A. W. Greely

“ Side by side with the most revolutionary doctrines that would shock the most advanced of English or French radicals, there are students, like one whom I met last autumn, who simply refuse to believe that such a thing as religious freedom exists in any country in the world. ”

“ Confirming Wallace's opinion, Villari states that the Eastern Church is an inert body, almost devoid of vitality. It contributes little to the moral and intellectual progress of the people, but merely keeps them enslaved and ignorant. The average priest, his one thought money exaction, is grasping, avaricious, and callous to the moral condition of his flock. While the average Russian is devoted to his faith and most carefully observes its practices, yet "the liberal movement will render the absolute domination of the church a thing of the past." ”

“ A protective tariff and government support have wonderfully developed manufacturing industries, which, in order of importance, are textile fabrics, articles of nutrition, and ores or metals. In total production Russia ranked fifth among the nations. ”

“ Per contra is the Moscow University a plague spot of liberalism, vexatious to the government and not favorable to advanced instruction, owing to censor- ship and frequent closing by the gov- ernment. On this point Villari says Russia is especially cursed with an intellectual proletariat, with indigent students, insufficiently clothed and de- pending on benevolent societies and scholarships. He adds :
"These students and graduates overflow the offices and liberal professions and become the most active agents of revolutionary propaganda. ”

“ Competition and' overproduction led to failures and a commercial crisis, from which Russia was slowly recovering at the commence- ment of its war with Japan.
With manufacturing industries the urban populations increased, notably of L,odz and Moscow, the latter reaching a million. Big factories with cheaper methods of manufacture are killing rapidly home industries. Whole groups of 1 ' industrial villages have fallen under the power of middlemen, who advance money to the working households and fix the price of the products. ”

“ Of Russia he says : ' 'An immense country, rich in natural resources, inhabited by a people who, if primitive and ignorant, have many very fine qualities, strong, capable of the hardest toil, inured to the struggle with nature, brave, intelligent, and religious, has been kept out of the march of pro- gress in a condition of semi- Asiatic bar- barism for the sake of impossible schemes of universal dominion. ”

“ The development of manufactures and the creation of a proletariat mate- rially affected the revolutionary move- ment, which assumed the form of social democracy. Political agitationsand trade unions resulted in labor troubles, but the efforts of the government, through legislation and its support of working- men in labor disputes, failed to control the situation. ”

“ These incongruities are but the result of the system of repression of ideas which, while it succeeds admirably in destroying all independent thought among the stupid masses, drives others to the wildest extremes of revolutionary ideas in politics, literature, and philosophy. ”

“ The peasant has great industrial possibilities, is docile, quick to learn, but is without initiative, careless, and needs constant supervision."
The artisan, however, "has a new feeling of human personality and dignity," is inspired with new ideas, and driven to new movements. ”

“ Their unpopularity is due to many causes, principally economic. Speculation in grain, most widespread, brings them in bad standing with the peasants, who hate the Jews, but trade with them, as they often mistrust more the Christian merchants. ”

“ Considering a strong man necessary, he says of Witte : ' 'As an administrator he has displayed immense ability and energy, but it does not follow that he is a statesman capable of piloting the ship into calm waters. ”

“ The growth of nihilism and its reaction are carefully treated. Repressive measures failed to check it, the decline being due to the foundation of a liberal party. Nihilism found its warmest par- tisans among students, whose beautiful theories lacked the power of even sug- gesting concrete forms. The trans- formation of nihilism into socialism is attributed to Tolstoi's educational re- form, which brought the revolutionists into closer contact with western social- ism. ”

“ They generally come out with the highest honors, and those who do not go into business become lawyers or doctors, the only liberal professions open to them, and rapidly acquire the best practice. The result . ”