The proverbial fog of war is scarcely more dense than
that which for the present shrouds the political movement in Russia. Anarchy is clearly on the increase, there are daily reports of outrages in the provinces, and mutinies have occurred in several regiments. The Times of Monday pub- lished an interesting article from a St. Petersburg corre- spondent in which some, attempt was made to estimate the attitude of the peasants, with whom the ultimate word must rest. Their confidence in the Duma is still unshaken, but they are also governed by the Peasants' Union, which is said to number many millions of adherents, and this in turn is affiliated to the Army Union, which includes the greater part of the garrisons of the cities. Such a class obviously has in its hands an immense leverage when it resolves to use it. The Ministerial question is still far from a settlement. The Consti- tutional Democrats appointed by the Duma demand as the price of their acceptance of office an admission of the principle of Ministerial responsibility, and of partial expropriation as the solution of the agrarian problem. It is believed in many quarters that these may be conceded, and in that case M. Mouromtseff will probably be the Premier. selected rather than M. Yermoloff. Meanwhile General Trepoff seems to be playing a strange part. He is professing sympathy with the Constitutional Democrats, possibly, so it is suggested, with the intention of creating by his patronage a final break between them and the Socialist extremists.
