time of year' is covered with snow. The emperor is a young man, having been born in 1868. He is not more than five fiet seven or eight inches in height and. apparently weighs about 160 pounds. His figure IeT slender and erect, his face boyish and. his eyes a light blue.' His hair, which is blonde, is cut rather short and combed upward over the forehead. The car wears moustache and short beard. The general expres sion of his face is gentle rather than severe and he speaks English perfectly. He informed mo that about '65 per cent of the adult men of Russia can read and write and that the number is in creasing at tho rate of about 3 per cent a year. This increase, the czar said, was shown by the recruits to the army and as these came from all provinces of the empire and all classes of society, ho believes it to be a fair test of tho people a3 a whole. The czar declared himself deepJy inter ested in the spread of education among the peo ple and seemed to realize that opportunities for education should be extended to men and women equally. I referred to a decree issued by him about a year ago promising a measure of self-government to the local communities. The czar said: "Yes, that was issued last February, and the plan is now being worked .out' He manifested great gratification at the outcome of the proposals sub mitted by him which resulted in the establish ment of The Hague court of arbitration and it is a movement of which he .may justly feel proud, for while it is not probable that The Hague tribunal will at onco end all wars, it Is certain to contribute largely to the growth of a senti ment that will substltut6 the reign of reason for the rule of brute force. The czar spoke warmly ' of the friendly relations that' had existed for years between Russia and the United States. He said that the people of his country had rejoiced in the growth and greatness of the United States. Then, speaking with considerable feeling, the czar said: "The attitude of Russia n the Kischint'ff affair has been very much misrepresented by some of the press and I wish you would tell your people so when you return to tho United States." The Russian officials deny that tho govern ment was in -any way responsible for the mas Bacro .and I was informed that tho government had caused the prosecution and secured tho imprison ment of many of those implicated, . The emperor showed in his conversation that he respected pub lic opinion in the United States .and was anxious that his administration should not rest under condemnation. It seems to be the general opinion of those with whom I had a chance to speak In Russia that the emperor himself is much more progressive and liberal than his official environ ment If ho were .free to act upon his own judg ment, it Is believed that, he would go further and faster than the officeholalng class surrounding him in broadening tho foundations of the gor ernmont, and from his words and manner during my conversation with him I am inclined to share thi&'Oplnion. What Russia, most needs today arc free speed and a free prcss-J-frco speoch that those who have tho wolfare'of tne country at heart may give ex pression to their views and contribute tholi wis dom to that public opinion which In all free coun tries controls to a greater or less qxtend those who hold office. To dony freedom of speech Is to question tho ability of truth to combat error; it is to doubt the power of right to vindicate itself. A freo press would not only cnablo those in office to see their actions as others see them, but would exorcise a wholesome restraint. Publicity will often deter an official from wrong-doing when other restraints would be insufficient and those who are anxious to do well ought to welcome any thing that would throw light upon their path. With freo speech and a freo press it would not be long before the participation of tho Russian people in government would bo enlarged, and with that enlarged share in tho control of their own affairs would come not only contentment, but tho education which responsibility and self'-gov-crnment bring. It is impossible to proparo people for self-government by depriving them of the ex orcise of political rights, As children learn to .walk by being allowed to fall and rise and fall and rise again, so people profit by experience and learn from tho consequences of their mistakes. That tho Russian peoplo are devoted to their church is evident everywhere Every village and town has its churches, and tho cities have cath edrals, chapels and shrines seemingly Innumer able. St. Isaac's cathedral in St. Petersburg is an immenso basilica and Is ornamented in nave and transcept with precious and semi-precious stones. The superb portico is supported by a maze of granite monoliths seven feet in diameter. There is now in process of construction at Moscow a still more elaborate cathedral. Russia is not a good missionary field for two reasons: First, becauso the people seem wedded to their church, and, sec ond, because no one Is, permitted to cover his connection, with the church. , r ' The child of an orthodox Russian becomes a member of the church of his parents and If ho desires to enter another church ho must leave tho country. If one of the orthodox church marries a member of another church the children must of necessity be reared in the Russian faith. It will be seen, therefore, that the church Is very closely connected with the government itself, and quite as arbitrary. De Tocquoville some, fifty years ago predicted a large place for Russia, among the, nations of Europe and my visit to tho great empire of tho northeast convinced me that Russia with uni versal education, freedom of speech, freedom of tho press, freedom. of religion and constitutional self-government would exert an influence upon the- destinies of the old world to which It would be difficult to set a limit W. J. BRYAN. The District of Columbia is offering some superior Inducements to corporations. The laws are much easier than those of New Jersey, and besides this there is tho added inducement of hav ing the corporation headquarters right where the legal representatives are talking for the Congres sional Record. 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