FOOTNOTES:
[1] See especially his book on “The Russian Peasant.”
[2] After the rising was suppressed, this officer was detained for a fortnight and then released.
[3] The following is the text of this appeal:—“The anniversary of the 9th (22nd) of January, 1905, lies immediately before us. Russia has not forgotten that day, and will never forget it. The memory of those who in the streets of the capital were attacked by the hosts of violence, and sacrificed their lives to their confidence in our rulers, their faith in the possibility of influencing them by peaceful means—the memory of these martyrs is engraved upon the hearts of the Russian people in words of sorrow and rage.
“Citizens of St. Petersburg! We appeal to you to honour a memory like theirs! We appeal to you to celebrate the first anniversary of that dark day! Henceforward let the 9th of January be a day of universal mourning among us. To honour the memory of those who fell for the people’s freedom, let all citizens abstain from their ordinary work. For this day let the toil of our city’s life be laid aside, so that a peaceful stillness may serve as the symbol of our general sorrow. On this day let not our mourning be broken by customary pleasures. On the day of the people’s sorrow what have we to do with song and art? Citizens, we call on you not only to avoid places of entertainment, but not to visit the banks or other public institutions. Draw down your blinds, and in the evening hang curtains before your windows, so that no light may be cast upon the streets from the houses. Let the day consecrated to the martyrs of January 9th be kept as a day of absolute silence, a day of deep and universal mourning, a day for sad and angry remembrance of all the victims which have been torn from our midst by the enemies of the people’s freedom.”
[4] Figures from the Times of February 24, 1906.
[5] See Carlyle’s “Frederick the Great,” Book II. ch. vi.
[6] Figures from the Times of January 15, 1906.
[7] The text of the speech was as follows:—
“Divine Providence has laid on me the care of the welfare of the Fatherland, and has moved me to summon representatives elected by the people, to co-operate in the work of framing laws.
“With an ardent belief in a prosperous future for Russia, I welcome in you the best men, to whose election I commanded my beloved subjects to proceed.
“Difficult and complicated labours await you, but I believe that the ardent wishes of the dear native land will inspire you and will unite you.
“I with unwavering firmness will uphold the institutions which I have established, in the firm conviction that you will devote all your powers to the self-sacrificing service of the Fatherland, to a clear presentation of the needs of the peasants, which lie so close to my heart, to the enlightenment of the people, and to the development of its well-being. You must realize that for the great welfare of the State, not only is Liberty necessary, but also order on the basis of law.
“May my ardent wishes be fulfilled! may I see my people happy, and be able to bequeath to my son as his inheritance a firmly-established, well-ordered, and enlightened State!
“May God bless me, in conjunction with the Council of Empire and the Duma, in the work before us, and may this day prove the rejuvenation of Russia’s moral outlook and the reincarnation of her best powers.
“Go to the work to which I have summoned you, and justify worthily the trust of your Tsar and your country! God help me and you!”
[8] The following were the chief points suggested by the Committee for the answer to the Tsar’s speech. They defined the programme of the majority:—The responsibility of Ministers to the majority in the Duma; universal suffrage (women’s suffrage was afterwards added); the abolition of the State Council; the necessity of land reform and universal education; the equality of rights for all classes before the law; freedom of conscience, person, domicile, speech, press, and meeting; control of the budget and redistribution of taxation; local self-government for separate nationalities; amnesty and the abolition of capital punishment.
Transcriber’s Notes:
1. Obvious printers’, punctuation and spelling errors have been corrected silently.
2. Some hyphenated and non-hyphenated versions of the same words have been retained as in the original.