Nihilist Invented—The
Nihilist and His Theory—Further Repressive Measures—Attitude of Landed
Proprietors—Foundation of a Liberal Party—Liberalism Checked by Polish
Insurrection—Practical Reform Continued—An Attempt at Regicide Forms
a Turning-point of Government's Policy—Change in Educational
System—Decline of Nihilism.

CHAPTER XXXV

CHAPTER XXXV
SOCIALIST PROPAGANDA, REVOLUTIONARY AGITATION, AND TERRORISM
Closer Relations with Western Socialism—Attempts to Influence
the Masses—Bakunin and Lavroff—"Going in among the People"—The
Missionaries of Revolutionary Socialism—Distinction between Propaganda
and Agitation—Revolutionary Pamphlets for the Common People—Aims
and Motives of the Propagandists—Failure of Propaganda—Energetic
Repression—Fruitless Attempts at Agitation—Proposal to Combine
with Liberals—Genesis of Terrorism—My Personal Relations with the
Revolutionists—Shadowers and Shadowed—A Series of Terrorist Crimes—A
Revolutionist Congress—Unsuccessful Attempts to Assassinate
the Tsar—Ineffectual Attempt at Conciliation by Loris
Melikof—Assassination of Alexander II.—The Executive Committee
Shows Itself Unpractical—Widespread Indignation and Severe
Repression—Temporary Collapse of the Revolutionary Movement—A New
Revolutionary Movement in Sight.

CHAPTER XXXVI

CHAPTER XXXVI
INDUSTRIAL PROGRESS AND THE PROLETARIAT
Russia till Lately a Peasant Empire—Early Efforts to Introduce Arts and
Crafts—Peter the Great and His Successors—Manufacturing Industry
Long Remains an Exotic—The Cotton Industry—The Reforms of Alexander
II.—Protectionists and Free Trade—Progress under High Tariffs—M.
Witte's Policy—How Capital Was Obtained—Increase of Exports—Foreign
Firms Cross the Customs Frontier—Rapid Development of Iron Industry—A
Commercial Crisis—M. Witte's Position Undermined by Agrarians and
Doctrinaires—M. Plehve a Formidable Opponent—His Apprehensions of
Revolution—Fall of M. Witte—The Industrial Proletariat

CHAPTER XXXVII

CHAPTER XXXVII
THE REVOLUTIONARY MOVEMENT IN ITS LATEST PHASE
Influence of Capitalism and Proletariat on the Revolutionary
Movement—What is to be Done?—Reply of Plekhanof—A New Departure—Karl
Marx's Theories Applied to Russia—Beginnings of a Social Democratic
Movement—The Labour Troubles of 1894-96 in St. Petersburg—The Social
Democrats' Plan of Campaign—Schism in the Party—Trade-unionism and
Political Agitation—The Labour Troubles of 1902—How the Revolutionary
Groups are Differentiated from Each Other—Social Democracy and
Constitutionalism—Terrorism—The Socialist Revolutionaries—The
Militant Organisation—Attitude of the Government—Factory
Legislation—Government's Scheme for Undermining Social
Democracy—Father Gapon and His Labour Association—The Great Strike in
St. Petersburg—Father Gapon goes over to the Revolutionaries.

CHAPTER XXXVIII

CHAPTER XXXVIII
TERRITORIAL EXPANSION AND FOREIGN POLICY
Rapid Growth of Russia—Expansive Tendency of Agricultural Peoples—The
Russo-Slavonians—The Northern Forest and the Steppe—Colonisation—The
Part of the Government in the Process of Expansion—Expansion towards
the West—Growth of the Empire Represented in a Tabular Form—Commercial
Motive for Expansion—The Expansive Force in the Future—Possibilities
of Expansion in Europe—Persia, Afghanistan, and India—Trans-Siberian
Railway and Weltpolitik—A Grandiose Scheme—Determined Opposition of
Japan—Negotiations and War—Russia's Imprudence Explained—Conclusion.

CHAPTER XXXIX

THE PRESENT SITUATION
Reform or Revolution?—Reigns of Alexander II. and Nicholas II.
Compared and Contrasted—The Present Opposition—Various Groups—The
Constitutionalists—Zemski Sobors—The Young Tsar Dispels
Illusions—Liberal Frondeurs—Plehve's Repressive Policy—Discontent
Increased by the War—Relaxation and Wavering under Prince
Mirski—Reform Enthusiasm—The Constitutionalists Formulate their
Demands—The Social Democrats—Father Gapon's Demonstration—The
Socialist-Revolutionaries—The Agrarian Agitators—The
Subject-Nationalities—Numerical Strength of the Various Groups—All
United on One Point—Their Different Aims—Possible Solutions of the
Crisis—Difficulties of Introducing Constitutional Regime—A Strong Man
Wanted—Uncertainty of the Future.

PREFACE

The first edition of this work, published early in January, 1877, contained the concentrated results of my studies during an uninterrupted residence of six years in Russia—from the beginning of 1870 to the end of 1875. Since that time I have spent in the European and Central Asian provinces, at different periods, nearly two years more; and in the intervals I have endeavoured to keep in touch with the progress of events. My observations thus extend over a period of thirty-five years.

When I began, a few months ago, to prepare for publication the results of my more recent observations and researches, my intention was to write an entirely new work under the title of "Russia in the Twentieth Century," but I soon perceived that it would be impossible to explain clearly the present state of things without referring constantly to events of the past, and that I should be obliged to embody in the new work a large portion of the old one. The portion to be embodied grew rapidly to such proportions that, in the course of a few weeks, I began to ask myself whether it would not be better simply to recast and complete my old material. With a view to deciding the question I prepared a list of the principal changes which had taken place during the last quarter of a century, and when I had marshalled them in logical order, I recognised that they were neither so numerous nor so important as I had supposed. Certainly there had been much progress, but it had been nearly all on the old lines. Everywhere I perceived continuity and evolution; nowhere could I discover radical changes and new departures. In the central and local administration the reactionary policy of the latter half of Alexander II.'s reign had been steadily maintained; the revolutionary movement had waxed and waned, but its aims were essentially the same as of old; the Church had remained in its usual somnolent condition; a grave agricultural crisis affecting landed proprietors and peasants had begun, but it was merely a development of a state of things which I had previously described; the manufacturing industry had made gigantic strides, but they were all in the direction which the most competent observers had predicted; in foreign policy the old principles of guiding the natural expansive forces along the lines of least resistance, seeking to reach warm-water ports, and pegging out territorial claims