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Lofty ideals rarely attained, appar
ent good intentions seldom translated
into action, and enlightened and pro
gressive thought that found expres
sion more often in reaction and op
presive acts than in 'reforms, made
the character and career of Nicholas
Romanoff, deposed £mperor of Rus
sia, a strange commingling of con
tradictions and consistencies.
Although personally he seemed sin
cere, simple, straight-forward, peace
loving, moderate and of benevolent
intent, disliking hypocrisy and osten
ation, a model husband and a tender
father, yet it was often asserted that
he ruled Russia in a reactionary spirit,
was jealous of authority, aroused to
action chiefly over trifles, that he
was incapable of generosity or sym
pathy for the oppressed, subject to
morbid moods, during which he was
capable of cruelty, was superstitious,
vacillating and timid.
Hague Peace Conference
It was the same autocrat of all
the Russias, who called the first great
world’* peace conference at The
Hague, proclaimed the principle of
international disarmament and dis
tributed 20,000,000 acres of land among
the Russian peasants, who also refused
to limit the autocratic power of the
emperor when appealed to by repre
sentatives of the Russian people, who
suppressed the nationality of the Poles
and denied liberty to the Finns. It
was he who granted constitutional re
forms for Russia and then became a
party to limitation of the constitu
tional rights of the representatives of
the people. Though he dealt hu
manely in some respects with the
minor nationalities merged into Rus
sia, the JewB suffered under his rule
great restriction. Withholding Russia
from war with England and develop
ing the Franco-Russlam entente into
a formal alliance, he yet allowed Rus
sia to drift into war with Japan, and,
when Russia drew her sword to halt
the progress of German aggression,
failed to prosecute the war with en
ergy and is said to have preferred a
German victory to liberal control of
the Russian government
’ Well-Intentioned but Weak
The usual explanation of these con
tradictions between his characteristics
and his policies was that Nicholas was
of benevolent disposition but weak in
will, easily swayed by the reactionary
forces of the Russian bureaucracy by
which he was surrounded and which
hampered and hindered the achieve
ment of his own desiros. Yet, under
outside influence, he was capable of
nerving himself to strong determina
tions and firm action, such, for ex
ample, as his initiation of the move
ment to disarmament.
The empress, it was said, once car
icatured him as a bald-headed infant,
tied to a high chair, surrounded by a
crowd of grand dukes and duchesses,
each of whom tried to feed him in a
different way, with the result that the
infant was distracted and in tears. By
some this was regarded as a faithful
portrayal of the emperor’s position.
His Early Training
Nicholas, son and successor of Em
peror Alexander III., was bom in St.
Petersburg, May 18, 1868; was edu
cated under the direction of Constan
tine Pobedonosseff, procurator general
of the holy synod, and received mili
tary training but had no personal
tastes for soldiering. Before his ac
cession to the throne, he was sent
on a tour of Greece, Egypt, India and
Japan, where he narowly escaped as
sassination by a Japaneses fanatic. In
that incident, it was said, the Rus
sian heir apparent gave evidence of
timidity.
Great Tragedy Attends Coronation
He succeeded to the throne on Nov
ember 1, 1894, at the doath of his
father, and within a few weeks there
after married Princess Alexandra Alix,
afterward known as Alexandra Feo
dorovna, daughter of the Grand Duke
of Hesse, by whom he had four
daughters, the Grand Duchesses Olga,
Tatiana, Marie and Anatasia, and one
son, the Grand Duke Alexis, heir ap
parent to the Russian crown up to the
time of his father’s abdication, a child
of delicate constitution who Is re
ported to have died a few days ago,
after a loaf Illness. Emperor Nich
olas’ coronation at Moscow a year and
a half later, was attended by a festi
val in which 2,000 persons were tram
pled to death. .
The autocratic ruler of many mil
lions of Russians was twenty-six years
old when he succeeded to the throne.
His lack of experience in the rough
affairs of the world and the limi
tations of his early training in the
secluded Russian court had failed to
qualify him in any way to fill the
role of an autocrat. Instead of wield
ing the ccepter with a firm hand he
succumbed at once to the stupefying
influence of the bureaucratic forces
which dictated Russian policies.
How He Lost People’s Respect
He alienated the love and loyalty
of the Russian people within a short
time after his accession as emperor
by rebuking a delegation from the
Russian zemstvos who gathered at the
Winter Palace to greet the new sov
ereign and brought a memorial in
which they suggested that the law be
enforced with equal justice to all and
hinted at an extension of constitu
tional rights to the people. Prompted
by Pobedonostseff, or other bureau
cratic mentors, the emperor denounced
these suggestions as idiotic dreams.
From that itme Nicholas was to a
large extent under the control of his
ministers. He had alienated the sup
port of the Russian people which per
haps would have enabled him to as
sert himself in conflict with the bu
reaucrats and imperial relatives who
thwarted him.
Five years after his accession to the
throne, Nicholas startled all Europe
by calling, in 1899, the first peace
conference at The Hague to discuss
the principle of disarmament and ar
bitration. Although it did not lead to
the results be anticipated, it yet forms
the basis for hopes' of men through
out che world of erecting a structure
for tb' manoe of peace.
• War with Japan
by Bi'Ld Nicholas was largely held
responsible for the Russo-Japanese
war on the ground that he permitted
his favorites to develop the aggres
sive policy in Manchuria and Korea
which aroused Japan to hostilities.
He was accused of hindering prepar
ations for the war, of meddling with
General Kuropatkin, his commander,
but is credited with having by his
firm insistence saved Russia from pay
1 (Continued on Page Six)
Would You Help?
Time Is Precious
War has a way of driving on with
out regard to the desires or
conveniences of the
individual.
~..This is no time for hesitation....
If you arc going to do your part to bring
victory nearer, you must get started.
The Government wants what your
money will buy—and wants it before it
is too late to be of use in this war.
Join a War Savings Society. Decide now
to cut down the unnecessary things and
4 lend what you save to the Government.
fWSS] Do Your <*
'3£3K‘ Part
\ OIWIKMBff.