p. 381 | The Missionary by J. W. SCOLES

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Jun 3, 1889

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 15, No. 21.

The Missionary.

By J. W. SCOLES

THE LAND OF THE CZARS. NO. 3.

It has come to be regarded as a safe rule by which to judge of the possibilities of any country or nation by the government which it possesses. This is undoubtedly a correct principle to apply in general, and while there may be exceptions to this rule, it will be found, other things considered, to work well in the majority of cases. The statutes of any Government constitute the limit, nationally, to the attainments of its people, and any higher ground can be occupied only through a change in the Government by means of a revolution or otherwise. It is the recognition of this principle that is causing the unrest and agitation among the Russians to-day. As a people, they feel themselves capable of greater things than are at present within their reach. This feeling has been cherished for generations past, and when the imperial decree of 1861 was carried into effect two years later, and 22,000,000 serfs belonging to private owners, besides the 22,225,000 crown peasants, were emancipated, it caused a thrill of joy to run through the entire nation, as they thought they saw in these tokens the signs of a speedy reconstruction of their laws upon purer principles, not the least of which they hoped was a constitutional Government. But the fountain must be cleansed else the stream can never become pure. Year after year went by and still the goal of their desires was as far away as ever. Then it was that the spirit of unrest so long lying half dormant in the breast of the Russians began to rouse itself, and to show in the vague threats and muttered warnings of the populace the premonitory symptoms of that discontent which would have resulted in an outbreak of revolution long before this had more favorable conditions prevailed.

In this land of liberty, we can form only a faint idea, at best, of some of the trials under which the inhabitants of Russia labor. We have perhaps been too ready to condemn them all unheard, and to associate the nihilism, so called, of that country, with the anarchy and lawless sentiments of the Socialists of our own land, than which perhaps we could not have made a graver mistake in this connection. A proof of this is found in the fact that the official organ of the Nihilists, published at Geneva, was bordered with mourning on the occasion of the assassination of President Garfield. They could see no excuse for political assassination (as they then understood Garfield’s murder to be), in a country of open courts and free presses, and where the officers of the Government were chosen by a free vote of the people. Doubtless there are in a heterogeneous population like that of Russia, some who hold to almost all sorts of political opinions, but the mass of political conspirators there do not believe in the so-called policy of terror, and even those who do, do not design to break down all existing institutions, as falsely reported here. The term Nihilist is undoubtedly a misnomer as applied to the revolutionary party in Russia. According to their own statements, they would readily lay down their arms if the Czar would guarantee to them a constitutional form of Government free speech, a free press, and freedom from arbitrary arrest, imprisonment, and exile. We who have grown up here amid the atmosphere of our free institutions cannot appreciate all that this means to these poor struggling souls. Perhaps an insight into some of the facts in their case will assist us in understanding it better.

The Government of Russia is an absolute monarchy, which it is well-known is the most tyrannical form of government that can exist. All power emanates from the emperor, or Czar (Zar), who has complete control over the lives and property of his subjects. In fact, the greater part of the landed estate of the empire belongs to the crown, and those who cultivate this are required to pay enormous rents for the privilege. Not only so, but any permanent improvements in the way of barns, houses, or buildings of any description, can be instantly seized upon by the officers of the law and regarded as a part of the estate, while the poor farmer who has borne the expense can be immediately dispossessed and assigned to some other piece of property. If he raises any objection, some trumped-up charge can easily be brought against him, and the next thing he knows, without even so much as the benefit of a trial in some instances, off he goes to Siberia. This may be considered an extreme case, but it is no more than has been done time after time, and no more than it is possible to do again. What makes the matter worse is that this power of the Czar is hereditary and passes down from generation to generation, so that the only limit to the indignities possible to be put on the suffering people lies in the whim or caprice of the one who happens to be the governing monarch. The Czar is also head of the church and appoints all its officers. He is by law a believer in the Orthodox Catholic faith, as it is officially called, or, as we term it, the Greek Church, which is the established religion of the empire, and of which we will speak more fully in the future. This, it can be readily seen, gives him a power in religious matters which, when he chooses to exercise it, comes so little short of the despotism of the Romish hierarchy that there is but little difference between the two.

When we think of these things it almost makes us tremble to contemplate the possibilities of danger and hardship that lie in the way of planting the present truth in such a country as this. We are glad, however, that the Lord does not require us to do this work in our own strength, and that he has promised to uphold and care for his faithful servants. But how much they will need our prayers, and how generously we should contribute of our means to aid in the establishment of the truth on a firm basis among this people! Undoubtedly the Lord has many precious sheaves to be garnered from this part of the great harvest-field. May we do our part in helping send forth laborers into the harvest. J. W. SCOLES.